Would you like to share your garden design talent with tens of thousands of gardening enthusiasts? Applications for the BBC Gardeners’ World Live Beautiful Borders competition are now open. BBC Gardeners’ World Live returns to the NEC Birmingham from 12 – 15 June 2025 and marks the height of the summer gardening season.

The Beautiful Borders are compact, 9m² show gardens, bursting with creative design features and imaginative planting. These colourful mini masterpieces are always a popular highlight at BBC Gardeners’ World events, providing visitors with endless inspiration and take-home ideas, particularly for small or challenging garden spaces.

Creating a Beautiful Border is a fantastic opportunity to gain show garden experience at a large-scale pubilc event and to showcase your skills to a large, enthusiastic audience. Whether you’re a design or landscaping professional, a first-time designer or student, or a gardening club, community group or charity, BBC Gardeners’ World events’ friendly and experienced horticultural team support entrants every step of the way, from application to final build. 25 bursaries worth £200 each are available to BBC Gardeners’ World Live applicants for plants and props.

The creative theme for the 2025 Beautiful Borders competiton is ‘Cultivating Connections’, inspired by the power of garden spaces, no matter how small, to foster meaningful connections of all kinds. Whether it’s connecting cultures, species, generations or communities, or deepening our relationship with nature, education or mental wellbeing, the organisers are looking for small spaces with big impact.

Entries are assessed on site by esteemed professional assessors, with medals for all and awards presented for Best Beautiful Border, Best Interpretation of the Theme, and Best Subscriber Border for the best design by a BBC Gardeners’ World Magazine subscriber. Event visitors have their say too, voting for their favourite Border in the Peoples’ Choice award.

Lucy Tremlett, Event Director at Immediate Live, organisers of BBC Gardeners’ World events, said: “We – and our visitors – never cease to be impressed at the creativity that goes into the Beautiful Borders. The designs are not only technically brilliant with an eye-catching aesthetic, but really come from the heart, often reflecting a designer’s personal story, journey or experience. Gardens are wonderful spaces to bring human beings and nature together, so the Cultivating Connections theme should inspire some really strong entries. We can’t wait to see them!”

Winner of the ‘best in show’ Beautiful Border, Best BBC Gardeners’ World Magazine Subscriber Border and a Platinum award at BBC Gardeners’ World Live 2024 was Leanne Wood from Bugbrooke, Northamptonshire. Leanne’s Border, Following In My Footsteps, was a celebration of education through shared experiences and deep connections with nature. Inspired by following in her grandparents’ gardening footsteps, Leanne’s Border combined a children’s play space with a relaxing haven.

Winners of Best Interpretation of the Theme and a Platinum award were Jemma Wylie and Rona Glynn of Goldfinch Garden Design in South Norwood for Fee Fi Fo Forage!, designed as a learning space to encourage children to fall in love with nature through feasting and foraging.

To enter a Beautiful Border for BBC Gardeners’
World Live 2025, download the application form and find full details, including bursary information, at
www.bbcgardenersworldlive.com. Applications close on 23 January 2025.

Tickets for BBC Gardeners’ World Live 2025 are on sale now at www.bbcgardenersworldlive.com. Nick Bailey, the BBC Gardeners’ World presenter, designer, plantsman and author will be designing this year’s headline show garden, a sustainable garden that’s packed with colour. Nick will be hosting live, daily sessions from his show garden, sharing tips and advice on how to garden more sustainably. Further highlights include impressive show gardens by award-winning designers, the Beautiful Borders and the Association of Professional Landscapers’ inspiring avenue of brilliant back gardens.

Brand new for 2025 is The Tasting Table, an alfresco cooking workshop space hosted by Adam Frost with chefs from the Good Food Show Summer. At the BBC Gardeners’ World Magazine Stage, presenters Monty Don, Adam Frost, Nick Bailey, Frances Tophill and Rachel De Thame will join Nicki Chapman and the BBC Gardeners’ World Magazine editors for summer gardening chat and questions from the crowd.

In the spectacular BBC Gardeners’ World Live Floral Marquee, visitors can enjoy the International Orchid Show, stunning displays by leading specialist plant nurseries, and thousands of quality plants to browse and buy. The Hot Off the Potting Bench gallery features exciting new plant varieties, all competing for the Peter Seabrook Award for Best New Plant. There’s expert horticultural advice to be had throughout the Floral Marquee, from the Let’s Talk Plants Stage sponsored by Hillier, and Plant Experts’ advice desk to the orchid societies and professional plant growers.

The Urban Garden space, returns for 2025 with its stylish showcase gardens, retail space and stage, all offering ready inspiration for town and city gardeners. Fans of indoor gardening will enjoy the Houseplant Market and stage for the best in eye-catching home greenery and top tips from leading house plant experts. With its extensive Plant Village featuring hundreds of garden retailers and exhibitors, guided Garden Walks and Plant Expert Tours, demonstrations and the Schools’ Wheelbarrow Competition, there really is something for everyone at BBC Gardeners’ World Live.

Tickets include entry to the Good Food Show Summer, a celebration of seasonal summer food, featuring delicious food and drink to taste, tipple and take home, and demonstrations and foodie chat with acclaimed chefs and food personalities. Book tickets at www.bbcgardenersworldlive.com.