Biodiversity and tradition: the “Ancient Fruits of Italy” meet in Pennabilli

For two days, the historic center, the Orto dei Frutti Dimenticati (Forgotten Fruit Garden), and the Il Mondo di Tonino Guerra museum will host the Market of Ancient Fruits and Rural Plants, the National Pomological and Biodiversity Exhibition, meetings, excursions, workshops, and demonstrations dedicated to artisanal and rural knowledge, along with tastings, music, and convivial moments.

The 2026 program connects seeds and genetics, historic rural landscapes, vineyard biodiversity, wild herbs, harvest conservation techniques, and traditional soil, stone, and fiber processing, demonstrating how biodiversity involves not only what grows, but also the knowledge and practices developed to utilize and conserve it.

The Festival was born in 2008 from an idea by Tonino Guerra and the experience of the Orto dei Frutti Dimenticati. Nineteen years later, the theme is not only saving what is at risk of disappearing, but also understanding how to preserve it and make it useful again.

It is in this sense that a phrase Guerra uttered in 2011, during an interview with Carlo Petrini dedicated to peasant culture, takes on particular significance. Petrini asked him whether the memory of the rural world, often dismissed as nostalgia, could instead constitute a paradigm for the future. Guerra responded: "We need to recreate this passion they (peasant culture, ed.) had, the devotion to the land. But in a new way."

Guerra's words offer a particularly fitting interpretation of the 2026 edition: memory capable of producing knowledge in the present and tools for the future.

The reference to Carlo Petrini is not new in the history of the Festival. The founder of Slow Food, who recently passed away, was a guest at Antichi Frutti in 2012 and 2020, with a conversation on integral ecology and the book Terra Futura. Guerra and Petrini shared profound reflections on peasant civilization, biodiversity, food culture, and the need to restore value to communities and territories.

In 2020, in Pennabilli, Petrini identified the Garden of Forgotten Fruits as the place "where it all began," a significant recognition of the anticipatory power of Tonino Guerra's intuitions regarding themes that later became central to Slow Food's thinking.

The event will close with a memorial service for Carlo Petrini on Sunday, September 27th at 8:30 pm. The documentary Slow Food Story, released in 2013 and directed by Stefano Sardo, will be screened. The documentary focuses on the birth and evolution of the international Slow Food movement founded by Petrini.

And it is precisely from the Garden of Forgotten Fruits, repeatedly mentioned in the dialogue between Guerra and Petrini, that the Festival's thread begins again: this year, the garden returns to the center of the event with a project of care and renewal by the Tonino Guerra Cultural Association of Pennabilli and the Tonino Guerra Museum-Study Center of Santarcangelo di Romagna, with the collaboration of the Municipality of Pennabilli and the Pennabilli Antiques Association.

The Festival's origins will not only be the venue for the two-day events scheduled for September: the Association and the Tonino Guerra Museum-Study Center are coordinating the Apple Harvest project, presented over the summer. The project aims to revitalize the Garden through the care, renovation, and enhancement of the museum park, with particular attention to its plant heritage, ancient fruits, and the readability of the works and ideas that form its poetic fabric.

Based on an idea and initiative by Andrea Guerra, the aim was to bring together interested stakeholders and intervene on the site, which represents not only a fundamental part of the botanical and cultural heritage of the Marecchia Valley, but also a point of poetic and museum interest. During the inauguration of the event, participants and the community will be shown the numerous extraordinary maintenance projects completed and underway, aimed at preserving the beauty and magic of this innovative museum of flavors.

The Apple Harvest has received the support of Sogliano Ambiente and Aboca, who believe in this project, created to protect and preserve beauty and biodiversity. It focuses on issues that today appear vitally important, not only for the protection of our land. The Garden's renewal is part of the overall program: preservation doesn't mean leaving things standing still: an orchard, a garden, a seed, or a craft continue to live if they are cared for, practiced, shared, and passed on.

The Festival of Ancient Fruits also involves those who transformed Guerra's vision into venues, such as the Pennabilli Antiques Association. This includes Gianni Giannini, founder of the Antiques Exhibition and for many years alongside the Maestro in developing a new vision for Pennabilli and the Marecchia Valley, which gave rise to the Places of the Soul, the Garden of Forgotten Fruits, and the artistic initiatives spread throughout the valley. This collaboration has left a profound mark on Pennabilli's cultural identity.

The Ancient Fruits of Italy Meet in Pennabilli is an event promoted and organized by the Tonino Guerra Association and the Tonino Guerra Museum-Study Center, with the collaboration of institutions, associations, local organizations, and partners who share and support the event, and with the contribution of Coldiretti Rimini and Sogliano Ambiente.

The event's inauguration is scheduled for Saturday, September 26th, at 3:00 PM at the Orto dei Frutti Dimenticati in Pennabilli. The full program is below:

A market of ancient fruits and peasant plants, Montefeltro agricultural products and skilled crafts, enriched by demonstrations, knowledge and activities to experience:

The stonemason Demonstration of working Miratoio stone, with The weaver Demonstration of weaving on reconstructed traditional looms, with Bernardetta Agostini.

The basket maker Take part in the construction of a large basket.

with Flower hammering Experiment with the botanical hammering technique with SEN:APE

The tile maker Demonstration of the making and construction of the traditional Montetiffi pan, followed by the baking of piadina, together with the students at the end of the course on the ancient craft of tile makers promoted by the Municipality of Sogliano.

National Pomology and Biodiversity Exhibition. Featuring universities, researchers, associations, and farmers from across Italy, curated by Luigi Mattei Gentili. Design by Cinzia Dori and Pietro Dani.

ex Seminario Risonanze The exhibition collects the views of those who live and pass through Pennabilli, between artistic residences and the L'Artrov – Community Stories project Guided tour Saturday 26 September at 11:30 am

Pennabilli's restaurants will offer special menus for the festival, featuring local products and traditional recipes. Food stands will offer specialties from the Montefeltro region.

SEPTEMBER 26, 2026, 3:00 PM | Inauguration – Orto dei Frutti Dimenticati We celebrate the beginning of the 19th Edition with the participation of authorities and guests.

6:00 PM | Round Table – Tonino Guerra Association

A seed never forgets its path. Seeds travel through time with the people who care for them. A moment of exchange and discussion to discuss biodiversity, the behavior of seeds, and the value of sharing. With Silvia Assolari SemeNostrum, Daniela Conti, biologist, Alliance of Seed Guardians, and Elena Campacci, Chi burdèl dla campurèla.

8:30 PM | Peasant Vigil – Garden of Forgotten Fruits

Traditional folk dances, music, and songs performed by a female quartet.

4:00 PM | Orto dei Frutti Dimenticati (Forgotten Fruit Garden) A small portable museum for playing with Musss – Natural History Museum of Sasso Simone and Simoncello and Malafeltro

4:00 PM | Orto dei Frutti Dimenticati (Forgotten Fruit Garden): Stories and tips on sourdough starter with Cristian Crociani

9:00 AM | Casa Fanchi: Hike through historic rural landscapes

With Enrico Rivella, biologist and ISMEA representative for maps of the historic rural landscape of Piedmont, Guerrino Fanchi, farmer and philosopher, and Roberto Sartor, hiking guide.

Reservations required, meet at 9 a.m. at the Orto dei Frutti Dimenticati.

10:00 AM | Guided Tour – House of Almonds

A visit to the garden of Tonino and Lora Guerra's house: biodiversity, memory, and poetry. Edited by Lea Gardi, Contadini di Romagna, and Giovanna Priarone, Tonino Guerra Association.

Free admission, meet at 10 a.m. at the Casa dei Mandorli.

11:00 AM | Round Table – Tonino Guerra Association

Even the vine needs to be listened to. Every vineyard is a small ecosystem. Listening to the vine means observing the soil, insects, wild herbs, and the seasons. From Piedmont's historic viticulture to best practices for biodiversity in the vineyard. With Enrico Rivella, biologist and author of the ISPRA study on biodiversity in Piedmont vineyards, Emiliano Battistini, sound researcher, and Guido Cardelli Masini Palazzi, President of Coldiretti Rimini.

4:00 PM | Peasant Vigil – Piazzetta delle Are The Secret Ingredient A peasant vigil dedicated to the many ways to transform and preserve rural produce, from preserves to methods for storing the harvest and making it last over time.

Familiar traditions intertwined over time and enriched by the stories and traditions brought by migration. With hands at work and music in the air, a moment to share ancient gestures and new influences. Joined by Francesco Angelini, Valentina Baldisserri, Venolta Festival, Circolo Acli Pennabilli, and other local groups.

6:00 PM | Tasting – Forgotten Fruit Garden: When Time Becomes Flavor

A journey through natural wines to discover how time, yeast, and care transform the fruits of the earth into savorable flavors.

The evening concludes with a dynamic tasting of refermented bubbles with Simone Manicardi and his Caoswine project. The evening continues with music by Collettivo Fumaiolo and their tracks.

8:30 PM | Film screening – Tonino Guerra Association

A tribute to Carlo Petrini, founder of Slow Food, and his commitment to promoting food culture, biodiversity, and local communities.

11:00 AM | Roccione Alto: Build your own kite

3:00 PM | Garden of Forgotten Fruits Canvas Printing Workshop

9:00 AM | Villa Maindi "Wild Autumn" Excursion With Silvia Assolari of SemeNostrum, Antonietta Corbelli, a passionate herb hunter, Martina Lorenzi, a hiking guide, and D'la de foss.