RHS Malvern Spring Festival, a trailblazing four-day seasonal showcase of new horticultural trends and innovations, will make a spectacular return to Three Counties Showground, Malvern from 7 – 10 May 2026.
RHS Malvern Spring Festival, the first RHS Flower Show of the season, has an outstanding reputation for leading the way in horticultural innovations and gardening developments. The 2026 festival will showcase the country’s best-known expert horticulturalists and TV gardening personalities, the crowning of the very first RHS award-winning show gardens of the year, the latest in horticultural trends, plus plenty of food, drink and shopping opportunities as well as fun family activities.
The theme for 2026’s festival, ‘Roots of the Future: honour the past, grow the future’, commemorates the rich traditions of gardening while embracing the latest innovations in horticulture. Visitors are invited to discover how traditional practices combine with modern ideas, such as climate-resilient design, biodiversity and soil health. The 2026 RHS Malvern Spring Festival theme aims to honour our gardening legacy whilst preparing for the future.
A highlight for many visitors of RHS Malvern Spring Festival are the ground-breaking Show Gardens. The 2026 festival will welcome the return of the RHS-judged Indoor Plant Gardens, located in the Festival of Houseplants, which made a pioneering and successful debut at last year’s festival, as well as the first RHS-judged outdoor Show Gardens of 2026. All gardens will be meticulously designed by leading and emerging horticultural talents and carefully scrutinised by the RHS judges for the very first, coveted gold medal prizes of the year.
A new feature garden, designed by Cheltenham-based Martyn Wilson, will showcase the (perhaps somewhat unknown or surprising) benefits of clay soil. This new feature garden will include demonstrations on clay materials and soil improvement, as well as planting displays and soil profile windows for practical inspiration. Additionally, a new Blooming Borders category will debut at RHS Malvern Spring Festival in 2026, offering both emerging and more experienced garden designers the opportunity to showcase their creativity and talent in a new way.
Each border will be meticulously designed and convey its own individual theme, and all will be carefully considered by RHS judges, with the very best awarded a sought-after prize. The enormous Floral Marquee packed with over 70 of the UK’s top nurseries, alongside the Plant Village and Pavilions, will all return fully stocked, providing the opportunity to seek advice from expert growers and to buy choice plants and rare gems. The popular ‘Pot Swap’ will return, giving visitors the opportunity to swap their plastic pots for more sustainable, environmentally-conscious alternatives.
The ‘Taster Ticket’ will return for 2026, offering visitors the chance to experience the festival from 2pm onwards on Saturday 9th May for just £16, and is ideal for those who would like to visit the show for the first time, families that want to enjoy a fun afternoon out, or anyone looking to do some dedicated plant shopping to liven up their own indoor or outdoor spaces. The ‘Dog Day’ will also return for 2026 on Sunday 10th May, following a successful introduction at last year’s show. Well-behaved dogs on short, fixed leads are welcome to enjoy the sights, sounds and smells of the festival with their owners.
A limited number of dog tickets are available to book online in advance via https://rhsmalvern.co.uk/
