Plants for Europe, a UK-based plant breeding agency, announced on April 24, 2026, that it has unveiled six new varieties for 2026. The unveiled items include perennials and bedding plants, and the company presented climate resilience, suitability for small outdoor spaces, low maintenance, disease resistance, and resistance to lodging and breakage as selection criteria.
The leading item is the Agapanthus hybrid ‘AtomicBloom Santorini’ (variety name ALTBLOOM). According to the company’s official variety page, this variety forms large blue inflorescences on sturdy and relatively compact stems; it is capable of flowering in the first year, with a flower height of 30–60 cm and an inflorescence diameter of approximately 12 cm at maturity. Recurring flowering, cold hardiness, and a neat tree shape with arched green leaves were also presented as key characteristics.
Other items unveiled at the same time also clearly targeted market demands. Euphorbia ‘Ba Ba Boom’ emphasized its ground cover characteristics, capable of withstanding both dry and wet soils after establishment, while Nepeta ‘Early Blue’ highlighted earlier flowering than existing varieties and a plant shape that does not easily spread even during summer storms. With the addition of the Coleus ‘Gothica’ series, three new colors for the existing ‘Skeletal’, and the Euphorbia hybrid ‘Wilburton’s Embers Glow’, a lineup targeting both consumer ornamental value and cultivation efficiency has been completed.
These new varieties are scheduled to be further introduced at FlowerTrials 2026, which will be held in Lisse, Netherlands, from June 9 to 12, 2026. The official FlowerTrials page announces that Plants for Europe will participate at the Gebr. Alkemade BV in Lisse, Netherlands. The approach of not limiting the unveiling of new spring varieties to a one-time announcement but connecting them directly to international exhibition stages demonstrates the recent trend in the European ornamental plant market where variety launches and the discovery of distribution partners proceed simultaneously.