Alien ornamental plants on sale in Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe: potential sources for plant invasions

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Wilson, Katharina Dehnen-Schmutz, and 3 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-6627842/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Published Journal Publication published 26 Mar, 2026 Read the published version in African Biodiversity & Conservation → Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Background: Ornamental gardening is one of the main historical and current pathways for plant introductions into southern Africa. A few introduced ornamental plants have become invasive, sometimes triggering conflicts between stakeholders. Knowing which alien plants are being sold and used as ornamentals in the sub-region is important to assess the potential for future biological invasions and conflicts between stakeholders. Objectives: This paper identifies and characterises the ornamental plants on sale in three southern African countries, and compared these to lists of plants considered invasive in the area of the continental Southern African Development Community (SADC). Methods: We compiled all plant taxa sold across eleven nurseries in Botswana (3), Namibia (2) and Zimbabwe (6) by accessing the plants in stock either on the nurseries’ website, on social media, and via stock lists shared by the nursery owners. The compilation was matched with the Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species to identify invasive taxa. This sub-group was characterised by growth form and biogeographical origin. Results: 1,193 species were found to be sold, of which 784 are alien to the continental SADC sub-region, 289 have established alien populations in at least one continental SADC country, and 82 are considered invasive in at least one continental SADC country. Many of the established and invasive plants are popular trees and shrubs in the sub-region and worldwide. Most of them have a wide native range usually covering more than one continent. Conclusions: This paper provides a quantification of the invasion debt due to the ornamental sector in southern Africa, and a baseline to identify priorities for risk analysis and potential regulation or control at a sub-regional level. Approaches to reduce the sale of invasive species, however, need to be considered carefully, since their current popularity across the sub-region could make them a source of conflict between the ornamental horticulture sector and those tasked with managing biological invasions. Botany established species invasive species non-native plants plant nurseries southern Africa Figures Figure 1 Figure 2 Introduction Ornamental plants have accompanied humanity since the early days of civilisations (Wilson et al. 2016 ). With transoceanic exploration, European colonisation and later industrialisation, ornamental gardening and landscaping became an industry that has moved thousands of plant species around the world (Hinsley et al., 2025; van Kleunen et al., 2018). This contributed to the introduction and spread of alien plants following trends, fashions and passions (Altman et al. 2022 ; Wilson et al. 2016 ; van Kleunen et al. 2018). In southern Africa, ornamental gardening has been one of the main historical pathways for plant introduction, accounting for 30–70% of the intentional introductions in different countries of the sub-region between the 19th and 20th centuries (Henderson 2006 ; Kobisi et al. 2019 ; Maroyi 2017 ). Introduced ornamental plants like Lantana camara , Pontederia crassipes and Tithonia diversifolia have become invasive in the sub-region, with complex dynamics of costs and benefits that vary with time, space, and stakeholder (Novoa et al. 2018 ; Shackleton et al. 2019 ). Those abovementioned species were introduced in the sub-region over a hundred years ago, but the development of the ornamental industry in southern Africa continues nowadays, with South Africa at the frontline. According to Faulkner et al. (2020), plant introductions for ornamental horticulture into South Africa are likely to continue increasing. Alien plants are generally dominant in gardens and public spaces across the urban areas of the sub-region (Kashe et al. 2022 ; Mafokate et al. 2013 ; Milton & Dean 2025 ; Richardson & Potgieter 2024; Shackleton & Shackleton 2016 ; 2018 ). This intentional spread combined with environmental suitability and species’ inherent invasiveness is likely to result in more invasions over time. Knowing what species are currently sold and used as ornamentals in the sub-region is an essential step to assess the likelihood of some of them to become invasive, and/or to become a source of conflicts of interests. Hence, this paper reports what plant species are sold and used as ornamental in three southern African countries (Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe) in light of the alien taxa recognised as established and invasive in the sub-region. Material and Methods Data collection and analysis took place from mid-2022 to mid-2024, combining different sources of information from 11 major nursery businesses in Botswana, Namibia, and Zimbabwe (Fig. 1 ). The willingness of nursery owners to share the information on their stocks allowed us to survey their stock on-site. Likewise, the online visibility of their stock on the internet (i.e., through social media or website) determined our ability to access the data. We could not visit all the spaces where people sell plants and in some cases people were reticent to share data with us. In the following lines, we describe our workflow to collect and analyse the data (also see the R script as Supplementary Materials). Nursery identification and validation : We used a Google map search, data sharing and validation, and further participants’ input (snowballing sampling) and in situ identification in Botswana, Namibia, and Zimbabwe. The Google map search allowed us to identify 18 nurseries in Botswana, two in Zimbabwe, and one in Namibia. Participants indicated nine more nurseries, and we identified a dozen other nurseries in Botswana. In Harare, Zimbabwe, the co-organiser of the Annual Garden Show indicated 33 nurseries. We identified eight other nurseries in the show and another six in the city. In Namibia, we identified 10 nurseries. Inputs : We accessed the stock of three formal nurseries identified in Botswana, two in Namibia, and 6 in Zimbabwe. Four nurseries shared their list of plants in stock (two in Botswana and two in Zimbabwe), while the other three (one in Namibia and three in Zimbabwe) had up-to-date lists on their websites. We identified plants from the Instagram page of two nurseries (one in Namibia and one in Zimbabwe) and at a visit to a nursery in Botswana (Fig. 1 ). Plant identification : We used the Pl@ntNet app (Pl@ntNet n.d.) and plant guides (Bromilow, 2018 ; Pienaar & Smith, 2011 ). Taxonomical standardisation : It was conducted with the “lcvplants” R package (Freiberg et al., 2020 ), using the 2023 version of the Leipzig Plant Catalogue as taxonomic backbone. Matching with Global Register for Introduced and Invasive Species (GRIIS) : The resulting plant inventory was matched with the register of introduced and invasive species (GRIIS) for the 12 continental countries belonging to the Southern African Development Community (Braun et al., 2020 ; Chase & Pagad, 2020 ; Figueiredo et al., 2020 ; Groom et al., 2020 ; Hae & Pagad, 2020 ; Heath et al., 2020 ; Maroyi et al., 2020 ; Mwanyambo et al., 2020 ; Pagad, 2022 ; Robinson et al., 2020 ; Witt & Pagad, 2020 ; Witt et al., 2020 ). We used the “lcvplants” R package for database matching (Freiberg et al., 2020 ). GRIIS records alien species and native-alien populations of native species that have established in a given country, noting whether the species has evidence of negative impacts on species, ecosystems and services (Pagad et al., 2018 ). If the species has evidence of negative impacts —which includes being widespread, highly abundant and fast-spreading— GRIIS categorises it as ‘invasive’. This definition is different from the Unified Framework for Biological Invasions (Blackburn et al., 2011 ), but is in line with the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES, 2023). The abovementioned steps resulted in an inventory of the plant species in the ornamental trade of Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe. This list was composed of both matched and unmatched taxa with GRIIS (Output 3 in Fig. 1 ), where we highlighted the biogeographical category based on “Plants of the World Online” (POWO) [Board of Trustees, Royal Botanic Garden, Kew n.d.] (Table 1 ). Table 1 Metadata of the resulted plant inventory (dataset in Supplementary Materials). Column ID Column labels Description A identificationID Identifier for resulted taxon after identification and taxonomical standardisation (based on Leipzig Plant Catalogue). B scientificName Resulted scientific name after identification and taxonomical standardisation (Leipzig Plant Catalogue). C family Botanical family as per Leipzig Plant Catalogue. D is.Native Boolean data, as in TRUE for taxa native to any part of the mainland countries of Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) and FALSE for alien (non-native) taxa to the area and artificial hybrids. E is.Native.notes Notes describing the Boolean value, whether the taxon is alien, artificial hybrid or native, and which part of the area the taxa is native to, based on Plants of the World Online (POWO). F GRIIS.established SADC countries in which the taxon is recorded as established in the Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species (GRIIS). Otherwise the value is FALSE. G GRIIS.invasive SADC countries in which the taxon is recorded as invasive in the Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species (GRIIS). Otherwise the value is FALSE. H verbatimName Name given by the nurseries. If no name was given the value is NA. I-S Botswana_1; Botswana_2; Botswana_3; Namibia_1; Namibia_2; Zimbabwe_1; Zimbabwe_2; Zimbabwe_3; Zimbabwe_4; Zimbabwe_5; Zimbabwe_6 Presence (1)/absence (0) values for each taxa in each of the 11 nurseries from Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe. T notes Explanation of NA and non-scientific names in verbatimName column. Otherwise NA. Description of species recorded as established and/or invasive : We characterised the sub-set of taxa recorded as established and/or invasive in any of the continental SADC countries by growth form, native range and family. This constitutes a checklist of established and/or invasive plant species currently traded within the ornamental sector across Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe. “Plants of the World Online” (POWO) [Board of Trustees, Royal Botanic Garden, Kew n.d.] was used to collect information on growth form and geographical origin. We grouped the growth forms found in POWO into 7 broad categories: climber (including liana), herb (including geophyte), epiphyte (including lithophyte), shrub (including subshrub), succulent, tree, and a combination of shrub-tree. For the biogeographical origin, we used the nine level-1 botanical regions of the World Geographical Scheme for Recording Plant Distributions of the Taxonomic Databases Working Group (Brummitt, 2001 ). Results We compiled 1,835 plant names from 11 formal nurseries in Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe. The taxonomical standardisation resulted in 1,193 accepted species names, 320 synonyms, 207 names that could not be found, 12 unresolved names, 85 seem to have typos (e.g., the algorithm recognised two different Agave americana taxa because the space between the genus and the specific epithet was single in one nursery checklist and double in another) and 18 taxa at genera level. Of the resulted plant inventory (1, 193 taxa), 784 taxa (~ 66%) are alien to the continental SADC sub-region, 390 taxa (~ 33%) are native to at least one country/province/in-country region in the area and 19 are artificial hybrids (dataset in Supplementary Materials, metadata in Table 1 ). From the inventory, 289 taxa (24%) matched the GRIIS as having established alien populations in at least one continental SADC country (Table 2 , dataset in Supplementary Materials). This sub-set includes 284 taxa alien to the continental SADC sub-region, 4 taxa native to parts of the sub-region and 3 artificial hybrids (dataset in Supplementary Materials). From this sub-set, 82 taxa are recorded as invasive in at least one continental SADC country (Table 3 ), where 81 are alien to the sub-region and 1 is an artificial hybrid. Furthermore, approximately 45% (130) of the sub-set of established species have established alien populations (and/or considered invasive) in more than one continental SADC country (Table 3 , Supplementary Materials). Table 2 Ornamental plants on sale in 11 nurseries in Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe that have established alien populations in any of the continental countries of the Southern African Development Community as per the Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species (GRIIS). Country Number of ornamental plants recorded as established Number of established plants considered invasive Angola 39 1 Botswana 29 4 Democratic Republic of Congo 94 0 Eswatini 47 1 Lesotho 8 3 Malawi 51 10 Mozambique 23 5 Namibia 19 9 South Africa 224 57 Tanzania 49 29 Zambia 48 29 Zimbabwe 63 15 Table 3 Plant species sold in nurseries in Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe that are considered established in eight or more continental countries of the Southern African Development Community, according to the Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species (GRIIS). Scientific names follow the Leipzig Plant Catalogue. Taxon Number of nurseries (countries) Countries where established (invasive in bold) Opuntia ficus-indica (L.) Mill. 1 (Zimbabwe) Angola | Botswana | DRC | Lesotho | Malawi | Namibia | Eswatini | Tanzania | South Africa | Zambia | Zimbabwe Psidium guajava L. 1 (Zimbabwe) Angola | Botswana | DRC | Malawi | Mozambique | Namibia | Eswatini | Tanzania | South Africa | Zambia | Zimbabwe Caesalpinia decapetala (Roth) Alston 1 (Zimbabwe) Angola | Botswana | DRC | Malawi | Mozambique | Eswatini | Tanzania | South Africa | Zambia | Zimbabwe Delonix regia (Bojer ex Hook.) Raf. 1 (Botswana) 1 (Zimbabwe) Angola | Botswana | DRC | Malawi | Mozambique | Eswatini | Tanzania | South Africa | Zambia | Zimbabwe Duranta erecta L. 2 (Botswana) 1 (Namibia) 3 (Zimbabwe) Angola | Botswana | DRC | Malawi | Mozambique | Eswatini | Tanzania | South Africa | Zambia | Zimbabwe Jatropha curcas L. 1 (Zimbabwe) Angola | DRC | Malawi | Mozambique | Namibia | Eswatini | Tanzania | South Africa | Zambia | Zimbabwe Lantana camara L. 3 (Zimbabwe) Angola | Botswana | DRC | Malawi | Mozambique | Namibia | Eswatini | Tanzania | South Africa | Zambia | Zimbabwe Parkinsonia aculeata L. 1 (Zimbabwe) Angola | DRC | Malawi | Mozambique | Namibia | Eswatini | Tanzania | South Africa | Zambia | Zimbabwe Agave americana L. 2 (Botswana) 2 (Zimbabwe) DRC | Lesotho | Namibia | Malawi | Eswatini | Tanzania | South Africa | Zambia | Zimbabwe Catharanthus roseus (L.) G.Don 1 (Zimbabwe) Botswana | DRC | Malawi | Namibia | Eswatini | Tanzania | South Africa | Zambia | Zimbabwe Grevillea robusta A.Cunn. ex R.Br. 1 (Zimbabwe) Botswana | DRC | Malawi | Mozambique | Eswatini | Tanzania | South Africa | Zambia | Zimbabwe Jacaranda mimosifolia D.Don 2 (Botswana) 1 (Namibia) 1 (Zimbabwe) Botswana | DRC | Malawi | Namibia | Eswatini | Tanzania | South Africa | Zambia | Zimbabwe Tecoma stans (L.) Juss. ex Kunth 1 (Zimbabwe) Botswana | DRC | Malawi | Namibia | Eswatini | Tanzania | South Africa | Zambia | Zimbabwe Antigonon leptopus Hook. & Arn. 2 (Zimbabwe) Angola | Botswana | DRC | Malawi | Tanzania | South Africa | Zambia | Zimbabwe Canna indica L. 1 (Botswana) 1 (Zimbabwe) Angola | DRC | Malawi | Eswatini | Tanzania | South Africa | Zambia | Zimbabwe Shrubs and trees (178 out of 289, 62%) predominate across our plant subset on sale that are considered established in at least one continental SADC country (Fig. 2 ). These taxa come from 86 plant families, with Fabaceae (15), Asteraceae (14), Euphorbiaceae (14), Arecaceae (13), Apocynaceae (12) and Myrtaceae (10) the most frequent (Supplementary Materials). The species’ native ranges span across eight botanical regions: Africa, Asia-Temperate, Asia-Tropical, Australasia, Europe, Northern America, Pacific and Southern America (note that the 3 artificial hybrids are not included). Half of the group’ ranges spans across more than one botanical region, while the other half only covers a single region. Regardless of whether their ranges include one or more botanical region, most of the species (82%, 235 out of 286) exhibit very wide ranges, especially in the latitudinal axis (Table 4 ). Forty two percent has a native range in the Americas, followed by Asia (20%) and Africa (13%) (Table 4 ). Table 4 Most frequent native ranges of the plant species traded as ornamental in Botswana and Zimbabwe that are considered established and/or invasive in at least one continental country of the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) as per the Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species (GRIIS). Regions Number of species Northern America, Southern America 58 Southern America 48 Africa 38 Asia-Temperate, Asia-Tropical 22 Asia-Temperate 21 Australasia 18 Asia-Tropical 15 Northern America 15 Discussion This paper documents that the majority of the surveyed plant taxa on sale in 11 major nurseries in Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe (66%) are alien to the continental SADC sub-region. Over a fifth of the plants in stock (289, 24%) have been recorded to have self-sustainable alien populations in at least one continental country of the Southern Africa Development Community. These plants are part of the ornamental flora traded and used regionally and globally (Table 5 ). For example, 24 out of these 289 species are amongst the 100 species with the highest average number of offers per day on eBay in 2014, according to Humair et al. ( 2015 ). Table 5 Number of plants that our sub-set of established plant taxa on sale across nurseries in Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe, share with other ornamental plants checklists regionally and globally. Area Number of shared plant taxa Reference households in Prince Albert (South Africa) 33 Milton and Dean ( 2025 ) road selling in Kinshasa (DRC) 38 Mukubu Pika et al. (2024) nurseries across the US 77 Beaury et al. ( 2021 ) households in Maun (Botswana) 9 Kashe et al. (2020) nurseries across Spain 129 Bayón & Vilà (2019) university gardens in São Luís (Brazil) 21 Costa et al. ( 2017 ) ornamental flora in Togo 49 Radji & Kokou ( 2013 ) ornamental flora in Cuba 34 Álvarez de Zayas (2008) Our nursery inventory shares 679 taxa with the ‘Cultivated Plants of Southern Africa’ compilation (Glen, 2002 ) (dataset accessed through Omer et al., 2021 , see the R script as Supplementary Materials). On the other hand, our subset of established species shares 248 taxa with the historical compilation (Glen, 2002 ). This indicates that more efforts might be needed to cover the breath of cultivated plants but also that at least 532 plants (41 of them recorded as having alien populations) might have been overlooked before (e.g., see the case of Acacia spp. in South Africa by Magona et al., 2018 ). The relative distribution of growth forms across our subset of established taxa follows the general pattern reported for the established and invasive flora across southern Africa (Henderson, 2006 ; Omer et al., 2021 ; Richardson et al., 2020 ), where shrubs and trees dominate. The relative distribution of taxonomical families follows another general pattern in the ornamental flora worldwide and across Southern Africa (Humair et al., 2015 ; Mukubu Pika et al., 2024; Semenya & Maroyi, 2020 ) and the established/invasive flora in southern Africa (Henderson, 2006 ; Henderson & Wilson, 2017 ; Richardson et al., 2020 ), where Fabaceae, Myrtaceae, Euphorbiaceae, Asteraceae and Apocynaceae lead the numbers. Concerning the native ranges, the Americas, Asia and Africa are the main contributors, similar to the reported ornamental flora in Togo (Radji & Kokou, 2013 ) and the established and invasive species in the sub-region (Henderson, 2006 ; Omer et al., 2021 ). It is noteworthy that most of the subset of established species show a high climatic plasticity based on their widespread native ranges. Moreover, several of these species have a long residence time in the sub-region. For instance, according to Henderson ( 2006 ), Catharanthus roseus arrived in continental Southern Africa before the Dutch colonisation of the Cape in 1652, whereas Opuntia-ficus indica , Quercus robur and Salix babylonica arrived between 1652 and 1700, and Canna indica and Psidium guajava before 1800. During the 1800s, Nerium oleander , Agave americana , Ligustrum lucidum , Oenothera biennis , Lonicera japonica , Lantana camara , Caesalpinia decapetala , and species of Grevillea and Syzygium were introduced (Henderson, 2006 ). Other species reported here have been in the market for a long time (e.g., Catharanthus roseus , Canna indica , Lantana camara , Vinca major ), and especially in nurseries in South Africa (Cronin et al., 2017 ). Likewise, the abovementioned taxa and others like Jacaranda mimosifolia , Tecoma stans , Schinus molle , Schinus terebinthifolius , Nerium oleander and Casuarina cunninghamiana have been found to be frequently planted in urban areas across South Africa (Milton & Dean, 2025 ; Shackleton & Shackleton, 2016 ; 2018 ). Species mentioned as garden escapes in Kruger National Park (South Africa) (Keet et al., 2022 ) that coincide with the ornamental plant inventory reported here (e.g., Agave angustifolia , Clerodendrum splendens , Euphorbia tithymaloides , Kalanchoe beharensis , Tradescantia pallida , T. spathacea ) have been recorded as establishing alien populations in neighbouring countries too (dataset in Supplementary Materials). Moreover, traded species that are not included as established in GRIIS like Dodonoea viscosa subsp. angustifolia , Washingtonia robusta and Cupressus sempervirens are worth of attention, since they have been reported to self-seed profusely in a town in the South African karoo (Milton & Dean, 2025 ). In that regard, Keet et al. ( 2022 ) highlights that while the number, abundance and distribution of regulated plant taxa decreased in Kruger National Park in the last decade, the number of unregulated alien taxa increased in the last decade based on plant surveys conducted in 1999–2003 and 2020. Although their results could be an artefact of differences in sampling methods between surveys and a greater inclusion of native-alien populations in the latest survey, it hints at the need for regulations that respond to the dynamics of plant uses and people’s preferences and contexts, as well as to alien species population dynamics. All these nuances pose significant challenges for environmental regulations to work effectively that requires attention and investment at sub-regional levels. Rouget et al. ( 2016 ) and Henderson & Wilson ( 2017 ) have shown that South Africa has a high invasion debt, which could suggest that the sub-region also has a high invasion debt. This research, along with others like Semenya & Maroyi ( 2020 ), Mukuba Pika et al. (2024) and Milton & Dean ( 2025 ) are providing the baseline to quantify the invasion debt linked to the ornamental sector across the sub-region. As we showed earlier, the subset of established ornamental plants presented here is being actively traded and used as ornamental. The constant propagule pressure and gene flow coming from this exchange could contribute to further invasions by providing genetic diversity or could slow these by continually diluting adaptations to the Southern African environments (Wilson et al., 2007 ; 2009 ). Moreover, species that are not currently considered established in the sub-region have to be evaluated. Some species in our inventory could be a source of conflict for the stakeholders involved in the interplay between the ornamental horticulture sector and the management of biological invasions. Research efforts that unpack the perceptions and impacts of the inventory presented here would be necessary to prevent and/or solve conflicts. Declarations Acknowledgements This work was funded by the Trailblazers Early Career Researcher and Doctoral Studentship Partnering Scheme from Coventry University (sub-project codes 13771-14 and 12160-02). Stellenbosch University and Botswana University of Agriculture and Natural Resources also supported this work. In addition, the landscaping unit of the Francistown city council (Botswana), the Botanical Society of Namibia and nursery businesses in Botswana and Zimbabwe gave logistical support to the first author (DRC). We are deeply grateful to the nursery businesses involved. We received a research permit from the Ministry of Environment, Natural Resources, Conservation and Tourism in Botswana [ENT 8/36/4 LII (38)]. We could not process research permits for the other countries involved. JRUW thanks the South African Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) for funding, noting that this publication does not necessarily represent the views or opinions of DFFE or its employees. Finally, DRC wants to thank the Funds of Women Graduates (FfWG), which provided her with a grant for her living expenses while crafting the final version of this manuscript. Competing Interests : The authors declare that they have no financial or personal relationship(s) that may have inappropriately influenced them in writing this article. References Altman A, Shennan S, Odling-Smee J (2022) Ornamental plant domestication by aesthetics-driven human cultural niche construction. 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IPBES secretariat, Bonn, Germany. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7430692 Kashe K, Teketay D, Mmusi M, Kemosedile T, Khululo Galelebalwe M (2022) Assessment of Diversity and Composition of Tree Species in Residential Areas of Chobe District, Northern Botswana. Agric Forestry 68(1):233–245. https://doi.org/10.17707/AgricultForest.68.1.15 Keet J-H, Datta A, Foxcroft LC, Kumschick S, Nichols GR, Richardson DM, Wilson JRU (2022) Assessing the level of compliance with alien plant regulations in a large African protected area. Biol Invasions 24:3831–3844. 10.1007/s10530-022-02883-7 Kobisi K, Seleteng-Kose L, Moteetee A (2019) ‘Invasive alien plants occurring in Lesotho: Their ethnobotany, potential risks, distribution and origin’. Bothalia, 49(1), https://doi.org/x.4x2/abc.v49ix.2453 Mafokate D, Mathowa T, Mojeremane W (2013) A survey of the exotic woody plant species in the city of Gaborone, Botswana. Int J Res Agric Food Sci 1(2):1–7. http://www.ijsk.org/ijrafs.html Magona N, Richardson DM, Le Roux JJ, Kritzinger-Klopper S, Wilson JRU (2018) Even well-studied groups of alien species might be poorly inventoried: Australian Acacia species in South Africa as a case study. Neobiota 39:1–29. https://doi:10.3897/neobiota.39.23135 Maroyi A (2017) Data on introduced plants in Zimbabwe: Floristic changes and patterns of collection based on historical herbarium records. Data Brief 15:348–369. https://doi.org/x.xx6/j.dib.2x7.9.46 Maroyi A, Wong LJ, Pagad S (2020) GRIIS Checklist of Introduced and Invasive Species - Zimbabwe. v1.4 , Invasive Species Specialist Group ISSG. https://cloud.gbif.org/griis/resource?r=griis_zimbabwe&v=1.4 Milton SJ, Dean WRJ (2025) Village aliens: Self-seeding of indigenous and non-indigenous woody garden plants in a small desert village. J Arid Environ 227. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaridenv.2024.105295 Mukubu Pika L, Selemani M, Jesuka T, Meniko To Hulu R, Sambieni JPP, Sikuzani KRU, Y., Bogaert J 2024, ‘Practice and Biodiversity of Informal Ornamental Horticulture in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo’. Ecologies, 5(1), 83–100, https://doi.org/10.3390/ecologies5010006 Mwanyambo M, Kamwendo JS, Patel IH, Kathumba ES, Wong LJ, Pagad S (2020) GRIIS Checklist of Introduced and Invasive Species - Malawi. v1.2 , Invasive Species Specialist Group ISSG. https://cloud.gbif.org/griis/resource?r=griis-malawi&v=1.2 Novoa A, Shackleton R, Canavan S, Cybèle C, Davies SJ, Dehnen-Schmutz K, Fried J, Gaertner M, Geerts S, Griffiths CL, Kaplan H, Kumschick S, Le Maitre DC, Measey GJ, Nunes AL, Richardson DM, Robinson TB, Touza J, Wilson JRU (2018) ‘A framework for engaging stakeholders on the management of alien species’, Journal of Environmental Management , 25, 286–297, https://doi.org/x.xx6/j.jenvman.2x7.9.59 Omer A, Fristoe T, Yang Q, Maurel N, Weigelt P, Kreft H, Bleilevens J, Dawson W, Essl F, Pergl J, Pyšek P, van Kleunen M (2021) Characteristics of the naturalized flora of Southern Africa largely reflect the non-random introduction of alien species for cultivation. Ecography 44(12):1812–1825. https://doi.org/10.1111/ecog.05669 Pagad S (2022) Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species - Mozambique. v1.2. Invasive Species Specialist Group ISSG. https://cloud.gbif.org/griis/resource?r=griis-mozambique&v=1.2 Pagad S, Genovesi P, Carnevali L, Schigel D, McGeoch MA (2018) Data Descriptor: Introducing the Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species. Sci Data 5:170–202. https://doi.org/10.1038/sdata.2017.202 Pienaar K, Smith G (2011) The Southern African. What flower is that? An essential guide to garden plants, 5th edn. Struik Lifestyle Pl@ntNet nd (2024) ‘Pl@ntNet’, Available at https://plantnet.org/en/ (Accessed, 3 July Radji R, Kokou K (2013) Classification et valeurs thérapeutiques des plantes ornementales du Togo. VertigO 13(3). https://doi.org/10.4000/vertigo.14519 Richardson DM, Foxcroft LC, Latombe G, Le Maitre DC, Rouget M, Wilson JR (2020) The Biogeography of South African Plant Invasions. In: van Wilgen BW, Measey J, Richardson DM, Wilson JR, Zengeya TA (eds) Biological Invasions in South Africa. Springer, pp 67–96. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-32394-3_3 Robinson T, Ivey P, Powrie L, Winter P, Wong LJ, Pagad S (2020) Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species - South Africa. v2.7. Invasive Species Specialist Group ISSG. http://doi.org/10.15468/l6smob Rouget M, Robertson MP, Wilson JRU, Hui C, Essl F, Renteria JL, Richardson DM (2016) Invasion debt - quantifying future biological invasions. Divers Distrib 22(4):445–456. https://doi.org/10.1111/ddi.12408 SADC (2024) n.d., ‘Member States’, Available at https://www.sadc.int/member-states (Accessed, 3 July Semenya SS, Maroyi A (2020) Assessment of Useful Alien Plant Species Cultivated and Managed in Rural Home Gardens of Limpopo Province, South Africa. Scientifica. https://doi.org/10.1155/2020/3561306 Shackleton RT, Richardson DM, Shackleton CM, Bennett B, Crowley SL, Dehnen-Schmutz K, Estévez RA, Fischer A, Kueffer C, Kull CA, Marchante E, Novoa A, Potgieter LJ, Vaas J, Vaz AS, Larson BMH (2019) ‘Explaining people’s perceptions of invasive alien species: A conceptual framework’, Journal of Environmental Management , 229, 10–26, https://doi.org/x.xx6/j.jenvman.2x8.4.45 Shackleton CM, Shackleton RT (2016) Knowledge, perceptions and willingness to control designated invasive tree species in urban household gardens in South Africa. Biol Invasions 18(6):1599–1609. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10530-016-1104-7 Shackleton SE, Shackleton RT (2018) Local knowledge regarding ecosystem services and disservices from invasive alien plants in the arid Kalahari, South Africa. J Arid Environ 159:22–33. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaridenv.2017.07.001 van Kleunen M, Essl F, Pergl J, Brundu G, Carboni M, Dullinger S, Early R, González-Moreno P, Groom QJ, Hulme PE, Kueffer C, Kühn I, Máguas C, Maurel N, Novoa A, Parepa M, Pyšek P, Seebens H, Tanner R, Touza J, Verbrugge L, Weber E, Dawson W, Kreft H, Weigelt P, Winter M, Klonner G, Talluto MV, Dehnen-Schmutz K 2018, ‘The changing role of ornamental horticulture in alien plant invasions’. Biol Rev, 93(3), 1421–1437, https://doi.org/10.1111/brv.12402 Wilson A, Kendal D, Moore JL (2016) Humans and Ornamental Plants: A Mutualism? Ecopsychology 8(4):257–263. https://doi.org/x.x89/eco.2x5.77 Wilson JRU, Dormontt EE, Prentis PJ, Lowe AJ, Richardson DM (2009) Something in the way you move: dispersal pathways affect invasion success. Trends Ecol Evol 24(3):136–144. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2008.10.007 Wilson JRU, Richardson DM, Rouget M, Procheş Ş, Amis MA, Henderson L, Thuiller W (2007) Residence time and potential range: Crucial considerations in modelling plant invasions. Divers Distrib 13(1):11–22. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1366-9516.2006.00302.x Witt A, Pagad S (2020) Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species - Zambia. v1.4 , Invasive Species Specialist Group ISSG. https://cloud.gbif.org/griis/resource?r=griis-zambia&v=1.4 Witt A, Wong LJ, Pagad S (2020) Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species - Tanzania. v1.2 , Invasive Species Specialist Group ISSG. https://cloud.gbif.org/griis/resource?r=griis_tanzania&v=1.2 Additional Declarations The authors declare no competing interests. Supplementary Files RscriptSuppMaterialsRodrguezCalaetal..pdf R script of data analysis Cite Share Download PDF Status: Published Journal Publication published 26 Mar, 2026 Read the published version in African Biodiversity & Conservation → Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-6627842","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":454280090,"identity":"4f140f3f-9318-4320-b74a-b1989455987f","order_by":0,"name":"Diana Rodríguez Cala","email":"data:image/png;base64,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","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0009-0004-4319-2978","institution":"","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Diana","middleName":"Rodríguez","lastName":"Cala","suffix":""},{"id":454280091,"identity":"ca0508e5-52ef-4b8d-8417-ccd14999804f","order_by":1,"name":"John R.U. Wilson","email":"","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0174-3239","institution":"South African National Biodiversity Institute","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"John","middleName":"R.U.","lastName":"Wilson","suffix":""},{"id":454280092,"identity":"cf110553-8ead-4c47-a178-df96e0452404","order_by":2,"name":"Katharina Dehnen-Schmutz","email":"","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5782-7488","institution":"Centre for Agroecology, Water and Resilience","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Katharina","middleName":"","lastName":"Dehnen-Schmutz","suffix":""},{"id":454280093,"identity":"9854ddaa-e669-463e-9ee4-ba22a8525e26","order_by":3,"name":"Jana Fried","email":"","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2843-4447","institution":"Centre for Agroecology, Water and Resilience","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Jana","middleName":"","lastName":"Fried","suffix":""},{"id":454280094,"identity":"4fd7ef11-6253-4e69-8810-809cc6989f0b","order_by":4,"name":"Seoleseng O. Tshwenyane","email":"","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4245-3190","institution":"Department of Crop and Soil Science, Botswana University of Agriculture and Natural Resources","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Seoleseng","middleName":"O.","lastName":"Tshwenyane","suffix":""},{"id":454280095,"identity":"1488fbbf-ffe4-42ad-a385-eecd6b2e83a6","order_by":5,"name":"Israel A. Legwaila","email":"","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1709-6227","institution":"Department of Crop and Soil Science, Botswana University of Agriculture and Natural Resources","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Israel","middleName":"A.","lastName":"Legwaila","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2025-05-09 10:59:34","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":{"humanSubjects":false,"vertebrateSubjects":false,"conflictsOfInterestStatement":false,"humanSubjectEthicalGuidelines":false,"humanSubjectConsent":false,"humanSubjectClinicalTrial":false,"humanSubjectCaseReport":false,"vertebrateSubjectEthicalGuidelines":false},"doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-6627842/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-6627842/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[{"content":"https://doi.org/10.38201/abc.v56.2.a7","type":"published","date":"2026-03-27T00:00:00+00:00"}],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":82487715,"identity":"c85383a7-1afc-4139-b663-943cf6753144","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-05-12 06:01:33","extension":"png","order_by":1,"title":"Figure 1","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":176004,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eWorkflow to create a list of plant species traded as ornamental in Southern Africa.\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"floatimage1.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6627842/v1/38f6b772c4794af1fb5010a7.png"},{"id":82487713,"identity":"ee561b04-7032-4742-ad6c-4bed7d530f81","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-05-12 06:01:33","extension":"jpeg","order_by":2,"title":"Figure 2","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":64995,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eGrowth forms in the subset of plant taxa on sale in 11 nurseries across Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe that are recorded as having established alien populations in at least one continental country from the Southern Africa Development Community.\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"floatimage2.jpeg","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6627842/v1/3c36361082f2a743f0cb9560.jpeg"},{"id":106032066,"identity":"943d6b60-a4ad-4ed5-98c8-6800414129eb","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-04-02 15:31:20","extension":"pdf","order_by":0,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":1413713,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"manuscript.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6627842/v1/d9ef8fa0-7078-4431-9db4-826fb833c013.pdf"},{"id":82487718,"identity":"aab77e90-3fa9-4031-bb9c-5392f5d4123b","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-05-12 06:01:33","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"supplement","size":5303588,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eR script of data analysis\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"RscriptSuppMaterialsRodrguezCalaetal..pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6627842/v1/a9bcea9ed91e1891376e72cd.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"The authors declare no competing interests.","formattedTitle":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAlien ornamental plants on sale in Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe: potential sources for plant invasions\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","fulltext":[{"header":"Introduction","content":"\u003cp\u003eOrnamental plants have accompanied humanity since the early days of civilisations (Wilson et al. \u003cspan citationid=\"CR50\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2016\u003c/span\u003e). With transoceanic exploration, European colonisation and later industrialisation, ornamental gardening and landscaping became an industry that has moved thousands of plant species around the world (Hinsley et al., 2025; van Kleunen et al., 2018). This contributed to the introduction and spread of alien plants following trends, fashions and passions (Altman et al. \u003cspan citationid=\"CR1\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e; Wilson et al. \u003cspan citationid=\"CR50\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2016\u003c/span\u003e; van Kleunen et al. 2018). In southern Africa, ornamental gardening has been one of the main historical pathways for plant introduction, accounting for 30\u0026ndash;70% of the intentional introductions in different countries of the sub-region between the 19th and 20th centuries (Henderson \u003cspan citationid=\"CR20\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2006\u003c/span\u003e; Kobisi et al. \u003cspan citationid=\"CR26\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2019\u003c/span\u003e; Maroyi \u003cspan citationid=\"CR29\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e). Introduced ornamental plants like \u003cem\u003eLantana camara\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003ePontederia crassipes\u003c/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eTithonia diversifolia\u003c/em\u003e have become invasive in the sub-region, with complex dynamics of costs and benefits that vary with time, space, and stakeholder (Novoa et al. \u003cspan citationid=\"CR34\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e; Shackleton et al. \u003cspan citationid=\"CR46\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2019\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThose abovementioned species were introduced in the sub-region over a hundred years ago, but the development of the ornamental industry in southern Africa continues nowadays, with South Africa at the frontline. According to Faulkner et al. (2020), plant introductions for ornamental horticulture into South Africa are likely to continue increasing. Alien plants are generally dominant in gardens and public spaces across the urban areas of the sub-region (Kashe et al. \u003cspan citationid=\"CR24\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e; Mafokate et al. \u003cspan citationid=\"CR27\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2013\u003c/span\u003e; Milton \u0026amp; Dean \u003cspan citationid=\"CR31\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e; Richardson \u0026amp; Potgieter 2024; Shackleton \u0026amp; Shackleton \u003cspan citationid=\"CR47\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2016\u003c/span\u003e; \u003cspan citationid=\"CR48\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e). This intentional spread combined with environmental suitability and species\u0026rsquo; inherent invasiveness is likely to result in more invasions over time. Knowing what species are currently sold and used as ornamentals in the sub-region is an essential step to assess the likelihood of some of them to become invasive, and/or to become a source of conflicts of interests. Hence, this paper reports what plant species are sold and used as ornamental in three southern African countries (Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe) in light of the alien taxa recognised as established and invasive in the sub-region.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"Material and Methods","content":"\u003cp\u003eData collection and analysis took place from mid-2022 to mid-2024, combining different sources of information from 11 major nursery businesses in Botswana, Namibia, and Zimbabwe (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e). The willingness of nursery owners to share the information on their stocks allowed us to survey their stock on-site. Likewise, the online visibility of their stock on the internet (i.e., through social media or website) determined our ability to access the data. We could not visit all the spaces where people sell plants and in some cases people were reticent to share data with us. In the following lines, we describe our workflow to collect and analyse the data (also see the R script as Supplementary Materials).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003col\u003e \u003cspan\u003e \u003cli\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cb\u003eNursery identification and validation\u003c/b\u003e: We used a Google map search, data sharing and validation, and further participants\u0026rsquo; input (snowballing sampling) and in situ identification in Botswana, Namibia, and Zimbabwe. The Google map search allowed us to identify 18 nurseries in Botswana, two in Zimbabwe, and one in Namibia. Participants indicated nine more nurseries, and we identified a dozen other nurseries in Botswana. In Harare, Zimbabwe, the co-organiser of the Annual Garden Show indicated 33 nurseries. We identified eight other nurseries in the show and another six in the city. In Namibia, we identified 10 nurseries.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/li\u003e \u003c/span\u003e \u003cspan\u003e \u003cli\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cb\u003eInputs\u003c/b\u003e: We accessed the stock of three formal nurseries identified in Botswana, two in Namibia, and 6 in Zimbabwe. Four nurseries shared their list of plants in stock (two in Botswana and two in Zimbabwe), while the other three (one in Namibia and three in Zimbabwe) had up-to-date lists on their websites. We identified plants from the Instagram page of two nurseries (one in Namibia and one in Zimbabwe) and at a visit to a nursery in Botswana (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/li\u003e \u003c/span\u003e \u003cspan\u003e \u003cli\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cb\u003ePlant identification\u003c/b\u003e: We used the Pl@ntNet app (Pl@ntNet n.d.) and plant guides (Bromilow, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR7\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e; Pienaar \u0026amp; Smith, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR38\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2011\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/li\u003e \u003c/span\u003e \u003cspan\u003e \u003cli\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cb\u003eTaxonomical standardisation\u003c/b\u003e: It was conducted with the \u0026ldquo;lcvplants\u0026rdquo; R package (Freiberg et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR14\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e), using the 2023 version of the Leipzig Plant Catalogue as taxonomic backbone.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/li\u003e \u003c/span\u003e \u003cspan\u003e \u003cli\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cb\u003eMatching with Global Register for Introduced and Invasive Species (GRIIS)\u003c/b\u003e: The resulting plant inventory was matched with the register of introduced and invasive species (GRIIS) for the 12 continental countries belonging to the Southern African Development Community (Braun et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR6\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e; Chase \u0026amp; Pagad, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR9\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e; Figueiredo et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR13\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e; Groom et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR17\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e; Hae \u0026amp; Pagad, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR18\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e; Heath et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR19\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e; Maroyi et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR30\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e; Mwanyambo et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR33\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e; Pagad, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR36\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e; Robinson et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR42\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e; Witt \u0026amp; Pagad, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR53\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e; Witt et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR54\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e). We used the \u0026ldquo;lcvplants\u0026rdquo; R package for database matching (Freiberg et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR14\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/li\u003e \u003c/span\u003e \u003c/ol\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eGRIIS records alien species and native-alien populations of native species that have established in a given country, noting whether the species has evidence of negative impacts on species, ecosystems and services (Pagad et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR37\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e). If the species has evidence of negative impacts \u0026mdash;which includes being widespread, highly abundant and fast-spreading\u0026mdash; GRIIS categorises it as \u0026lsquo;invasive\u0026rsquo;. This definition is different from the Unified Framework for Biological Invasions (Blackburn et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR4\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2011\u003c/span\u003e), but is in line with the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES, 2023).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe abovementioned steps resulted in an inventory of the plant species in the ornamental trade of Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe. This list was composed of both matched and unmatched taxa with GRIIS (Output 3 in Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e), where we highlighted the biogeographical category based on \u0026ldquo;Plants of the World Online\u0026rdquo; (POWO) [Board of Trustees, Royal Botanic Garden, Kew n.d.] (Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab1\" border=\"1\"\u003e\u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 1\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eMetadata of the resulted plant inventory (dataset in Supplementary Materials).\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/caption\u003e\u003ccolgroup cols=\"3\"\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cthead\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eColumn ID\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eColumn labels\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eDescription\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/thead\u003e\u003ctbody\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eA\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eidentificationID\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eIdentifier for resulted taxon after identification and taxonomical standardisation (based on Leipzig Plant Catalogue).\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eB\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003escientificName\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eResulted scientific name after identification and taxonomical standardisation (Leipzig Plant Catalogue).\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eC\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003efamily\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eBotanical family as per Leipzig Plant Catalogue.\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eD\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eis.Native\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eBoolean data, as in TRUE for taxa native to any part of the mainland countries of Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) and FALSE for alien (non-native) taxa to the area and artificial hybrids.\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eE\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eis.Native.notes\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eNotes describing the Boolean value, whether the taxon is alien, artificial hybrid or native, and which part of the area the taxa is native to, based on Plants of the World Online (POWO).\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eF\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eGRIIS.established\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eSADC countries in which the taxon is recorded as established in the Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species (GRIIS). Otherwise the value is FALSE.\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eG\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eGRIIS.invasive\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eSADC countries in which the taxon is recorded as invasive in the Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species (GRIIS). Otherwise the value is FALSE.\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eH\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003everbatimName\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eName given by the nurseries. If no name was given the value is NA.\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eI-S\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eBotswana_1; Botswana_2; Botswana_3; Namibia_1; Namibia_2; Zimbabwe_1; Zimbabwe_2; Zimbabwe_3; Zimbabwe_4; Zimbabwe_5; Zimbabwe_6\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003ePresence (1)/absence (0) values for each taxa in each of the 11 nurseries from Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe.\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eT\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003enotes\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eExplanation of NA and non-scientific names in verbatimName column. Otherwise NA.\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/tbody\u003e\u003c/colgroup\u003e\u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003col start=6\u003e \u003cspan\u003e \u003cli\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cb\u003eDescription of species recorded as established and/or invasive\u003c/b\u003e: We characterised the sub-set of taxa recorded as established and/or invasive in any of the continental SADC countries by growth form, native range and family. This constitutes a checklist of established and/or invasive plant species currently traded within the ornamental sector across Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe. \u0026ldquo;Plants of the World Online\u0026rdquo; (POWO) [Board of Trustees, Royal Botanic Garden, Kew n.d.] was used to collect information on growth form and geographical origin. We grouped the growth forms found in POWO into 7 broad categories: climber (including liana), herb (including geophyte), epiphyte (including lithophyte), shrub (including subshrub), succulent, tree, and a combination of shrub-tree. For the biogeographical origin, we used the nine level-1 botanical regions of the World Geographical Scheme for Recording Plant Distributions of the Taxonomic Databases Working Group (Brummitt, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR8\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2001\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/li\u003e \u003c/span\u003e \u003c/ol\u003e \u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"Results","content":"\u003cp\u003eWe compiled 1,835 plant names from 11 formal nurseries in Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe. The taxonomical standardisation resulted in 1,193 accepted species names, 320 synonyms, 207 names that could not be found, 12 unresolved names, 85 seem to have typos (e.g., the algorithm recognised two different \u003cem\u003eAgave americana\u003c/em\u003e taxa because the space between the genus and the specific epithet was single in one nursery checklist and double in another) and 18 taxa at genera level. Of the resulted plant inventory (1, 193 taxa), 784 taxa (~\u0026thinsp;66%) are alien to the continental SADC sub-region, 390 taxa (~\u0026thinsp;33%) are native to at least one country/province/in-country region in the area and 19 are artificial hybrids (dataset in Supplementary Materials, metadata in Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eFrom the inventory, 289 taxa (24%) matched the GRIIS as having established alien populations in at least one continental SADC country (Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e, dataset in Supplementary Materials). This sub-set includes 284 taxa alien to the continental SADC sub-region, 4 taxa native to parts of the sub-region and 3 artificial hybrids (dataset in Supplementary Materials). From this sub-set, 82 taxa are recorded as invasive in at least one continental SADC country (Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e), where 81 are alien to the sub-region and 1 is an artificial hybrid. Furthermore, approximately 45% (130) of the sub-set of established species have established alien populations (and/or considered invasive) in more than one continental SADC country (Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e, Supplementary Materials).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab2\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 2\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eOrnamental plants on sale in 11 nurseries in Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe that have established alien populations in any of the continental countries of the Southern African Development Community as per the Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species (GRIIS).\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"3\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCountry\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNumber of ornamental plants recorded as established\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNumber of established plants considered invasive\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAngola\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e39\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eBotswana\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e29\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e4\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eDemocratic Republic of Congo\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e94\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eEswatini\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e47\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eLesotho\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e8\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eMalawi\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e51\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e10\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eMozambique\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e23\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNamibia\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e19\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e9\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSouth Africa\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e224\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e57\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eTanzania\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e49\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e29\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eZambia\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e48\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e29\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eZimbabwe\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e63\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e15\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab3\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 3\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ePlant species sold in nurseries in Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe that are considered established in eight or more continental countries of the Southern African Development Community, according to the Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species (GRIIS). Scientific names follow the Leipzig Plant Catalogue.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"3\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eTaxon\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNumber of nurseries (countries)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCountries where established (invasive in bold)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eOpuntia ficus-indica\u003c/em\u003e (L.) Mill.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1 (Zimbabwe)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAngola | Botswana | DRC | \u003cb\u003eLesotho\u003c/b\u003e | Malawi | \u003cb\u003eNamibia\u003c/b\u003e | Eswatini | \u003cb\u003eTanzania\u003c/b\u003e | \u003cb\u003eSouth Africa\u003c/b\u003e | \u003cb\u003eZambia\u003c/b\u003e | \u003cb\u003eZimbabwe\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003ePsidium guajava\u003c/em\u003e L.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1 (Zimbabwe)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAngola | Botswana | DRC | Malawi | \u003cb\u003eMozambique\u003c/b\u003e | \u003cb\u003eNamibia\u003c/b\u003e | Eswatini | \u003cb\u003eTanzania\u003c/b\u003e | \u003cb\u003eSouth Africa\u003c/b\u003e | \u003cb\u003eZambia\u003c/b\u003e | \u003cb\u003eZimbabwe\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eCaesalpinia decapetala\u003c/em\u003e (Roth) Alston\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1 (Zimbabwe)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAngola | Botswana | DRC | \u003cb\u003eMalawi\u003c/b\u003e | Mozambique | Eswatini | \u003cb\u003eTanzania\u003c/b\u003e | \u003cb\u003eSouth Africa\u003c/b\u003e | \u003cb\u003eZambia\u003c/b\u003e | Zimbabwe\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eDelonix regia\u003c/em\u003e (Bojer ex Hook.) Raf.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1 (Botswana)\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e1 (Zimbabwe)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAngola | Botswana | DRC | Malawi | Mozambique | Eswatini | Tanzania | South Africa | \u003cb\u003eZambia\u003c/b\u003e | Zimbabwe\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eDuranta erecta\u003c/em\u003e L.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2 (Botswana)\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e1 (Namibia)\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e3 (Zimbabwe)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAngola | Botswana | DRC | Malawi | Mozambique | Eswatini | Tanzania | \u003cb\u003eSouth Africa\u003c/b\u003e | Zambia | \u003cb\u003eZimbabwe\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eJatropha curcas\u003c/em\u003e L.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1 (Zimbabwe)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAngola | DRC | Malawi | Mozambique | Namibia | Eswatini | Tanzania | South Africa | \u003cb\u003eZambia\u003c/b\u003e | Zimbabwe\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eLantana camara\u003c/em\u003e L.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e3 (Zimbabwe)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAngola\u003c/b\u003e | \u003cb\u003eBotswana\u003c/b\u003e | DRC | \u003cb\u003eMalawi\u003c/b\u003e | \u003cb\u003eMozambique\u003c/b\u003e | \u003cb\u003eNamibia\u003c/b\u003e | Eswatini | \u003cb\u003eTanzania\u003c/b\u003e | \u003cb\u003eSouth Africa\u003c/b\u003e | \u003cb\u003eZambia\u003c/b\u003e | \u003cb\u003eZimbabwe\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eParkinsonia aculeata\u003c/em\u003e L.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1 (Zimbabwe)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAngola | DRC | Malawi | \u003cb\u003eMozambique\u003c/b\u003e | \u003cb\u003eNamibia\u003c/b\u003e | Eswatini | \u003cb\u003eTanzania\u003c/b\u003e | \u003cb\u003eSouth Africa\u003c/b\u003e | \u003cb\u003eZambia\u003c/b\u003e | Zimbabwe\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eAgave americana\u003c/em\u003e L.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2 (Botswana)\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e2 (Zimbabwe)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eDRC | \u003cb\u003eLesotho\u003c/b\u003e | Namibia | \u003cb\u003eMalawi\u003c/b\u003e | Eswatini | \u003cb\u003eTanzania\u003c/b\u003e | South Africa | \u003cb\u003eZambia\u003c/b\u003e | \u003cb\u003eZimbabwe\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eCatharanthus roseus\u003c/em\u003e (L.) G.Don\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1 (Zimbabwe)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eBotswana | DRC | Malawi | Namibia | Eswatini | \u003cb\u003eTanzania\u003c/b\u003e | \u003cb\u003eSouth Africa\u003c/b\u003e | \u003cb\u003eZambia\u003c/b\u003e | Zimbabwe\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eGrevillea robusta\u003c/em\u003e A.Cunn. ex R.Br.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1 (Zimbabwe)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eBotswana | DRC | Malawi | Mozambique | Eswatini | Tanzania | \u003cb\u003eSouth Africa\u003c/b\u003e | Zambia | \u003cb\u003eZimbabwe\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eJacaranda mimosifolia\u003c/em\u003e D.Don\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2 (Botswana)\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e1 (Namibia)\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e1 (Zimbabwe)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eBotswana\u003c/b\u003e | DRC | Malawi | Namibia | Eswatini | \u003cb\u003eTanzania\u003c/b\u003e | \u003cb\u003eSouth Africa\u003c/b\u003e | \u003cb\u003eZambia\u003c/b\u003e | \u003cb\u003eZimbabwe\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eTecoma stans\u003c/em\u003e (L.) Juss. ex Kunth\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1 (Zimbabwe)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eBotswana | DRC | \u003cb\u003eMalawi\u003c/b\u003e | \u003cb\u003eNamibia\u003c/b\u003e | Eswatini | \u003cb\u003eTanzania\u003c/b\u003e | \u003cb\u003eSouth Africa\u003c/b\u003e | Zambia | Zimbabwe\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eAntigonon leptopus\u003c/em\u003e Hook. \u0026amp; Arn.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e2 (Zimbabwe)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAngola | Botswana | DRC | Malawi | \u003cb\u003eTanzania\u003c/b\u003e | South Africa | \u003cb\u003eZambia\u003c/b\u003e | Zimbabwe\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eCanna indica\u003c/em\u003e L.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1 (Botswana)\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e1 (Zimbabwe)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAngola | DRC | \u003cb\u003eMalawi\u003c/b\u003e | Eswatini | \u003cb\u003eTanzania\u003c/b\u003e | \u003cb\u003eSouth Africa\u003c/b\u003e | \u003cb\u003eZambia\u003c/b\u003e | Zimbabwe\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eShrubs and trees (178 out of 289, 62%) predominate across our plant subset on sale that are considered established in at least one continental SADC country (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e). These taxa come from 86 plant families, with Fabaceae (15), Asteraceae (14), Euphorbiaceae (14), Arecaceae (13), Apocynaceae (12) and Myrtaceae (10) the most frequent (Supplementary Materials).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe species\u0026rsquo; native ranges span across eight botanical regions: Africa, Asia-Temperate, Asia-Tropical, Australasia, Europe, Northern America, Pacific and Southern America (note that the 3 artificial hybrids are not included). Half of the group\u0026rsquo; ranges spans across more than one botanical region, while the other half only covers a single region. Regardless of whether their ranges include one or more botanical region, most of the species (82%, 235 out of 286) exhibit very wide ranges, especially in the latitudinal axis (Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab4\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003e). Forty two percent has a native range in the Americas, followed by Asia (20%) and Africa (13%) (Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab4\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab4\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 4\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eMost frequent native ranges of the plant species traded as ornamental in Botswana and Zimbabwe that are considered established and/or invasive in at least one continental country of the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) as per the Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species (GRIIS).\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"2\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eRegions\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNumber of species\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNorthern America, Southern America\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e58\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eSouthern America\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e48\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAfrica\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e38\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAsia-Temperate, Asia-Tropical\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e22\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAsia-Temperate\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e21\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAustralasia\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e18\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAsia-Tropical\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e15\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNorthern America\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e15\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"Discussion","content":"\u003cp\u003eThis paper documents that the majority of the surveyed plant taxa on sale in 11 major nurseries in Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe (66%) are alien to the continental SADC sub-region. Over a fifth of the plants in stock (289, 24%) have been recorded to have self-sustainable alien populations in at least one continental country of the Southern Africa Development Community. These plants are part of the ornamental flora traded and used regionally and globally (Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab5\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e5\u003c/span\u003e). For example, 24 out of these 289 species are amongst the 100 species with the highest average number of offers per day on eBay in 2014, according to Humair et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR22\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2015\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab5\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 5\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNumber of plants that our sub-set of established plant taxa on sale across nurseries in Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe, share with other ornamental plants checklists regionally and globally.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"3\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eArea\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eNumber of shared plant taxa\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eReference\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ehouseholds in Prince Albert (South Africa)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e33\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eMilton and Dean (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR31\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eroad selling in Kinshasa (DRC)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e38\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eMukubu Pika et al. (2024)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003enurseries across the US\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e77\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eBeaury et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR3\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003ehouseholds in Maun (Botswana)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e9\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eKashe et al. (2020)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003enurseries across Spain\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e129\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eBay\u0026oacute;n \u0026amp; Vil\u0026agrave; (2019)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003euniversity gardens in S\u0026atilde;o Lu\u0026iacute;s (Brazil)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e21\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCosta et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR10\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eornamental flora in Togo\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e49\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eRadji \u0026amp; Kokou (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR40\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2013\u003c/span\u003e)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eornamental flora in Cuba\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e34\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u0026Aacute;lvarez de Zayas (2008)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eOur nursery inventory shares 679 taxa with the \u0026lsquo;Cultivated Plants of Southern Africa\u0026rsquo; compilation (Glen, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR16\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2002\u003c/span\u003e) (dataset accessed through Omer et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR35\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e, see the R script as Supplementary Materials). On the other hand, our subset of established species shares 248 taxa with the historical compilation (Glen, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR16\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2002\u003c/span\u003e). This indicates that more efforts might be needed to cover the breath of cultivated plants but also that at least 532 plants (41 of them recorded as having alien populations) might have been overlooked before (e.g., see the case of \u003cem\u003eAcacia\u003c/em\u003e spp. in South Africa by Magona et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR28\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe relative distribution of growth forms across our subset of established taxa follows the general pattern reported for the established and invasive flora across southern Africa (Henderson, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR20\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2006\u003c/span\u003e; Omer et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR35\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e; Richardson et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR41\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e), where shrubs and trees dominate. The relative distribution of taxonomical families follows another general pattern in the ornamental flora worldwide and across Southern Africa (Humair et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR22\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2015\u003c/span\u003e; Mukubu Pika et al., 2024; Semenya \u0026amp; Maroyi, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR45\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e) and the established/invasive flora in southern Africa (Henderson, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR20\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2006\u003c/span\u003e; Henderson \u0026amp; Wilson, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR21\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e; Richardson et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR41\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e), where Fabaceae, Myrtaceae, Euphorbiaceae, Asteraceae and Apocynaceae lead the numbers. Concerning the native ranges, the Americas, Asia and Africa are the main contributors, similar to the reported ornamental flora in Togo (Radji \u0026amp; Kokou, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR40\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2013\u003c/span\u003e) and the established and invasive species in the sub-region (Henderson, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR20\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2006\u003c/span\u003e; Omer et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR35\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIt is noteworthy that most of the subset of established species show a high climatic plasticity based on their widespread native ranges. Moreover, several of these species have a long residence time in the sub-region. For instance, according to Henderson (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR20\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2006\u003c/span\u003e), \u003cem\u003eCatharanthus roseus\u003c/em\u003e arrived in continental Southern Africa before the Dutch colonisation of the Cape in 1652, whereas \u003cem\u003eOpuntia-ficus indica\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eQuercus robur\u003c/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eSalix babylonica\u003c/em\u003e arrived between 1652 and 1700, and \u003cem\u003eCanna indica\u003c/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003ePsidium guajava\u003c/em\u003e before 1800. During the 1800s, \u003cem\u003eNerium oleander\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eAgave americana\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eLigustrum lucidum\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eOenothera biennis\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eLonicera japonica\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eLantana camara\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eCaesalpinia decapetala\u003c/em\u003e, and species of \u003cem\u003eGrevillea\u003c/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eSyzygium\u003c/em\u003e were introduced (Henderson, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR20\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2006\u003c/span\u003e). Other species reported here have been in the market for a long time (e.g., \u003cem\u003eCatharanthus roseus\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eCanna indica\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eLantana camara\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eVinca major\u003c/em\u003e), and especially in nurseries in South Africa (Cronin et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR11\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e). Likewise, the abovementioned taxa and others like \u003cem\u003eJacaranda mimosifolia\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eTecoma stans\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eSchinus molle\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eSchinus terebinthifolius\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eNerium oleander\u003c/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eCasuarina cunninghamiana\u003c/em\u003e have been found to be frequently planted in urban areas across South Africa (Milton \u0026amp; Dean, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR31\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e; Shackleton \u0026amp; Shackleton, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR47\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2016\u003c/span\u003e; \u003cspan citationid=\"CR48\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e). Species mentioned as garden escapes in Kruger National Park (South Africa) (Keet et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR25\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e) that coincide with the ornamental plant inventory reported here (e.g., \u003cem\u003eAgave angustifolia\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eClerodendrum splendens\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eEuphorbia tithymaloides\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eKalanchoe beharensis\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eTradescantia pallida\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eT. spathacea\u003c/em\u003e) have been recorded as establishing alien populations in neighbouring countries too (dataset in Supplementary Materials).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eMoreover, traded species that are not included as established in GRIIS like \u003cem\u003eDodonoea viscosa\u003c/em\u003e subsp. \u003cem\u003eangustifolia\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eWashingtonia robusta\u003c/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eCupressus sempervirens\u003c/em\u003e are worth of attention, since they have been reported to self-seed profusely in a town in the South African karoo (Milton \u0026amp; Dean, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR31\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e). In that regard, Keet et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR25\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e) highlights that while the number, abundance and distribution of regulated plant taxa decreased in Kruger National Park in the last decade, the number of unregulated alien taxa increased in the last decade based on plant surveys conducted in 1999\u0026ndash;2003 and 2020. Although their results could be an artefact of differences in sampling methods between surveys and a greater inclusion of native-alien populations in the latest survey, it hints at the need for regulations that respond to the dynamics of plant uses and people\u0026rsquo;s preferences and contexts, as well as to alien species population dynamics. All these nuances pose significant challenges for environmental regulations to work effectively that requires attention and investment at sub-regional levels.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eRouget et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR43\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2016\u003c/span\u003e) and Henderson \u0026amp; Wilson (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR21\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e) have shown that South Africa has a high invasion debt, which could suggest that the sub-region also has a high invasion debt. This research, along with others like Semenya \u0026amp; Maroyi (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR45\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e), Mukuba Pika et al. (2024) and Milton \u0026amp; Dean (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR31\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2025\u003c/span\u003e) are providing the baseline to quantify the invasion debt linked to the ornamental sector across the sub-region. As we showed earlier, the subset of established ornamental plants presented here is being actively traded and used as ornamental. The constant propagule pressure and gene flow coming from this exchange could contribute to further invasions by providing genetic diversity or could slow these by continually diluting adaptations to the Southern African environments (Wilson et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR52\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2007\u003c/span\u003e; \u003cspan citationid=\"CR51\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2009\u003c/span\u003e). Moreover, species that are not currently considered established in the sub-region have to be evaluated. Some species in our inventory could be a source of conflict for the stakeholders involved in the interplay between the ornamental horticulture sector and the management of biological invasions. Research efforts that unpack the perceptions and impacts of the inventory presented here would be necessary to prevent and/or solve conflicts.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"Declarations","content":"\u003ch2\u003eAcknowledgements\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThis work was funded by the Trailblazers Early Career Researcher and Doctoral Studentship Partnering Scheme from Coventry University (sub-project codes 13771-14 and 12160-02). Stellenbosch University and Botswana University of Agriculture and Natural Resources also supported this work. In addition, the landscaping unit of the Francistown city council (Botswana), the Botanical Society of Namibia and nursery businesses in Botswana and Zimbabwe gave logistical support to the first author (DRC). We are deeply grateful to the nursery businesses involved. We received a research permit from the Ministry of Environment, Natural Resources, Conservation and Tourism in Botswana [ENT 8/36/4 LII (38)]. We could not process research permits for the other countries involved. JRUW thanks the South African Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) for funding, noting that this publication does not necessarily represent the views or opinions of DFFE or its employees. Finally, DRC wants to thank the Funds of Women Graduates (FfWG), which provided her with a grant for her living expenses while crafting the final version of this manuscript.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cb\u003eCompeting Interests\u003c/b\u003e: The authors declare that they have no financial or personal relationship(s) that may have inappropriately influenced them in writing this article.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"References","content":"\u003col\u003e\u003cli\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAltman A, Shennan S, Odling-Smee J (2022) Ornamental plant domestication by aesthetics-driven human cultural niche construction. 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A few introduced ornamental plants have become invasive, sometimes triggering conflicts between stakeholders. Knowing which alien plants are being sold and used as ornamentals in the sub-region is important to assess the potential for future biological invasions and conflicts between stakeholders.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eObjectives: \u003c/strong\u003eThis paper identifies and characterises the ornamental plants on sale in three southern African countries, and compared these to lists of plants considered invasive in the area of the continental Southern African Development Community (SADC).\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eMethods: \u003c/strong\u003eWe compiled all plant taxa sold across eleven nurseries in Botswana (3), Namibia (2) and Zimbabwe (6) by accessing the plants in stock either on the nurseries’ website, on social media, and via stock lists shared by the nursery owners. The compilation was matched with the Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species to identify invasive taxa. This sub-group was characterised by growth form and biogeographical origin.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eResults: \u003c/strong\u003e1,193 species were found to be sold, of which 784 are alien to the continental SADC sub-region, 289 have established alien populations in at least one continental SADC country, and 82 are considered invasive in at least one continental SADC country. Many of the established and invasive plants are popular trees and shrubs in the sub-region and worldwide. Most of them have a wide native range usually covering more than one continent.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eConclusions: \u003c/strong\u003eThis paper provides a quantification of the invasion debt due to the ornamental sector in southern Africa, and a baseline to identify priorities for risk analysis and potential regulation or control at a sub-regional level. Approaches to reduce the sale of invasive species, however, need to be considered carefully, since their current popularity across the sub-region could make them a source of conflict between the ornamental horticulture sector and those tasked with managing biological invasions.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Alien ornamental plants on sale in Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe: potential sources for plant invasions","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2025-05-12 06:01:28","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-6627842/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"607cb74a-0128-4c13-ad1b-de8473ffb66d","owner":[],"postedDate":"May 12th, 2025","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"published-in-journal","subjectAreas":[{"id":48307712,"name":"Botany"}],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2026-04-02T15:31:15+00:00","versionOfRecord":{"articleIdentity":"rs-6627842","link":"https://doi.org/10.38201/abc.v56.2.a7","journal":{"identity":"african-biodiversity-and-conservation","isVorOnly":true,"title":"African Biodiversity \u0026 Conservation"},"publishedOn":"2026-03-27 00:00:00","publishedOnDateReadable":"March 27th, 2026"},"versionCreatedAt":"2025-05-12 06:01:28","video":"","vorDoi":"10.38201/abc.v56.2.a7","vorDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.38201/abc.v56.2.a7","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-6627842","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-6627842","identity":"rs-6627842","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"8U1c8b4HqxoKbykW_rLl7","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}