With spring here, many of us are spending more time in the garden – whether growing produce, creating floral displays, attracting wildlife, or making the perfect outdoor living space.
For those looking for garden project inspiration, it’s worth keeping up with some of the latest trends. The horticulture and landscaping worlds are constantly evolving – with cutting-edge technologies, bold design concepts, and innovative ideas around sustainability emerging all the time.
Below, we dive into some of the most exciting garden trends for 2025, offering everything from simple planting suggestions to DIY projects and stylish design ideas. Whether you have a cosy balcony or a sprawling country garden, there’s something here for everyone.
1. Low-maintenance, environmentally-friendly bedding
According to the RHS, this year, more gardeners will move away from traditional bedding plants to “long-lived, less thirsty and robust varieties, particularly in community gardens and public landscapes.”
Traditional bedding plants like pansies, petunias, and marigolds have long been staples of vibrant flower displays. But these plants often need lots of water and maintenance, while only lasting for one or two seasons.
Perennials like salvias, heather, and dahlias have become popular alternatives because they need less fertiliser, water, and attention. They’ll also come back year after year if the conditions are right – offering rich colour and attracting pollinators to your garden.
2. Honeyberries
Experts at the RHS also predict that 2025 will see continued interest in fruit trees and shrubs – as well as perennial vegetables. These plants not only provide a reliable annual crop but can also add structure and visual interest to your garden while supporting local wildlife.
While 2024 was “the year of the blueberry […] owing to it being easy to grow on compact bushes with attractive flowers and autumn colour,” the RHS urges gardeners to consider growing honeyberries in 2025.
Honeyberries (also known as edible honeysuckle or blue honeysuckle) are native to cold regions of Siberia, Japan, and China. But they’ve recently gained popularity among UK gardeners. They look like blueberries, only longer, and have a similar taste. But unlike blueberries, these hardy, low-maintenance bushes can thrive in acidic and alkaline soils.
Honeyberry bushes flower in late winter/early spring, adding a splash of colour to gardens with their elegant yellow blooms. The fruit usually ripens from early June onwards and makes delicious jams, or you can enjoy them fresh from the bush.
To find out more about how to plant and grow honeyberry bushes, head over to the Gardeners’ World website.
3. Greenhouse partitions
Another rising garden trend for 2025 is greenhouse partitions. These internal glass walls divide your greenhouse into separate rooms with distinct growing conditions.
As Tom Barry, CEO of Hartley Botanic, says, “Partitions allow for tailored microclimates that cater to the specific needs of different plants, optimising conditions such as temperature, humidity, and light exposure.”
Greenhouse partitions can help us grow more species and be more efficient with resources like heating, ventilation, and watering. “Additionally,” Barry continues, “as a physical barrier, partitions can reduce the spread of pests and diseases”.
If your greenhouse is large enough, you could even make one room into a year-round hangout space. Check out this article from Gardens Illustrated for inspiration.
4. AI gardening
In recent years, ‘artificial intelligence’ has been a buzz phrase in many walks of life – including the gardening world, where growers have been discovering how AI tools can work for them.
For example, at this year’s Chelsea Flower Show, designers Tom Massey and Je Ahn will display the event’s first Show Garden featuring cutting-edge AI technology. The Avanade Intelligent Garden will use a network of sensors to monitor things like pH, temperature, wind, rainfall, air quality, and soil moisture, optimising plant care based on conditions.
Speaking about how AI tools can help gardeners, Massey says, “Upskilling people, giving them more advice, more insights, more data about their gardens, can allow them to be more sustainable.”
One simple way home gardeners can experiment with AI tools is by using ChatGPT as a virtual assistant. For example, you can write out questions (such as ‘What grows well in my area?’) or send pictures of your garden and ask for advice. This article from TechRadar can help you get started.
5. Green roofs and living walls
Covering our roofs and walls with lush tapestries of vegetation comes with many benefits. Green roofs and living walls can absorb rainwater to prevent flooding, insulate buildings year-round, improve air quality, and add greenery to urban spaces.
The RHS predicts we’ll see green roofs and living walls popping up in more creative ways in urban areas in 2025. For homeowners interested in this trend, adding a living wall to their garden is a simple way to start.
This can be as simple as planting a wall of climbers and shrubs. Or you can buy living wall panels (like these from Platipus Direct) and fix them to a sturdy fence. These panels feature rows of ‘pockets’ to plant in and typically need an irrigation system (for example, a drip system) to keep them watered.
Living walls are an especially great choice for small gardens or balconies, where growing space is at a premium, and look particularly effective next to seating areas. They can also help reduce noise pollution, as they’re good acoustic insulators.
You can find out more about living walls and how to add one to your garden on the RHS website.
6. Pet-friendly design
Often touted as ‘the fashion week of gardening’, the Chelsea Flower Show is a great place to look for exciting new horticultural and landscaping trends.
This year, BBC Gardeners’ World presenter Monty Don, whose dogs commonly feature in the programme, has teamed up with the RHS and BBC Radio 2 to create the perfect garden for our canine pals. And we’re sure it’ll inspire people to think about pet-friendly design in their own gardens.
According to the RHS, the best ways to make your garden more pet-friendly include: choosing non-toxic plants, creating shady spots for animals to stay cool in summer, and thinking about sensory stimulation – for example, by adding shallow water features for paddling or a range of flowers for sniffing. Check out the RHS’s article to find out more.
7. Native species
As Julian Palphramand, head of plants at British Garden Centres, says, sustainability and biodiversity have recently become priorities for many growers. With this in mind, he expects “native plants and designs that attract wildlife to rise”.
If you’re looking for native planting inspiration, Palphramand highlights foxgloves, honeysuckle, primrose, lavender, cow parsley, dog rose, and lily of the valley. You could also consider native trees – such as hawthorn, blackthorn, and crab apple.
According to the Royal Botanical Gardens Kew, half of Britain and Ireland’s native plants have declined since the 1950s due to issues like pollution and climate change. This means that there are now more non-native species growing in the wild than native ones – and when native species decline, our wildlife suffers.
By planting native species in your garden – or even in pots or window boxes – you can help support our ecosystems and attract wildlife (such as bees, birds, and hedgehogs).
8. Cottagecore
Last year, building supplier Marshalls Plc identified some of the most-searched-for garden trends over the previous 12 months to see what might be popular in 2025. ‘Cottagecore’, a design trend that’s taken over social media, came out on top.
As The Spruce says, “Cottagecore is a decor, landscaping, and lifestyle trend inspired by a quaint vision of country life. Its design aesthetics embrace the use of natural materials, handmade crafts, and vintage furniture and decor.”
Cottagecore interiors might feature rustic wooden furniture, floral patterned wallpaper, and cosy quilts. But to bring this vibe to your garden, try planting pastel-coloured flowers like roses and delphiniums or scented, bee-friendly species like lavender. Or incorporate classic country design features, such as an antique-style bird bath or a rustic stepping stone garden path.
A cottagecore lifestyle also encourages wholesome activities (such as crafting and baking), as well as self-sufficiency. So you could consider adding a vegetable patch, if you haven’t got one already, or even a chicken coop.
9. Focus on soil health
Gardens Illustrated predicts that the growing concern with soil health amongst gardeners is set to continue this year.
Healthy soil is not only important for the success of our gardens but also for the overall wellbeing of our planet. It can improve water quality, foster biodiversity, help prevent flooding, and retain more carbon than trees – thus working against climate change. With this in mind, it’s important to keep our patches of soil in tip-top shape.
No-dig gardening has become a popular method for looking after soil health. This involves covering soil with organic matter – like compost or well-rotted manure – and planting directly into that. You can also use raised beds and containers.
The no-dig approach limits the need for cultivation techniques – such as digging and forking – which damage soil structure, release carbon into the atmosphere, and disrupt ecosystems within it (there are more living organisms in a teaspoon of soil than there are humans on the planet).
Plus, no-dig gardening will save you time and energy, as you won’t need to spend ages digging out vegetable beds and flower borders.
To learn more about no-dig gardening, take a look at this beginner’s guide from Charles Dowding.
10. Mediterranean gardens
Another highly-searched-for garden trend identified by Marshalls Plc is ‘Mediterranean gardens’ – and it’s easy to see why.
With some careful design and plant choices, you can create an oasis that rivals the sun-kissed shores of the Amalfi Coast or Greek Islands – and who doesn’t want to feel like they’re on holiday each time they step into their garden?
Plus, because drought-tolerant gardens are at the heart of Mediterranean garden design, they typically need less water and are more resilient during dry summer spells than other gardens.
There are plenty of simple ways to give your garden some Mediterranean flavour. Shrubs like myrtle, silverbush, cotton lavender, and false dittany can give your space structure, while plants like phlomis, salvias, and hollyhock offer a welcome pop of colour.
Statement trees like Italian cypress, bay trees, and citrus trees are often found in Mediterranean gardens. Why not try planting them in terracotta or cerulean-accented pots around shaded seating areas, where you can enjoy an al-fresco meal and some continental cocktails?
This article from Gardeners’ World has more ideas for creating a blissful Mediterranean paradise.
Final thoughts…
It’s clear from these trends that modern gardeners are increasingly concerned with sustainability. But, as this article hopefully shows, there are plenty of ways to make your outdoor space environmentally friendly without compromising on aesthetics or growing success.
We also love how gardeners in 2025 are leveraging modern technology to get the most out of their spaces – from using AI tools to finding inspiration through viral design trends.
For more inspiration, head over to our home and garden section. Here, you’ll find articles on everything from interior design to what to grow month-on-month.
Are you inspired by any of these garden trends? Or have you noticed any others? We’d love to hear from you in the comments below.
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