The Manchester Flower Festival
Manchester city centre
Saturday 23 – Monday 25 May 2026
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FLOWER POWER! MANCHESTER FLOWER FESTIVAL RETURNS FOR THE BANK HOLIDAY WEEKEND
From horticultural displays and hands-on workshops to bee hunts, poetry walks and outdoor dining, Manchester city centre is set to bloom with three days of activities celebrating ‘Green Manchester’.
The Manchester Flower Festival returns later this month from Saturday 23 – Monday 25 May, transforming the city centre into a vibrant celebration of nature and creativity with an expansive programme of floral installations, interactive activities, workshops, talks and free family-friendly experiences.
Taking place across Exchange Street, St Ann’s Square and King Street the city’s free annual festival, which this year celebrates the theme ‘Green Manchester’, invites visitors to explore a series of floral installations, alongside a packed schedule of green-inspired events and activities.
Headline Installations & Ginnel Gardens
At the heart of the festival are five major horticultural installations, each inspired the city’s existing and emerging green projects.
- On Exchange Street, Future Green Manchester by Groundwork Greater Manchester presents a forward-thinking garden inspired by the redevelopment of Piccadilly Gardens, showcasing climate-resilient planting while inviting visitors to share their views on the future of the space.
- In St Ann’s Square, Exchange in Bloom, created by Verdure Floral Design, draws on The Royal Exchange Manchester’s rooftop beehives to celebrate the vital role of pollinators
- The Urban Pollinator Garden by PLANT CIC in St Ann’s Square presents an immersive, biodiversity-rich space filled with nectar-rich planting, wildflowers and creative habitat features.
- Over on King Street, The Sky Garden by Cloud Gardener UK, demonstrates how even the smallest urban spaces can become green sanctuaries through a creative balcony garden concept inspired by the National Trust’s Sky Gardening Challenge
- Also on King Street, Nature Unlocked, by Frog Flowers inspired by Castlefield Viaduct, invites visitors into a walk-through installation that blends industrial structure with natural growth.
Alongside these headline displays, visitors can discover a series of small yet creative and quirky gardens at the Ginnel Gardens on Exchange Street.
Here, The City Harvest, designed by Ardwick Climate Action, celebrates Manchester’s growing allotment movement with hands-on planting activities, Human Nature by MUD CIC showcases a bold ‘bug hotel’ habitat wall made from reclaimed materials and The Whitworth ECO Garden highlights a sustainable, community-led approach using upcycled materials to transform overlooked urban spaces.
Selfridges Exchange Square
Over in Exchange Square, Selfridges will host its very own festival activation, complete with a striking floral display, live DJs in-store, a pop-up florist, food and drink and a family-friendly trail with rewards, bringing an extra buzz to the weekend’s green celebrations.
Families
Families can look forward to a packed programme of hands-on, nature-inspired activities designed to connect all ages with the city’s growing green spaces. St Ann’s Square will host The Conker Crew’s Urban Nature Play Stations daily from 10am to 4pm, where children can get stuck into a free, sensory mud kitchen play that sparks creativity and outdoor exploration.
Adding to the adventure, the Family Bee Hunt, taking place throughout the bank holiday weekend, invites visitors to follow a trail of bees across Exchange Street, solving clues along the way to win a prize.
On Monday 25 May, PLANT CIC will lead a series of free family planting and craft sessions on King Street, from seed bomb making and sunflower planting to pot decorating, encouraging little ones to get growing at home.
Walks, Talks & Tours
Across the weekend, visitors can get hands-on with a wide range of creative workshops on King Street. These include Pressed Flower Plant Sign Making with Smart Floral Art and a series of workshops from Clocktower Florist, including Kokedama – the Japanese art of moss ball planting – as well as dried flower bunch and ring-making sessions.
For those looking to refine their floral skills, British Flowers Movement founder Elizabeth Honey will lead workshops in Posy Arrangement, Seasonal Peony Design and Flower Crown Making. Costs for workshops vary and need to be pre-booked.
For more information on dates, timings and prices visit mcrflowerfest.com.
A rich programme of talks, tours and guided walks will extend the festival experience beyond the installations. Visitors can hear from CyanLines about their ambitious vision to connect Greater Manchester’s green and blue spaces, the National Trust on the next phase for Castlefield Viaduct, Bloomtown and Blossom and the Sky Gardening Challenge, and PLANT CIC on the crucial role pollinators play in urban gardens. British Flowers Movement will also provide insight into the importance of British grown flowers and cutting through greenwashing. All talks are free to attend.
Visitors looking to stay active during the festival can book onto a Trees, Flowers and Manchester City Centre Tour with Jonathan Schofield on Sunday 24 May, which explores how nature and industry have shaped the city (tickets cost £20pp, under 12s go free) while the National Trust’s Bloomtown Poetry Walk on Monday 25 May, offers a creative way to experience the festival, blending nature and writing for just £1 per person, advance booking is required. Plus, visitors can join a free guided Nature Walk with CyanLines through the city centre, offering a fresh perspective on Manchester’s evolving urban landscape.
For those looking to browse and shop, flower stalls in St Ann’s Square and King Street, featuring local florists including Clocktower Florist and Temple of Bloom, alongside Crockett Hall Nurseries will be offering everything from fresh bouquets to potted plants and giftable stems. Meanwhile, The Makers Market on Market Street will showcase a curated selection of Manchester-based makers, artists and independent businesses offering a mix of botanical inspired products, handmade goods and nature-led creations, alongside live music and free children’s craft activities throughout the bank holiday weekend.
King Street will also come alive with outdoor dining throughout the festival, as restaurants including Gail’s Bakery, El Gato Negro and Franco Manca transform the street into a vibrant alfresco dining destination to soak up the festival atmosphere.
For more information on The Manchester Flower Festival 2026 including locations and timings, visit mcrflowerfest.com.
ENDS
For more media information, please contact Anoushka or Hannah at ECHO anoushka@echo-pr.co.uk / hannah@echo-pr.co.uk
Notes to Editors
The Manchester Flower Festival Producers
The Manchester Flower Festival is organised by Manchester City Centre Business Improvement District (BID) as part of its annual calendar of public events in Manchester’s central shopping district.
The BID previously delivered the popular urban gardening festival ‘Dig the City’, which took place in Manchester’s retail heart from 2011-2015, and attracted national attention, event and RHS ‘In Bloom’ awards. Dig the City focused on inner-city gardening techniques and bringing RHS-style Show Gardens onto the streets of Manchester to be judged by famous gardeners including Monty Don and Diarmuid Gavin. The event also featured talks, workshops, and garden parties.
Manchester City Centre Business Improvement District (Manchester City Centre BID)
Manchester City Centre BID is managed by CityCo, The City Centre Management Company. It is a consortium of 600 leading retailers, hospitality operators and offices.
The BID stages major events to help drive footfall and customers into the city and attract positive PR. These include The Manchester Flower Festival, Halloween in the City and the MCR Student Social in partnership with Manchester Arndale.
CityCo is also a delivery partner for Manchester Accommodation BID and the annual programme now also includes The Super Duper Family Festival and SCENE: Manchester’s LGBTQ+ Film & TV Festival.
The BID funds Manchester’s team of tourist information guides, City Hosts, and supports levy payers with Business Services including operational and security support, city intelligence, briefings, training and lobbying.
For more information visit cityco.com and follow on LinkedIn: CityCo Manchester
