10 Blooming Lovely Flower Shows To Visit In 2024
By
9 months ago
Green thumbs at the ready
Know your chrysanthemums from your carnations? These lovely flower shows will pique your interest. From annual occasions dating back to 1913 to floral takeovers of stately homes, the UK has plenty of bloomin’ beautiful blooms to see. Here’s our pick of the bunch.
Best UK Flower Shows To Visit In 2024
RHS Chelsea Flower Show
The RHS Chelsea Flower Show is the most famous and prestigious event on this list – and probably the most famous of all flower shows around the world. It has taken over the grounds of the Royal Hospital Chelsea every year since 1913 – pausing only during WWI, WWII and the coronavirus pandemic. It’s incredibly popular among high society – including the royal family – but upstarting, go-getting gardeners thrive here, too. There are plenty of prestigious prizes to be won to boot. Last year, a wheelchair accessible garden snagged the top prize, and King Charles III presented the new Elizabeth Medal of Honour. We’re sure 2024 will be just as vibrant, creative and passionate.
Details: 21–25 May 2024 at Royal Hospital Chelsea, London SW3 4NE. rhs.org.uk
Southport Flower Show
It’s the centenary edition of Southport Flower Show, one of the UK’s largest flower shows celebrating all things gardening, horticulture and outdoor living. Set over four days, a wide array of attractions are displayed, from stunning gardens to plant nurseries. Meanwhile, visitors can take part in competitions and workshops, and listen to inspiring talks and demonstrations.
Details: 15–18 August 2024 at Victoria Park (PR8 1RX). southportflowershow.co.uk
Blenheim Palace Flower Show
Blenheim Palace hosts a thrilling array of events throughout the year, but the Flower Show is the highlight on our calendars. Gorgeous flowers showcased across beautiful grounds for a summer weekend: truly, what could beat it? Visitors can expect to discover new favourite plants and flowers alongside gardening goodies, spanning gloves to gazebos.
Details: 21–23 June 2024 at Blenheim Palace (Woodstock, Oxfordshire OX20 1PP). blenheimflowershow.co.uk
Harrogate Flower Show
Northern flower fans are in luck: up in Yorkshire, the Harrogate Flower Show is a prestigious floral affair held twice a year. Organised by the North of England Horticultural Society, plant nurseries and floral features are displayed for both the Spring and Autumn editions, with talks, demonstrations and shopping opportunities to enjoy, too. The Spring edition kicks off the national gardening calendar, and is the largest exhibition by florists and flower arrangers in the country. Meanwhile, the Autumn edition is all about celebrating the year’s growing achievements, taking place around harvest time – so expect bountiful produce from the allotment alongside garden inspiration and beautiful floral displays.
Details: The Harrogate Spring Flower Show takes place from 25–28 April 2024 at the Great Yorkshire Showground (Railway Road Great Yorkshire, Showground, Harrogate HG2 8NZ); the Harrogate Autumn Flower Show takes place from 13–15 September 2024 at Newby Hall & Gardens (Ripon HG4 5AE). Discover more about both at flowershow.org.uk
RHS Flower Show Tatton Park
Over in Cheshire, Tatton Park plays host to another of the RHS’s annual flower shows. Set amid a 1,000 acre deer park dotted with unique gardens, expect talks and tips for budding horticulturalists, floral installations, markets, stalls, tasty food and drink and exciting activities for little ones to enjoy.
Details: 10am–5pm, 17–21 July 2024 at Tatton Park (Knutsford WA16 6SG). rhs.org.uk
RHS Malvern Spring Festival
Another renowned show from the specialists at the Royal Horticultural Society, the annual, four-day RHS Malvern Spring Festival is a gardening extravaganza featuring show gardens, plants, flowers, shopping, insightful talks, special guests, tasty food and drink options and a spotlight on planet-friendly gardening. This year, visitors can expect to marvel at a feature garden by RHS gold medal-winning Jamie Langlands – Lead Designer at Oxford Garden Design, who was responsible for last year’s ‘Best in Show’ and ‘People’s Choice’. He has crafted a uniquely enchanting hidden garden accessed through a disco polytunnel and brimming with kaleidoscopic reflections. Elsewhere, see a garden inspired by English poet John Donne, a native wild space and kitchen garden combination, and much, much more.
Details: 9–12 May 2024 at Three Counties Showground. Plan your visit at rhs.org.uk
Royal Windsor Flower Show
A one-day event celebrating gardening, nature, cookery and crafts, the Royal Windsor Flower Show is the largest annual event hosted by the Royal Windsor Rose & Horticultural Society. The 2024 edition will be opened by the Society’s Honorary President Alan Titchmarsh, showcasing quintessentially British floral creations alongside innovative planting displays, though-provoking talks and inspiring craft workshops.
Details: 10am–6pm on Saturday 8 June 2024 at Windsor Great Park (SL4 2BS). rwrhs.com
RHS Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival
Hampton Court’s royally spectacular flower show is the world’s largest, backdropped by London’s most historic of royal palaces. Now in its thirtieth year, the RHS Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival is a floral feast for all the senses, featuring breathtaking displays by talented horticulturalists alongside amateurs trying their hand at terrarium building, with a line-up of independent street food purveyors from KERB fuelling the masses.
Details: 2–7 July 2024 at Hampton Court Palace (Hampton Court Way, Molesey, East Molesey KT8 9AU). rhs.org.uk
Chelsea In Bloom
While the RHS Chelsea Flower Show takes over the Royal Hospital, floral creations spill out into the surrounding streets thanks to the annual Chelsea in Bloom. RHS judges collaborate with a lifestyle judge to present awards to shops, restaurants and hotels around the borough crafting special displays for the occasion. This year, the theme is ‘Floral Feasts’, encouraging participants to dream up mouthwatering scenes inspired by film, literature, history and art. Read all about it in our full guide to the festival.
Details: 20–26 May 2024 across Chelsea, London. chelseainbloom.co.uk
Belgravia In Bloom
Another annual community flower show in tandem with the RHS Chelsea Flower Show, Belgravia in Bloom showcases stunning floral displays across the small and chic region of central London, near Victoria. The theme for 2024 is ‘Floral Fun & Games’ in a nod to the 2024 Paris Olympics; expect sporty motifs crafted with flowers by the likes of Neill Strain, Moyses Stevens and Judith Blacklock. Read all about it in our full guide to the festivities.
Details: 20–27 May 2024 across Belgravia, London.