Nadine Mitschunas wins Gardens of the Year 2026 Best

Nadine Mitschunas has been crowned the ultimate winner of the Gardens of the Year 2026 'Best of the Best' competition. The passionate gardener and expert ecologist triumphed over 20 fellow finalists and a public vote to claim the top spot for her Oxfordshire allotment garden.

The competition was judged by a panel including BBC Gardeners' World presenter Arit Anderson, garden designer and author Ann-Marie Powell, BBC Gardeners' World Magazine Director of Brand Voice Kevin Smith, and Head Gardener at Crocus, Ashley Edwards. The judges praised Nadine's garden for its naturalistic design, biodiverse planting, sustainable approach, and immersive atmosphere.

Nadine's winning garden now spans three adjoining plots and includes a shared space wildflower meadow at Fir Tree Allotments in Wallingford. Full details of her garden, along with judges' comments and practical tips on planting for wildlife, are featured in the October issue of Gardeners' World Magazine.

Meet the competition finalists

The competition showed 20 outstanding gardens from the past decade. A special mention went to Jo and Andi Butler and Pam Woodall, who, along with Nadine, made it into the public vote's top three.

Highlights from past winners

In 2016, Steve Moodey transformed a small, cluttered south-facing plot in Abingdon into a tropical hideaway using dense evergreen foliage and tall exotic plants. That same year, Magda D'Ingeo created a natural playground in Reigate featuring a scented bower, a rope swing, and a vine-covered treehouse to entice her family outdoors.

Pam Woodall's 2016 wildlife garden in Poole involved opening up an overgrown space, adding a pond and log-edged paths, which attracted birds, amphibians, insects, and deer. Caroline Cassell's 2017 winning garden in Waltham Abbey divided a cottage garden into a series of romantic rooms with climbers like fragrant honeysuckle.

Helen Rushton slowly evolved a derelict croft in Aberdeenshire into a biodiverse haven with meadows, native shrubs, and three ponds. In Orkney, Caroline Critchlow battled storm-force winds using stone walls for shelter and a linear pond, choosing resilient plants to reflect the sea view of Scapa Flow.

Design on a budget

Wayne Amiel turned a narrow, north-facing London site full of builder's rubble into a slice of his Jamaican childhood on a shoestring budget in 2018. He used bold exotic foliage, painted chairs, and pots of vibrant blooms. Also in 2018, Richard Small transformed a small concrete yard in Tyne and Wear into a calming oasis of containerised evergreens and all-white flowers.

Frank Bowdler spent decades filling his Wigan garden with hundreds of plant species, clever topiary, and meandering paths, creating a circular brick patio as a focal point. Annette Eales's Hampshire project was about gardening as therapy, resulting in a peaceful sanctuary with pathways, pergolas, and pollinator-friendly plants.

In 2020, Elizabeth and Malcolm Schofield turned a steep coastal hill in Moray into a flower-filled paradise, complete with a built-in slide for their children. Thomas Jose's 2021 South Yorkshire garden is a dedicated space for his collection of Japanese maples, supported by an extensive irrigation system for his potted plants.

Vicky Ward and Maxine Stringer won the People's Choice award in 2022 for their Cornish garden, which overcame steep inclines and exposed conditions. The competition partner, Crocus, which has worked with leading garden designers at events like the RHS Chelsea Flower Show, offered a 20 percent discount on plants to celebrate.

The RHS Chelsea Flower Show, organised by the Royal Horticultural Society, is an annual five-day event held in May at the Royal Hospital Chelsea in London.