Viola & Pansy Festival 2026

 Meadow Croft Garden Centre, Woodham Road, Battlesbridge, Wickford, Essex SS11 7QU Meadow Croft Garden Centre, Woodham Road, Battlesbridge, Wickford, Essex SS11 7QU - Map Directions
14 March 2026 - 22 March 2026
 01245 320314
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Price
£ Free entry
Promoter/Organiser/Venue

Viola and pansies are very important plants in our gardens. During the frosty months of winter and early spring, they are among the hardiest, longest flowering and most colourful plants we have. Violas are also uniquely able to fill that colour gap between our spring flowering plants and the summer bedding plants.

Meadow Croft has held Viola and Pansy Festivals every March since 2004. It is the largest independent variety trial of these plants held in the world, with seed of new varieties supplied by plant breeders from around the world.

Each year new and experimental varieties are displayed for the first time. All the plants for the festival are grown by W.D Smith & Son, owners of Meadow Croft Garden Centre in their own glasshouses nearby, and then moved to the Garden Centre for the festival.

The past twenty years have seen surprising changes in the cultivars on display, not just new colours, or larger flowers, but very significant developments in the shape and habit of some new varieties. We now have plants that really do trail and spread, making them much more suitable for containers and hanging baskets.

Each year visitors to the festival play an important part, by voting for their favourite varieties from amongst those displayed. Each voter receives a free hot drink in our restaurant, Meadow Croft Kitchen. The votes are later counted and the ‘Top Ten’ Festival Favourites published in the gardening and trade press.

As a horticultural garden centre, we are keen to get the younger generations interested in gardening and inspire them to grow their own. Over the two weekends, we will be giving out a free Meadow Croft Goody Bag for all the children that come to the festival and vote for their festival favourites.

Come along to the Viola and Pansy Festival in March to vote for your favourites.


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