Blue Diamond Garden Centres Win Consecutive Gold Medal at RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2026!
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Blue Diamond Garden Centres are delighted to have once again been awarded a coveted Gold Medal at this year’s RHS Chelsea Flower Show.
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Blue Diamond also achieved success in the RHS Chelsea ‘Plant of the Year Award’, with their entrant, Hydrangea Velvet Night® ‘Red Lace’, receiving third place.
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Blue Diamond Garden Centres launched three new and exclusive roses, all bred by Rosen Tantau: Rosa ‘Diddly Squat Farm Rosé Rose’, Rosa ‘Loving Arms’ on behalf of Hospice UK, Blue Diamond’s Charity Partner for 2026, and Rosa ‘Rhubarb ‘N’ Custard’, named by competition winner Gillian Hayes.
Blue Diamond Garden Centres are delighted to have once again been awarded a coveted Gold Medal at this year’s RHS Chelsea Flower Show, following last year’s outstanding success when the company received its first-ever Gold Medal, alongside the prestigious ‘Tree of the Show’ accolade for the exceptional Acer palmatum ‘Shishigashira’.
Judges were once again impressed by the ambitious garden exhibit, ‘Blue Diamond Garden Centres: An Immersive Walk-Through our Home-Grown Collection’, created by multi-award-winning designer Peter Dowle and his team at Leaf Creative, Blue Diamond’s Customer Garden Design Service. Blue Diamond collaborated with the team last year to achieve their previous Chelsea success.
The exhibit showcases the breadth, quality and relevance of plants grown directly within Blue Diamond’s nurseries, while also addressing some of the most pressing challenges facing today’s gardeners. It remains the only fully immersive, walk-through garden exhibit within the Great Pavilion.
Alan Roper, Blue Diamond Chief Executive Officer, said:
“It’s incredible to see our garden brought so masterfully to life through such meticulous craftsmanship, hard work, and dedication. Thank you to everyone involved - what an amazing team effort”.
Our Gold Medal Winning Garden
This year our garden showcased the breadth, quality and relevance of plants grown directly in Blue Diamond’s nurseries, while addressing some of the most pressing challenges facing today's gardeners, and it was the only fully immersive, walk-through garden in the Great Pavilion.
Situated in a central location near to the Monument, it was also one of the largest gardens in the Great Pavilion, spanning 240 square metres and featuring over 35 metres of walk-through pathways for visitors to explore.
The garden showcased Blue Diamond Garden Centres’ extensive and diverse plant range, with most plants available to purchase across all Blue Diamond Garden Centres nationwide, including new and exclusive plant introductions, and three new roses bred by Rosen Tantau, one launched on behalf of the charity Hospice UK.
Designed to inspire, while remaining practical and achievable, the garden addressed key gardening themes such as drought-tolerant planting, growing food in small spaces, and sustainable gardening practices.
Visitors could explore key themes such as drought-tolerant planting, growing food in small spaces, and sustainable gardening practices. The space unfolded across a series of thoughtfully curated zones including ‘Thrive Not Just Survive’ drought-tolerant planting in the Dry Garden, leading into a Plant House showcasing greenwalls of Tropical Houseplants, then into the Exotic Shade-Loving plants, Vertical Edible Walls, and our Tapestry Garden, a contemporary take on a Cottage Garden style of planting and which included three new and exclusive varieties of roses for 2026.
Enhancing the sense of theatre and drama, a striking water feature served as a showstopping centrepiece, delivering a truly immersive and memorable sensory experience.
Hydrangea Velvet Night® ‘Red Lace'
Bred by Botanic Experience, introduced by Son and Koot and available exclusively in Blue Diamond Garden Centres, this breakthrough hydrangea produces a truly distinctive combination of near-black, dark red foliage and vibrant red lace cap flowers - an unprecedented pairing in hydrangeas.
Thriving in moist, well-drained soil in partial shade, it offers season-long visual impact, with dramatic foliage providing interest beyond flowering, making it perfect for planting in borders or containers.
Both eye-catching and versatile, this innovation sets a new benchmark for ornamental hydrangeas.
This Hydrangea has also been short-listed for ‘The RHS Chelsea Plant of the Year Award’ and will also be showcased exclusively in Blue Diamond Garden Centres’ garden.
