The RHS Chelsea Flower Show has long been the most prestigious event in the gardening world, but its annual Plant of the Year competition has evolved into something far more significant than just a beauty contest for plants.
As the 2026 show approaches (May 19 to 23), the shortlisted new plant entrants are promoting more than simple aesthetic appeal. They are intended to engage today’s gardener, who may have a reduced plot size, and whose garden could have suffered from increased drought and storm conditions in recent years.
The judges’ assessments are based on whether plants are outstanding, innovative or improved, and whether they advance horticulture and will perform for and appeal to UK gardeners. For the winner, the prize can be the sale of hundreds of thousands of specimens.
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The British heritage nursery Hillier, founded in 1864, has three plants on the shortlist this year.
Hillier won in 2025 with its home-grown Philadelphus ‘Petite Perfume Pink’, the first pink mock orange, and has a chance this year with the Australian-bred Anisodontea ‘Carnival Lights Candy Apple’ and Rosa ‘Amirose’ from Thomas Proll, a world-leading German breeder, which could be the first rose to win the Plant of the Year award.
Rosa ‘Amirose’ has delicate, peach-pink blooms, and could be the first rose to win Plant of the Year
Another rose, ‘Watford Forever’, part of a series from Philip Harkness, a British breeder, named for former Watford Football Club chairman Sir Elton John, is shortlisted, but the much-anticipated Sir David Beckham white rose from David Austin is conspicuously absent from the contest.
It is being held back for a high-profile launch involving David Beckham himself – and the King – at their Chelsea feature garden.
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Although only a third of the 18 shortlisted plants are British-bred, the judging process remains a uniquely British affair. RHS plant committee members, who traditionally favour the trees and hardy perennials suited to bigger gardens, assess the plants.
This makes Frank P Matthews’ Prunus ‘Japanese Lantern’ a top contender, described by the nursery’s director, Steph Dunn James, as “such a special flowering cherry, with multiple colours on one tree”. The Worcestershire family nursery won the title in 2024 with Prunus ‘Starlight’.
Prunus ‘Japanese Lantern’ is a particularly beautiful ornamental cherry
Japanese-bred plants often do well. However, the clear favourite for 2026 is a breakthrough that many specialists thought was genetically impossible: the first truly red hosta.
Developed by a Dane called Ninja Kramer, Hosta ‘Red Ninja’ is the culmination of half a century of breeding efforts, and seeks to move beyond the customary green-and-blue hosta.
Hosta ‘Red Ninja’ is a perennial with striking red leaves
Cornwall’s Kernock Park Plants has two of its five new Chelsea launches shortlisted. Peter Moore, a veteran British breeder, renowned for his work with Buddleja and Choisya, developed one of them: Antirrhinum ‘Shiryu Kiss’.
Antirrhinum ‘Shiryu Kiss’ is a hardy, versatile snapdragon
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Indoor plant enthusiasts have two notable new cultivars to consider: the American-bred Anthurium ‘Michele’ and the Welsh-bred Streptocarpus ‘Sirius’ by Lynne Dibley, who bred the first Chelsea Plant of the Year in 2010.
Anthurium ‘Michele’ has distinctive leaves with purple veins
The dwarf Hydrangea ‘Groundbreaker Ruby’ and the Japanese Clematis ‘Minamo-no-yousei’ from Thompson & Morgan are both designed for compact gardens.
The RHS will return to its tradition of naming the winner on press day, Monday May 18, and the final assessment will be conducted in person on the day, so the way the plants look on that date is all-important.
This means that the unpredictable British weather could have as big a say as the breeders and growers on what, for many horticulturists, is the most important day of the year.
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