Award-winning seeds and plants

Add wow factor to your garden with award-winning plants
Image: Thompson & Morgan

We're thrilled that so many of our seeds and plants have earned prestigious international awards. From a clutch of RHS Chelsea Flower Show awards to business, retail and horticultural awards from around the world, we're proud that our commitment to offer the best products in the gardening industry has been recognised.

Here's a selection of our award-winning Chelsea plants to add a touch of prize-winning sparkle to your garden. Browse our full range of flowers and plants for an even wider choice. 

The Plant of the Year at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2023: Agapanthus BLACK JACK

Easy to grow, the unique flowers of this agapanthus add a striking presence to borders and containers
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2023 was a fantastic year for T&M and we were delighted to take a clean sweep in last year's RHS Chelsea Flower Show’s Plant of the Year Award 2023. Well-deserving of first place, Agapanthus BLACK JACK ('Dwaghyb02'), exhibited by Sparsholt College, bred by De Wet and introduced by Thompson & Morgan features striking black flowerheads that open to reveal deep purple striped blooms. Over time, the flowers fade slightly but develop a gorgeous metallic sheen that seems to glow in the late afternoon sun. Producing more flowers and blooming for twice as long as other varieties, this agapanthus gives you an excellent return on your investment!

Second place in the Plant of the Year at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2023: Hydrangea serrata 'Gotemba Nishiki' (EUPHORIA PINK)

Reaching 80cm tall, Hydrangea serrata 'Euphoria Pink' is ideal for small gardens and containers
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Achieving second place in RHS Chelsea’s Plant of the Year Award 2023, Hydrangea serrata 'Gotemba Nishiki' (EUPHORIA PINK), exhibited by Stonebarn Landscapes, bred by Mr Nagasaki T and introduced by Thompson & Morgan delivers an explosion of colour from the moment the leaves emerge in spring until it finishes flowering in autumn. With exceptional tri-colour foliage and stunning pink lacecap flowers, this hydrangea won’t disappoint. 

The unusual silvery-green leaves are surrounded by a bright white margin that flushes pink in spring. As the pink tint fades, it’s replaced by beautiful fuchsia-coloured blooms with pale pink centres. Perfectly suited to smaller gardens and containers, ‘Euphoria Pink’ reaches about 80cm high. Exhibited in partnership with Mr. Nagasaki T. from Japan representing Osco Garden BV, Aalsmeer/Netherlands, it’s the first cultivar that combines exceptional flowers with equally stunning foliage. 

Third place in the Plant of the Year at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2023: Weigela CAMOUFLAGE

From T&M's own breeding programme, Weigela 'Camouflage' has vivid variegation and red blooms
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Receiving third place in the Plant of the Year at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2023: Weigela CAMOUFLAGE ('Tmwg15-01'), exhibited by Stonebarn Landscapes, bred by Charles Valin and introduced by Thompson & Morgan is a compact, deciduous shrub that is perfect for containers and smaller gardens. Its variegated bright green and deep purple foliage is the ideal backdrop for a profusion of ruby-red, funnel-shaped flowers that attract pollinators throughout May and June. Reaching just 60cm high, this vibrant shrub provides a long season of interest and makes a sensational choice for small spaces where plants have to work extra hard to earn their place. 

Rose 'Peter's Persica' - Gardeners' World Plant of The Year Award 2023

Perfect for small spaces, grow this compact climbing rose in containers or patio pots
Image copyright: Daniel Myhill

Rose 'Peter's Persica' was named in honour of the late gardening legend Peter Seabrook who instantly fell for it while touring our trial grounds. A compact and repeat-blooming climbing rose, ‘Peter’s Persica’ boasts masses of vibrant yellow blooms with a glowing red centre. It makes a stunning addition to patio pots or large containers, and has excellent disease resistance. We’re delighted that it has just been named the 2023 winner of the Gardeners’ World Plant of the Year Award, especially as sales help to support the work of the Colegrave Seabrook Foundation which assists students in horticulture.

Third place in the Plant of the Year at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2019: Agapanthus FIREWORKS

Agapanthus 'Fireworks' looks gorgeous in borders or patio pots
Image: Thompson & Morgan

Our Agapanthus FIREWORKS ('Mdb001'), exhibited by Sparsholt College, bred by Quinton Bean & Andrew de Wet, De Wet Plant Breeders and introduced by Thompson & Morgan achieved third place in the Plant of the Year at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2019. Our product development manager Peter Freeman said: “We’re completely over the moon! To have been so highly recognised by the RHS is a huge achievement.”

Also known as the African Blue Lily, this hardy perennial is easy to maintain and thrives in both borders and patio pots. It will keep blooming long after other agapanthus are finished - often well into September - giving a full three months of striking colour. You can then leave faded agapanthus flower stems intact to enjoy their architectural seed heads during autumn.

The Plant of the Year at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2018: Hydrangea RUNAWAY BRIDE® SNOW WHITE

Hydrangea RUNAWAY BRIDE® SNOW WHITE has prolific blooms that last well into autumn
© Visions BV, Netherlands

Our Hydrangea RUNAWAY BRIDE® SNOW WHITE ('USHYD0405') (PBR), exhibited by The Sun, bred by Ushio Sakazaki and introduced by Thompson & Morgan received The Plant of the Year at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show in 2018. Our head of horticulture Paul Masters said: “We're completely over the moon to have taken first place. This is a truly spectacular plant - I've never seen so many flowers on a hydrangea! To see six blooms on each branch is unheard of.”

This overachieving hydrangea flowers from late spring/early summer and well into autumn - and is one of the most floriferous and vigorous hydrangeas you will ever see. Position in a sheltered, shady spot and gown in any rich, fertile, moist soil - and enjoy the runaway success of this award-winner.

Third place in the Plant of the Year at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2018: Sunflower SunBelievable™ BROWN EYED GIRL

This multi-award-winning sunflower brightens up any garden.
Image: Thompson & Morgan

Our sunflower SunBelievable™ BROWN EYED GIRL ('Sunbeliv01'), exhibited by The Sun, bred by Charles Valin/ Thompson & Morgan and introduced by Thompson & Morgan has won multiple awards in 2018. In the UK it took third place in the Plant of the Year at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show. It also won the Four Oaks Trade Show Best Plant Introduction Bedding or Pot Plant, and took gold in the annuals category at the Horticultural Trades Association (HTA) National Plant Show.

In Japan the same year it was placed second in the Outstanding Performance Award category at the horticultural industry show Flower Trial Japan. It won awards in the US too, winning the Retailers' Choice Award at the FARWEST Show in Portland, Oregon, and the American Horticultural Retailers' Choice Award at Cultivate Ohio.

Because it's sterile, this sunflower puts all its energy into flowering rather than setting seed. It flowers from June to November, and will produce 1,000 flowers over a season! Perfect for pots and borders, it's super-easy to grow too, and won't mind if you forget to water it. This multi-branching, multi-award-winning sunflower will add prize-winning impact to your garden.

Geranium 'Rozanne' - Plant of the Centenary, RHS Chelsea 2013

This gorgeous geranium won't self seed and flowers repeatedly throughout summer
© Photoshot

To celebrate the centenary of the Chelsea Flower Show, in 2013 the RHS convened a panel of horticultural experts to select the top ten plants launched at the Flower Show since 1913. Our Geranium 'Rozanne' came out on top as the RHS Chelsea Flower Show Plant of the Centenary!

Also known as cranesbill, this geranium produces masses of saucer-shaped, violet-blue blooms, and flowers from late May until late in the autumn - unique for a hardy geranium. 'Rozanne' makes excellent ground cover for borders or spilling from containers. It's easy to grow, thrives in shade and offers a long season of pollen and nectar for pollinators.

Foxglove 'Illumination Pink' - Best New Plant, RHS Chelsea 2012

This 'impossible' foxglove makes a statement in any garden
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Our Digitalis 'Illumination Pink' was awarded Best New Plant at the 2012 RHS Chelsea Flower Show. The award was presented by RHS President Elizabeth Banks, who said: “The foxglove was a convincing winner. It flowers throughout the summer, grows well in both borders and containers and is loved by bees.”

That year it also won Best New Plant at the Garden Retail Awards and Best New Product at the Anglian Business Awards. It subsequently featured in two award-winning gardens at the 2013 RHS Chelsea Flower Show and in our own Behind the Genes 2022 RHS Chelsea Flower Show entries.

Thought to be an impossible hybridisation, this is the most spectacular foxglove you will have ever seen! Parentage from the Canary Island Foxglove gives it its fabulous tropical colouring. Most foxgloves are biennial - but this is a reliable perennial, and will make a striking, exotic addition to your summer borders.

Buddleja 'Buzz® Indigo' - Best New Variety: Hardy Nursery Stock, UK Grower Awards 2016

Part of the 'Buzz®' range, this the world's first patio buddleja.
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Our Buddleja 'Buzz® Indigo' was crowned Best New Variety: Hardy Nursery Stock at the UK Grower Awards 2016. The expert verdict of the industry specialists was that this is "a variety that will regenerate the buddleja market." Our Buddleja 'Buzz®' range as a whole also won Best New Plant Variety at the 2010 Grower of the Year Award.

The Buzz® is the first Buddleja specifically bred to be a dwarf variety. Our plant breeder, Charles Valin, said: “Buddlejas can grow so fast and have a reputation for taking over the garden, so we wanted to create something that lets people grow these great plants, but on a smaller scale. To have won the award a real reward for so many years of breeding work.”

This long-flowering buddleja attracts clouds of butterflies into the garden, and is perfectly proportioned for pots and smaller gardens. The world's first patio buddleja, it reaches no more than 4ft (1.2m) in height, yet retains the best qualities of its larger cousin. It offers a more manageable way of adding the iconic flower spikes of buddleja to your planting. 

Daphne 'Eternal Fragrance' - gold award, New Plant category, Salon du Végétal trade show, Angers, France 2013

Enjoy the unbeatable scent of this Daphne throughout the summer
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In 2013 our Daphne 'Eternal Fragrance' won a gold award in the New Plant category of the Salon du Végétal trade show in Angers, France.

This unusual semi-evergreen Daphne is unbeatable for flowers and fragrance. It flowers on new growth, so they just keep coming, from April to October. With a compact, slow growth habit and deliciously sweet scent, this elegant shrub is perfect for planting in containers close to a doorway, where you can appreciate the fabulous heady fragrance as you pass.

Pansy 'Friolina' - Best New Plant Variety, Grower of the Year Award 2008

Brighten up your garden with a spectacular pansy display
Image: Thompson & Morgan

Our hugely popular Pansy 'Friolina' scooped the prize for Best New Plant Variety at the 2008 Grower of the Year Award. 

'Friolina' is the world's first trailing multiflora pansy. Trailing to 120cm (48”), it's perfect for colour and perfume all summer long. Smothered with flowers whatever the weather, the rain doesn't bother them at all - the ideal solution for a cool summer! Grow them in containers, hanging baskets and window boxes and enjoy their vibrant colours and sweet scent.

Business, retail and horticultural awards

Behind the Genes garden - gold medal, RHS Chelsea 2019

Designed and created in partnership with Sparsholt College Hampshire, our Behind the Genes garden was awarded a gold medal at the 2019 RHS Chelsea Flower Show, and also won Best in Class. 

Our senior account manager Lance Russell, himself an alumni of Sparsholt College said: “I'm just so thrilled that the garden has been so well received by the RHS judges. All our hard work has paid off!”

Find out more about our journey to Chelsea and see our full list of plants displayed in the garden. This included our award-winning foxglove 'Illumination Pink', a Chelsea winner in its own right, having won Best New Plant in 2012.

Grow Your Own Great British Growing Awards 2017

In 2017 we swept the board at Grow Your Own magazine's Great British Growing Awards for a third year running. We were thrilled to win five top gongs - especially since all were nominated and voted for by the great gardening public.

We were awarded gold in:

• Best Fruit and Veg Seed Range
• Best Plug Plant Range
• Best Online Retailer
• Best One-Stop Shop for Gardening
• Most Innovative Growing Product for our revolutionary TomTato® plant. 

We were also awarded silver for our award-winning incredicompost® in the category Most Effective Composting Product.

Our horticultural director, Paul Hansord said: “Our products and services win us multiple industry awards each season, and it's always good to be recognised by our peers - but nothing beats a nod from our customers.”

The Sun's 'Britain's Best Plant Retailer'

In 2013 we were thrilled to win the online/mail order category of The Sun's Britain's Best Plant Retailer competition - the first year the category was introduced.

When launching the competition, The Sun's gardening editor Peter Seabrook said in his column: “We're looking for the company that always offers a great range of top quality plants that represent good value – and which also gives sound and free advice and proper service.” 

Peter came to our headquarters in Ipswich to present our horticultural director Paul Hansord with a specially engraved spade. Paul said: “We're so pleased to have won this award - and particularly because it's been voted for by the gardening public. Competition is tough in online and mail order plant retailing, so we're very proud to be placed first in this category.”

Reginald Cory Memorial Cup

In 2013 our plant breeder Charles Valin was awarded the Reginald Cory Memorial Cup by the RHS. This prestigious award is given to encourage and reward the production of new garden hardy hybrids. 

Charles' most famous creation to date is the foxglove 'Illumination Pink' which won the 2012 RHS Chelsea Flower Show Plant of the Year award. His other achievements include the hugely successful dwarf, branching buddleja 'Buzz®', and the highly popular fuchsia 'Lady in Black', which is renowned for its 'flower power' and can be used as a climber.

Our managing director Paul Hansord said: “We're very proud of Charles and pleased that his work has been recognised by the RHS”.

Thompson & Morgan has a successful breeding programme that produces new discoveries every year. We are extremely proud of the horticultural and business awards we have won and continue to strive to produce new and innovative plants, flowers and seeds for gardeners all over the UK.