Plus, see what plants came in second and third place...
The Chelsea Flower Show Plant of the Year 2022 winner has been announced, with × Semponium 'Destiny' from Surreal Succulents winning the annual award.
Second place went to to Armeria pseudarmeria 'Dreamland' (Dreameria Series) from Stonebarn Landscapes, and third place to Salvia Pink Amistad (‘Arggr17-011’) from Middleton Nurseries Ltd.
The Plant of the Year award celebrates the work of breeders and nurseries in developing and growing new plant varieties – and there were 20 beautiful plants all vying for the accolade this year. The shortlisted plants have been on display in the Great Pavilion at RHS Chelsea, including Rosa ELIZABETH‘ Ausmajesty’ by David Austin Roses and Geranium cantabrigiense 'Intense', by first-time RHS Chelsea exhibitors Moore and Moore Plants.
Cercis canadensis 'ETERNAL FLAME’ was the winner in 2021, and now × Semponium 'Destiny' joins the hall of fame for 2022, with the winning entry selected by a panel of over 100 plant experts.
Take a look at the winners up close and this year's shortlist...
× Semponium 'Destiny' is an intergeneric hybrid, the world's first cross between aeonium and sempervivum. This succulent –with dark, veiny leaves – is drought tolerant, hardier than aeonium, and can grow to a full-sized specimen in just three years.
Striking in appearance, colours range from bright green to a very deep purple in strong sunlight. And interestingly, it can hold its dark colours all year round, unlike most other purple aeonium hybrids.
It makes the perfect pot plant for a patio, courtyard, rock garden, greenhouse or conservatory.
Flowering for seven to eight months, its ability to cope with drought, frost and wind makes it a perfect sustainable plant for changing times.
Developed by Rolando Uria, a world-famous breeder from Argentina, Salvia PINK AMISTAD is a cousin of S. 'Amistad', one of the most popular Salvia cultivars, which has sold over four million plants.
A beautiful plant for tubs and mixed containers with purple flower petals and white and yellow markings. It makes an excellent cut flower. Siberian irises are known for attracting bees as it has nectar/pollen rich flowers.
An ideal shrub for a mixed border, but it also works well in a pot. Highly disease resistant, hardy, and will tolerate shade.
A versatile and shade-tolerant shrub which can be pruned lower to suit a smaller garden or given the freedom to become larger for a specimen shrub. Ideal in a border or pot, this rose is extremely hardy and disease resistant with excellent repeat flowering.
Low and compact with large showy flower spikes of striking violet-blue. It makes an attractive addition in garden borders and container displays. It's easy to grow, winter hardy, and an important food source for pollinators.
Aeonium 'Jubilee', named to celebrate the Queen's Platinum Jubilee, embodies all that is great about aeoniums, with strong growth and dark glossy colouring.
A reliable garden hardy plant with above average disease resistance, making it easy to grow. Very low maintenance and provides good flower coverage compared to older cultivars, with repeat flowering May to September.
Beautiful semi-double fragrant blooms providing a kaleidoscope of colours. Flowering all summer long, this compact floribunda is perfect for patios.
Rich chocolate foliage which is slightly ruffled, with strong upright dark stems bearing white flowers tinged with pink. It's easy to grow and loved by bees.
A fully hardy deciduous shrub with white margined green ovate leaves contrasting against deep red stems. In late February into March, the bare stems are smothered in beautiful, lightly scented pale yellow flowers.
Deep, dusky purple, disease-resistant foliage provides a perfect foil for the semi-double blue flowers. It works well in pots or borders.
A hardy, compact dianthus bred for its intensity of electric pink single clove scented flowers over a neat grey-green foliage. Ideal for small outdoor spaces in peat-free pots, balconies or garden borders.
• London Fire Brigade
Perfect for smaller gardens and new plant lovers, 'Purplelicious' looks and tastes great. It has a higher nutritional value to its green competitors, and is unique in being the only variety to keep its purple colour once cooked.
A compact flower for displays in the garden or patio all summer long. Developed to fill a gap in the Buddleja market, it replaces the alternative 'Royal Red' which can be unreliable and unsuited to smaller gardens. This is fully hardy and loved by bees and butterflies.
× Semponium 'Diamond' is a multi-headed compact succulent with emerald coloured leaves, which become tinged with a deep bright red colour during summer. The rosettes are incredibly uniform – after two to three years the central growing point explodes into a mass display of bright yellow flowers that bees and other insects love. It's easy to grow in a pot or rock garden and takes little care and maintenance.
A non-fading versatile geranium with vivid pink blooms. Fragrant semi-evergreen foliage turns red in autumn as an added bonus. Mass planting makes for excellent ground cover, but it's also ideal for mixed borders and patio/balcony pots. It's bee and butterfly friendly too.
A unique variety with masses of distinctive hot pink, star-shaped flowers on long, narrow pointed leaves in both spring and autumn. A compact and versatile evergreen that will bring a splash of colour to pots, borders, or even inside the house thanks to good heat and cold tolerance.
This compact plant offers first-of-a-kind foliage that opens apricot orange before turning to golden yellow. It is smothered with pink, funnel-shaped flowers on arching stems in May and June, offering early support for pollinators.
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