Gardening events and shows for 2022

From the glamour and excitement of the RHS Chelsea Flower Show to the laid-back charm of the Great Comp Summer Show, our round up of this year’s best flower shows and festivals.

We'll be updating this article through the year so be sure to check back for what's new. Bookmark it for quick and easy re-finding!

So let's make some plans and make the most of what's going on. Here's what you've got to look forward to for 2022:

Gardens Illustrated events and show guide 2022

12 March – 8 January 2023: Robert Indiana: Sculpture 1958-2018

Discover the work of the late American pop artist Robert Indiana as Yorkshire Sculpture Park hosts the first UK exhibition of his sculptures. Spanning six decades of his work, it includes his iconic Love sculpture series, including LOVE (Red Blue Green), shown above right. 12 March – 8 January 2023, 10am-5pm. £6. Yorkshire Sculpture Park, West Bretton, Wakefield, West Yorkshire WF4 4LG. Tel 01924 832631, ysp.org.uk

JULY

Until 31 July: Creative with Batik

Rebecca Mason Admire artworks from batik artist Rebecca Mason in the tearoom at Stillingfleet Lodge Gardens before exploring the extensive gardens that include a meadow garden, rill garden and plant nursery. Rebecca’s artworks, all of which are available to buy, are inspired by the plant life of the Yorkshire countryside.

Weekdays 1-5pm. Exhibition included in garden entry, £6. Stillingfleet Lodge Garden and Nurseries, Stewart Lane, Stillingfleet, York YO19 6HP. Tel 01904 728506, stillingfleetlodgenurseries.co.uk

4-9 July: RHS Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival UK

The world’s largest flower show.

Open Monday to Friday, 10am-6.30pm; Saturday, 10am-5.30pm
Tickets From £23.85
Location Hampton Court Palace, East Molesey, Surrey KT8 9AU
Tel 0844 338 7501
Web rhs.org.uk

14-17 July: Festival of the Garden

A UK garden celebration with talks, tours and demonstrations at Charleston Farmhouse.

Open To be confirmed
Tickets From £10
Location Charleston, Firle, Lewes, East Sussex BN8 6LL
Tel 01323 811626
Web charleston.org.uk

16-17 July: Brogdale Cherry Walks

Pick your own cherries and learn more about the history of the Kentish cherry at Brogdale Farm. This is an opportunity to sample more than 400 varieties of cherry from the home of the National Fruit Collection.

10am-12pm or 1pm-3pm. £8.50. Brogdale Collections, Brogdale Farm, Faversham, Kent ME13 8XZ. brogdalecollections.org

16-17 July: Belvoir Castle Flower & Garden Show

UK show gardens and talks.

Open 9.45am-4.30pm.
Tickets From £12.50
Location Belvoir Castle, Grantham, Lincolnshire NG32 1PE
Tel 07949 845346
Web belvoircastleflowerandgardenshow.co.uk

21 July: Growing Great Grasses

Discover more about different grass species and how to choose the best grasses for different positions, on this illustrated talk from Neil Lucas of Knoll Gardens. Includes a tour of RHS Garden Rosemoor. 2-4.30pm. £60. RHS Garden Rosemoor, Great Torrington, Rosemoor, Torrington, Devon EX38 8PH. Tel 01805 624067, rhs.org.uk

20-24 July: RHS Flower Show Tatton Park

UK plants and show gardens.

Open 10am-5pm
Tickets £22.85
Location Tatton Park, Knutsford, Cheshire WA16 6QN
Tel 0844 338 7501
Web rhs.org.uk

25 July: Behind the Scenes at Great Dixter

Explore the famous gardens on a day when they are normally closed to the public. The tour includes an introduction to the history of the gardens and the planting, and a break with light refreshments. Early booking advised. 1.30-4.15pm £45. Great Dixter House & Gardens, Northiam, Rye, East Sussex TN31 6PH. greatdixter.co.uk

25-26 July: Botanical Illustration Art Course

Learn the basics of botanical art on this two-day course from the garden charity Perennial. Held in Perennial’s seven-acre garden, Fullers Mill, on the River Lark in Suffolk, art tutor Reinhild Raistrick will demonstrate the techniques needed to capture the garden’s blooms. 10am-4pm. £110. Fullers Mill, Suffolk IP28 6HD. Tel 01284 728888, perennial.org.uk

31 July: Outdoor Theatre – Twelfth Night

Visit Gordon Castle Walled Garden to enjoy an open-air performance of Shakespeare’s gender-swap comedy, Twelfth Night, by Heartbreak Productions. Bring your own seat and a picnic and soak up the atmosphere. , 5.30-7.30pm. £14. Gordon Castle Walled Garden, Fochabers, Moray IV32 7PQ. Tel 01343 612317, gordoncastle.co.uk

AUGUST

3 August, Fullers Mill Summer Open Evening

Evening entry to a Perennial garden including a talk from one of the volunteers and a glass of fizz on arrival.

Open 6-8pm
Tickets £10
Location Fullers Mill, West Stow, IP28 6HD
Web perennial.org.uk

3-7 August: RHS Garden Hyde Hall Flower Show

UK flower displays and specialist plant nurseries.

Open 10am-5pm
Tickets £12.15
Location RHS Garden Hyde Hall, Creephedge Lane, Chelmsford, Essex CM3 8RA
Tel 01245 402013
Web rhs.org.uk

4 August: Summer Cycle At Kew Gardens

Explore the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, by bike this summer on a rare cycling open day, and enjoy pop-up food stands as well as live music. 5.30-8.30pm. £20.
Kew, Richmond, London TW9 3AE. Tel 020 8332 5655, kew.org

Until 2 October: Tracey Emin: I Lay Here For You

Jupiter Artland’s newest permanent artwork, Tracey Emin’s I Lay Here For You, forms the centrepiece of a new exhibition. Alongside the new 6m bronze, sited by Emin in a beech grove, will be new works presented by the artist in Jupiter’s indoor gallery spaces. 10am-4pm. Included in garden admission of £10. Jupiter Artland, Bonnington House, Steadings, Wilkieston, Edinburgh EH27 8BY. Tel 01506 889900, jupiterartland.org

10 August: Flower Farm Tour

Take a guided tour with Georgie Newbery from Common Farm Flowers around the farm’s seven acres of garden and cut flower patches and learn more about how a flower farm works. 10 August, 12pm and 6pm. £15. Common Farm Flowers, Barrow Lane, Charlton Musgrove, Somerset BA9 8HN. Tel 01963 32883, commonfarmflowers.com

12-14 August: Shrewsbury Flower Show

Filled with the top exhibitors.

Open To be confirmed
Tickets To be confirmed
Location The Quarry, Shrewsbury, Shropshire SY1 1RN
Tel 01743 234050
Web shrewsburyflowershow.org.uk

13-14 August: The Great Comp Summer Show

UK plant specialists gathering.

Open To be confirmed
Tickets To be confirmed
Location Comp Lane, Platt, nr Sevenoaks, Kent TN15 8QS
Tel 01732 885094
Web greatcompgarden.co.uk

16 August: Forest Bathing at the National Botanic Garden of Wales

Join a guided forest bathing session and mindfully immerse your senses among the trees to enjoy the benefits this brings to mind, body and soul. Forest bathing, which has its roots in Japan, has been shown to have wide-ranging benefits, including reducing stress and anxiety while increasing concentration and creativity. 10.30am-12pm. £25. National Botanic Garden of Wales, Middleton Hall, Llanarthne, Carmarthenshire SA32 8HN. Tel 01558 667149, botanicgarden.wales

16 August: Morning Summer Garden Design Walk – LCGD

Join Andrew Fisher Tomlin and Andrew Wilson, directors of the London College of Garden Design, on a walking tour of RHS Garden Wisley that will explore and analyse many of its design features. 10.30am-1pm. £65. RHS Garden Wisley, Surrey GU232 6QB. Tel 01483 762955, lcgd.org.uk

19-21 August: RHS Garden Rosemoor Flower Show

UK displays and expert advice

Open Friday to Saturday, 10am-6pm; Sunday, 10am-4pm
Tickets £12.15
Location RHS Garden Rosemoor, Great Torrington, Devon EX28 8PH
Tel 01805 624067
Web rhs.org.uk

20 August Introduction to Dry-stone Walling

Try your hand at creating a dry-stone wall on this one-day introductory course with professional waller John Hulbert at RHS Harlow Carr. Sturdy shoes or boots and tough gloves advisable. 10am-4pm. £69. RHS Garden Harlow Carr, Crag Lane, Harrogate, North Yorkshire HG3 1QB. Tel 01423 565418, rhs.org.uk

12 August: Late Summer Plant Fair

Hole Park Gardens, which usually opens only on Wednesdays and Thursdays, will be opening its gates for a special Saturday plant fair in August. Nurseries including Pineview Plants and Rose Cottage Plants will be in attendance and the tea rooms will be serving lunch and cakes. 11am-4pm. £10. Hole Park, Benenden Road, Rolvenden, Cranbrook, Kent TN17 4JA. Tel 01580 241344, plant-fairs.co.uk

27 August: Summertime

Relax with a picnic in the grounds of opera garden West Green House and enjoy a lunchtime concert of easy-listening classics, including Gershwin’s famous lullaby from Porgy and Bess. 12pm. £47. West Green House Gardens, Thackham’s Lane, nr Hartley Wintney, Hook, Hampshire RG27 8JB. Tel 01252 848676, westgreenhouse.co.uk

SEPTEMBER

3-4 September: Glyndebourne Open Gardens

Twelve acres of gardens surrounding the famous East Sussex opera house will be open to the public for one weekend in September. Highlights include the heavily scented Urn Garden and the sunken Bourne Garden. 3-4 September, from 11am. £12. Glyndebourne, Lewes, East Sussex BN8 5UU. Tel 01273 815000, glyndebourne.com

4 September: Autumn Plant Fair

UK specialist nurseries.

Open 12-5pm
Tickets £10
Location Sussex Prairie Garden, Morlands Farm, Wheatsheaf Road, nr Henfield, West Sussex BN5 9AT
Tel 01273 495902
Web sussexprairies.co.uk

6-11 September: RHS Garden Wisley Flower Show

UK specialist nurseries.

Open Tuesday to Saturday, 8.30am-6pm; Sunday, 8.30am-5pm
Tickets £14.95
Location RHS Garden Wisley, Woking, Surrey GU23 6QB
Tel 01483 224234
Web rhs.org.uk

16-18 September: Harrogate Autumn Flower Show

UK plants and displays.

Open To be confirmed
Tickets £20.50
Location Newby Hall & Gardens, Ripon, North Yorkshire HG4 5AE
Tel 01423 648212
Web flowershow.org.uk

23-25 September: Malvern Autumn Show

UK autumnal veg and floral displays.

Open 9am-6pm
Tickets £17
Location Three Counties Showground, Malvern, Worcestershire WR13 6NW
Tel 0344 338 5400
Web malvernautumn.co.uk

23-25 September: Fête des Plantes d’Automne

France France’s largest plant festival. See also Fête des Plantes d’Automne 1-3 April.

Open 10am-6pm
Tickets €14
Location Château de Saint-Jean de Beauregard, Rue de Château, 91940 Saint-Jean-de-Beauregard, France
Tel +33 (0)1 60 12 00 01
Web chateaudesaintjeandebeauregard.com

28-29 September: Landscape Trade Show

Register now for the industry trade show LANDSCAPE, which brings together garden designers, landscape architects and more from across the UK and beyond. 28-29 September, 10am-5pm. National Exhibition Centre, North Avenue, Birmingham B40 1NT. landscapeshow.co.uk

Dates and prices correct at time of publication. Please check details for each show prior to travelling.