Decorative chillies to be red hot next year, says RHS

Tabletop vegetable plants will replace bouquets of cut flowers next year, the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) has said as it offered its top plant trend predictions for 2026.

- Helena Horton Environment reporter

Mini-planters of chillies, aubergines, peppers and tomatoes would be displayed in homes instead of flowers, as breeders develop dwarf varieties that are decorative and capable of supplementing the weekly shop, it added.

The charity predicted that gardeners would continue to look for drought-tolerant plants after one of the driest springs and summers on record, when much of the country was under a hosepipe ban. It said rose growers were addressing this need by crossbreeding their flowers with central Asian varieties adapted to arid conditions.

The forecast draws on RHS engagement with the public across its gardens, shows and gardening advice service, as well as retail and industry trends, scientific research and new plant breeding.