This study is a first attempt at documenting the ethnobotanical value of local fruit trees, the quantity of which has been decreasing for the past fifty years, while the cultivation has gradually been abandoned. The current study focuses on Gargano Promontory area, where some traditional agricultural practices are still in use. Many species and ethnobotanical categories are involved in a range of uses, such as domestic and craft products (22 species), agroforestry (16 species) and economic (13 species), not just for food. In these cases, fruits (62%) and other parts (leaves, seeds, remnants of pruning, wood) of a plant are important (38%). 217 fruit trees are involved (landraces, ancient cultivars) and they belong to 33 species, mainly Rosaceae’s (53%). Chestnut, pear, almond and walnut trees are most widely exploited, proving that an ethnobotanical heritage of great importance has developed thanks to the diversity of traditional fruit trees, whose relevance is far from being completely studied. In the Gargano area, the variety of traditional fruit trees has become a strong distinctive feature of the Mediterranean diet. This is in turn still the base of the nutritional regime of a community that developed a sound gastronomic knowledge based on fruits (salads, starters, etc.). The socio-economic changes of the past fifty years have obviously led to abandoning most of said uses. The interest in foodstuff remains, but it is limited to few species, or to an even lower number of their morphotypes. In intercultural comparisons with other Italian regions (Campania, Basilicata) and other countries (Serbia), we have found common uses, but above all a great uniqueness. At the same time, there is evidence showing the close relationship between the diversity of fruit trees in use and the resulting biocultural abundance. The abandonment of traditional agricultural practices has also led to the loss of ethnobotanical values linked to local fruits. Hence, preserving the ethnobotanical knowledge is the only way of recovering and enhancing this precious heritage made of biological and cultural biodiversity.

这项研究是首次尝试记录当地果树的民族植物学价值，在过去的五十年里，这些果树的数量一直在减少，而种植却逐渐被放弃。目前的研究重点是加尔加诺海角地区，那里的一些传统农业实践仍在使用中。许多物种和民族植物学类别涉及一系列用途，例如家用和手工艺品（22 种）、农林业（16 种）和经济（13 种），而不仅仅是用于食品。在这些情况下，果实 (62%) 和植物的其他部分（叶子、种子、修剪的残余物、木材）很重要（38%）。涉及217棵果树（地方品种、古栽培品种），属于33种，主要是蔷薇科（53%）。栗树、梨树、杏仁树和核桃树的开发最为广泛，证明由于传统果树的多样性，已经发展了具有重要意义的民族植物学遗产，但其相关性远未得到完全研究。在加尔加诺地区，种类繁多的传统果树已成为地中海饮食的一大特色。这反过来仍然是一个社区的营养制度的基础，该社区以水果（沙拉、开胃菜等）为基础开发了完善的美食知识。过去五十年的社会经济变化显然导致放弃了大部分上述用途。对食物的兴趣仍然存在，但仅限于少数物种，或者甚至更少的形态类型。在与意大利其他地区（坎帕尼亚、巴西利卡塔）和其他国家（塞尔维亚）的跨文化比较中，我们发现了共同的用途，但最重要的是具有很大的独特性。同时，有证据表明使用的果树多样性与由此产生的生物文化丰度之间存在密切关系。放弃传统农业做法还导致与当地水果相关的民族植物学价值观的丧失。因此，保护​​民族植物学知识是恢复和加强这一由生物和文化生物多样性构成的宝贵遗产的唯一途径。