The RHS Malvern Spring Festival kicks off the gardening year, getting gardeners fired up about growing. This friendly, accessible event offers an effortless opportunity to rub shoulders with designers and creators, giving you the chance to speak with the people behind the scenes, driving green innovation. After all, communication is one of the best assets we have, sharing our horti finds and passing on knowledge.
A vital element of visiting shows is that you get to see experts talking about their passions, sharing tips and advice and inspiring people to give it a go at home. You are always going to come home with an idea for a new project, perhaps a product that makes watering or feeding your plants easier and hopefully a new plant for your collection too!
As you entered the Festival of Houseplants, visitors were treated not only to some banging tunes from the Botanic Beats DJ, but also to four leafy, innovative installations illustrating how plants can be integrated into our homes to bring the aesthetic beauty of nature indoors. Showing how we can nourish our mental health with biophilic design even when an outdoor space is not available. It also highlighted the important role of plants, not only for our visual entertainment but essentially as food too, demonstrating the future of growing edibles in domestic spaces.
This year’s show garden inspiration was ‘Back to Grandma’s House’, ‘The Scholar’s Jungle’ (main image), ‘The Science of Sustenance’, and ‘Dibleys Houseplant Sanctuary’. Plus, some imaginative installations; The Restorative Retreat (bedroom), The Social Sanctuary (the living room) and ‘The Humidity Haven’ (the bathroom) illustrating a plant take-over in these everyday spaces.
One of the main considerations with houseplants is how you are going to display your plant in your space. There’s always plenty to think about, from light and warmth to how you are going to water your plant, to simply finding room, but the houseplant festival had it covered. Ideas were abundant. Here are some of my top picks from this year’s houseplant trends.
Living walls
Utilising our vertical spaces is a brilliant way to get more green into our lives and fill blank walls with life. ‘Back to Grandma’s House’ by Alina Hibbert and Adam Critien had a lush living wall incorporated into the decor of a living room wall, showing how plants can easily feature in our everyday lives, integrating many houseplant favourites from potted maranta (prayer plant), Boston, asplenium, and maidenhair ferns into a wooden frame.
The most jaw-dropping display was Dr Tom Bellamy’s Plant Heritage National Plant Collection of Platycerium, staghorn ferns; these epiphytic ferns boast antler-shaped fronds that defy the imagination, including a humongous Platycerium superbum (yes, it really is called superbum!).
These incredible plants grow mainly on trees in the wild and draw food and moisture from the surrounding environment. Being personally obsessed with staghorn ferns and the plant parent to a fair number of these beauties, I was particularly fascinated to see such a huge wall-mounted collection. Following a wonderfully friendly and easy-to-follow demo by Alina Hibbert, I feel inspired to get creating. I’ve wanted to mount my staghorn ferns for over a year, but I never got around to finding some cork or bark to start the process. Watch this space!
If you are looking for a smaller vertically hung alternative, then ditch hanging pictures of plants for living specimens. Plantamamita had a cute collection of framed sempervivum, planted and ready to hang on your wall.
Hang them high
Hanging houseplants are still very much on trend, from intricately woven macrame and elegantly carved wooden structures to crisp, contemporary vessels with beautiful pieces from Cotton Lily, Baycraft Studio and Frond. Rita Botanicals sparkled with glitterball pot hangers and retro birdcages, demonstrating that if you can hang it, you can plant it!
Mounting houseplants was also very popular. If the staghorn fern wall didn’t inspire you to grab some bark and mount a plant, nothing will. But if you didn’t fancy doing it yourself, Plantamamita had a wide range of ready-made bark and cork-mounted bromeliad and staghorn fern.
Kokedama
I was thrilled to see that kokedama was as popular as ever. This centuries-old Japanese craft, originating from the Edo period, still inspires imaginations today. Kokedama is a mindful, planty project to do at home. It involves encasing a houseplant’s root ball in a soil mix and wrapping it in a layer of moss. Secured with twine, the ball becomes a living sculpture.
There was a huge variety of plants used that emphasised the versatility of this display method, from asparagus ferns to bromeliads and orchids, showcased beautifully by Between Two Thorns. I personally love making kokedama and have quite a collection myself.
Pot of love
From wacky containers to pot stands, every form of pot and holder had been considered. With a strong bias toward upcycling, I expect many people will be inspired to rummage through their cupboards or recycling bins to find quirky tins, teacups and retro ornaments to pop a plant into.
But if you are looking for elegance, Oscar & Digby and Frond exuded understated style with wooden and coated-steel pieces, whereas Botanical Interior Design and The Craft Planter wowed with their eco-friendly, 3D-printed, biodegradable planters crafted from plant-based Polylactic acid (PLA). The Crafty Planter’s innovative pot design also had a mesh base with a saucer to take the worry out of drainage issues.
One stall that really touched my heart was Gardenz in a Jar, which recycled their rescue dog Nico’s food tins to raise money for the Spanish Griffon Dog Rescue Centre.
Terrariums
Creating mini ecosystems in glass containers was still a big houseplant trend. There were plenty of ideas on show to get us picking up the nearest glass vessel. Whether you favour a cork-topped bottle or an open bowl, a lantern or a fish tank, the message really was get planting and get creating. There were imaginative terrarium arrangements by La Maison Rustique, The Garden Room, Plantamamita, and Botanic York. And if you’re not sure where to begin or have a plant-mad friend, That Green Lady had it covered with DIY terrarium kits complete with a how-to handbook.
So succulent
Succulents and cacti were everywhere, and visitors couldn’t get enough of them. It’s not surprising these little wonders are popular; undemanding, slow-growing and often petite, they are an easy addition to homes, however small, making them perfect for student digs and those with limited shelf space.
Nice to see some stalls at the houseplant festival were simply selling plants. There was a terrific choice from Ottershaw Cacti, Curious Cacti, the Cotswold Plant House, and adorable miniatures from Pengsucculents.
But if succulents and cacti didn’t capture your imagination, then Andy’s Airplants had an impressive collection of Tillandsia to tempt; these soilless epiphytes mean they can be placed on any surface or receptacle, making them incredibly versatile.
Go large!
Big, bold statement plants were still in. Monstera deliciousa featured heavily as a dramatic showstopper plant, as well as rubber plants, alocasia and banana. For a clean look, you can’t beat a large-leaved plant in a pot.
If you were looking for a challenge, Sprouts of Bristol had some enormous Vanda orchids. Their stunning, large purple blooms and arching leaves require a lot of nurturing and specialised growing conditions. Sporting a cool price tag of £120 a piece, these plants attract hardcore collectors, but no doubt experienced gardeners relish the task. On the opposite end of the scale, Dark Orchid had a large collection of small, rare orchids for dedicated enthusiasts.
Strike a pose
My interest was piqued by My Fronds’ elegant but practical ode to ikebana, the Japanese floral art of flower arranging. Their simple yet stylish ‘Kenzan’ solid brass holder supports fresh or dried stems securely for effortless displays. This is a great way to show off individual stems and a very mindful way to spend some time.
Edibles
And who would have thought we’d be encouraging fungi into our homes, but the Caley Brothers proved that indoor growing doesn’t have to be green or just for decoration; branch out into edibles by growing mushrooms. This sister duo has achieved multiple RHS Chelsea gold medals with their stylish grow kits. It was great to watch their wonderful demo on how to grow your own mushrooms, hosted by the charismatic plant fanatic Michael Perry.
My personal pick
My personal favourite from the show is Cotton Lily’s monstera-shaped wire plant supports available in bronze, black and copper. I’m looking forward to using my new support to keep my ever-expanding houseplants upright. Somerset-based Katie lives on her floating plant shop houseboat, cruising the Kennet and Avon canal, creating plastic-free reusables. Practical art with a heart!
That wraps it up for another year. I am sure the Festival of houseplants has once more inspired many people to fill their homes with green. Happy growing!
