Hot Off The Potting Bench, the feature showcasing new plant releases to the gardening public, at the recent BBC Gardener’s World Live show at the NEC Birmingham has gone down a storm with the show visitors this year.
The top twenty plants in the Visitors Vote give the retailers of plants a fantastic guide to what the public will be looking to buy from your outlet in 2026.
“While our chart shows Dahlia Velvet Crush as the very worthy winner of the Visitor Vote, the percentage of the vote column demonstrate just how much people love all plants, especially when they are new," says feature curator Nicci Gow.
There were approaching 100,000 across the four days the show was open to the gardening public, with more than double the number of votes cast this year over last year for their favourite new plant, giving retailers a really good feel for what will catch the eye of their customers in 2026.
Entries in the five categories were judged by a panel of experts, the day before the show opened to the public on the 12th June. The winning plants in each category were:
Annuals and Bedding: Calibrachoa Blood orange from Kernock Plants
Ornamental Trees and Shrubs: Hydrangea Francy Purple from Cooks of Stourport
Perennials: Dahlia Velvet Crush, a joint entry from Ball Horticulture and Allensmore
Edibles: Apple Rainbow from F P Matthews
House, Conservatory and Tender Plants: Streptocarpus Beverley from Dibley’s
The Dahlia Velvet Crush, went on to win the coveted Peter Seabrook Best New Plant Award at BBC Gardener’s World Live, as judge by the expert panel. This award was presented by TV personality Nikki Chapman and Peter’s son Roger Seabrook, to Amy Evans (Allensmore Nurseries Trial Officer) and Stuart Lowen, who retired earlier this month as Marketing Manager from Ball Horticulture.
With approaching 100,000 visitors to the show, the Colegrave Seabrook Foundation also use Hot Off the Potting Bench as a tool to promote to the public, the podcast series they are creating about the potential of careers in professional horticulture, ‘Cultivate Your Future’. The Foundation has also launched a package of promotional material to help retailers and suppliers promote careers in our industry to their customers and staff.
More details on this and the wider work of the Foundation can be obtained via their website. www.colegraveseabrookfoundation.org.uk
