Regional Garden Show


A Regional Garden Show is an exhibition on horticulture taking place in several German and Austrian states. In Germany, a state horticultural show at the state level is the smaller counterpart to the Bundesgartenschau and the International Horticultural Show, in Austria there is no counterpart so far.

Germany

History

In the federal states of Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria state garden shows have been held since 1980. In North Rhine-Westphalia there was already a first state garden show in 1970, other German states adopted the model later. In the Austrian federal states Upper Austria and Lower Austria, too, state garden shows have been taking place for several years in alternating two-year cycles.
In 1980, the first cross-border national horticultural show in Germany took place in Ulm/Neu-Ulm.

Objectives and financing

The garden shows are intended to improve the quality of life and the ecological climate in the cities. Often the garden shows also serve urban or regional political development objectives. For this reason, garden shows are usually not placed in particularly beautiful landscapes, but rather in areas which are particularly disadvantaged, where the garden shows are aimed at supporting structure and help to promote urban planning. The investments which are made within the framework of the regional garden shows help the respective district to become more attractive and usually also to remain attractive. In addition national horticultural shows are today also measures of city marketing, since they can increase as a large meeting lasting half a year also the awareness level of a city.
The municipalities, which often realize a garden show with the help of state funds, take a calculated financial risk. While some state garden shows closed with a "black 0" or even with slight profits, others exceeded their budget and had to be subsidised retrospectively. Particularly in municipalities with a strained budget situation, state garden shows are therefore sometimes controversial despite their long-term advantages, in some cases there have already been citizens' petitions or citizens' decisions.

Garden shows in the individual federal states

Baden-Wüerttemberg

From 1980 to 2000, the "large horticultural shows" were held annually in Baden-Württemberg. Since 2001, they have been held annually, alternating with the "small state garden shows", the so-called green projects. For green projects, the state provides a subsidy of a maximum of two million euros for green projects and a maximum of five million euros for state horticultural shows, whereby the municipalities also have to make corresponding contributions of their own. By 2010, the state has granted almost 80 million euros in state subsidies. This has resulted in at least three times and in some cases even seven times the amount of investment on the part of the municipalities; they invested around 153 million euros: In the process, around 625 hectares of green spaces were created, redesigned and permanently secured. The State Horticultural Shows and green projects provide the impetus for comprehensive structural developments that create a spirit of optimism in the municipalities and strengthen their economic development. An expert commission will evaluate the applications and assess the submitted concepts on site. The Council of Ministers then awards the state garden shows and green projects in a cabinet meeting.
The last strongly visited State Garden Show in Baden-Württemberg before the introduction of the "Green Projects" in 2001 was the 1992 State Garden Show in the "Gold City" of Pforzheim with a peak number of visitors of 1.6 million. Thereafter, the number of visitors at state level also fell well below one million in each case. For this reason, the state government decided as early as 1996 to carry out the smaller "green projects" in Baden-Württemberg every two years from 2001 onwards. In 2014 Schwäbisch Gmünd set a new record with around 2 million visitors.
  1. 1980: Ulm/Neu-Ulm
  2. 1981: Baden-Baden
  3. 1982: Schwäbisch Hall
  4. 1983: Lörrach – Landschaftspark Grütt
  5. 1984: Reutlingen
  6. 1985: Heilbronn
  7. 1986: Freiburg im Breisgau
  8. 1988: Ettlingen
  9. 1989: Bietigheim-Bissingen
  10. 1990: Sindelfingen
  11. 1991: Hockenheim
  12. 1992: Pforzheim
  13. 1993: IGA Stuttgart
  14. 1994: Bad Dürrheim
  15. 1996: Böblingen
  16. 1997: Mosbach
  17. 1998: Plochingen
  18. 1999: Weil am Rhein
  19. 2000: Singen
  20. 2001: Green Project Pfullendorf
  21. 2002: Ostfildern
  22. 2003: Green Project Nordheim
  23. 2003: Green Project Tuttlingen
  24. 2004: Kehl und Straßburg – Garten der zwei Ufer
  25. 2005: Green Project Ladenburg
  26. 2006: Heidenheim an der Brenz
  27. 2007: Green Project Rheinfelden
  28. 2008: Bad Rappenau
  29. 2009: Green Project Rechberghausen
  30. 2010: Villingen-Schwenningen
  31. 2011: Green Project Horb am Neckar
  32. 2012: Nagold: Grüne Urbanität
  33. 2013: Green Project Sigmaringen
  34. 2014: Schwäbisch Gmünd, Record number of visitors with approx. 2 million
  35. 2015: Green Project Mühlacker
  36. 2016: Öhringen
  37. 2017: Green Project Bad Herrenalb
  38. 2018: Lahr
  39. 2019: Green Project Remstal
  40. 2020: Überlingen
  41. 2021: Green Project Eppingen
  42. 2022: Neuenburg am Rhein
  43. 2023: Green Project Balingen
  44. 2024: Wangen im Allgäu
  45. 2025: Green Project Freudenstadt/Baiersbronn
  46. 2026: Ellwangen
  47. 2027: Green Project Bad Urach
  48. 2028: Rottweil
  49. 2029: Green Project Vaihingen/Enz
  50. 2030: Ulm

    Bavaria

After North Rhine-Westphalia, Bavaria, together with Baden-Württemberg, was the first federal state to hold state garden shows. The Free State initially started in an irregular rhythm with four State Horticultural Shows in Neu-Ulm, Augsburg, Dinkelsbühl and Straubing. Since 1990 the State Garden Shows have been held in Bavaria every two years, at even-numbered years, in addition to the Federal Garden Shows, which take place at odd-numbered years. In the uneven years in between there has been a small horticultural show in Bavaria since 1995 called Nature in the City, in which, similar to the State Horticultural Shows, but on a smaller scale, improvements in green and recreational structures form the framework for the horticultural show.
Up to and including 2015, the Free State and the EU have provided 83 million euros in funding for Bavarian garden shows, almost 23 million visitors have been recorded and around 460 hectares of public green spaces have been created over these years. Cities and municipalities can apply to the Society for the Promotion of the Bavarian State Horticultural Shows to organise a garden show. The awarding procedure and also the type and implementation of the state funding has been criticised on numerous occasions. Unter anderem hielt der Bayerische Oberste Rechnungshof die Vergabe der Gartenschauen in Bayern für intransparent und empfahl, sie auf eine neue Grundlage zu stellen, was auch geschah.
  1. 1980: Regional Garden Show Neu-Ulm/Ulm
  2. 1985: Regional Garden Show Augsburg
  3. 1988: Regional Garden Show Dinkelsbühl
  4. 1989: Regional Garden Show Straubing
  5. 1990: Regional Garden Show Würzburg with 2.5 million visitors is considered the most visited Bavarian State Garden Show
  6. 1992: Regional Garden Show Ingolstadt
  7. 1994: Regional Garden Show Hof
  8. 1995: Small Regional Garden Show Waldkraiburg
  9. 1996: Regional Garden Show Amberg
  10. 1997: Small Regional Garden Show Arnstein
  11. 1998: Regional Garden Show Neumarkt in der Oberpfalz
  12. 1999: Small Regional Garden Show Neustadt bei Coburg
  13. 2000: Regional Garden Show Memmingen,
  14. 2001: Small Regional Garden Show Cham
  15. 2002: Regional Garden Show Kronach
  16. 2003: Small Regional Garden Show Roth
  17. 2004: Burghausen
  18. 2006: Regional Garden Show Marktredwitz and Cheb
  19. 2007: Small Regional Garden Show Waldkirchen
  20. 2008: Regional Garden Show Neu-Ulm
  21. 2009: Small Regional Garden Show Rain
  22. 2010: Regional Garden Show Rosenheim, „Innspiration“
  23. 2011: Small Regional Garden Show Kitzingen
  24. 2012: Regional Garden Sho Bamberg
  25. 2013: Small Regional Garden Show Tirschenreuth
  26. 2014: Regional Garden Show Deggendorf
  27. 2015: Small Regional Garden Show Alzenau
  28. 2016: Regional Garden Show Bayreuth
  29. 2017: Small Regional Garden Show Pfaffenhofen an der Ilm
  30. 2018: Regional Garden Show Würzburg
  31. 2019: Small Regional Garden Show Wassertrüdingen
  32. 2020: Regional Garden Show Ingolstadt
  33. 2021: Small Regional Garden Show Lindau, „Ring aus Inselgärten – Natur in der Stadt 2021“
  34. 2022: Regional Garden Show Freyung
  35. 2024: Regional Garden Show Kirchheim
  36. 2025: Regional Garden Show Furth im Wald

    Brandenburg

  37. 2000 Luckau
  38. 2002 Eberswalde
  39. 2006 Rathenow, „Den Farben auf der Spur“
  40. 2009 Oranienburg, „Traumlandschaften einer Kurfürstin“
  41. 2013 Prenzlau, „Die grüne Wonne“
  42. 2019 Wittstock/Dosse „Grüne Bürgerstadt“
  43. 2022 Beelitz „Gartenfest für alle Sinne“

    Hesse

  44. 1994: Fulda „Der Garten Hessens“
  45. 2002: Hanau „Mit allen Sinnen erleben!“
  46. 2006: Bad Wildungen
  47. 2010: Bad Nauheim „Traumhafte Gärten im Herzen der Stadt“
  48. 2014: Gießen „Auf zu neuen Ufern“
  49. 2018: Bad Schwalbach „Natur erleben. Natürlich Leben“
  50. 2023: Fulda

    Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania

  51. 2002: Wismar
Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania is the only federal state that has so far hosted only one state garden show. A show was to take place in the landscape park Brodaer Höhe of Neubrandenburg, but it did not go beyond the design phase. Originally, a further State Garden Show was scheduled for 2014/2015. This was initially suspended because the applicants Güstrow and Putbus were unable to present a financially sustainable concept.
In the year 2003 an International Horticultural Exhibition was held in Rostock. In Schwerin a successful National Garden Show followed in 2009. For 2025 Schwerin was awarded the contract by the BUGA Society for a further Federal Horticultural Show, which is to further develop the 2009 concept and make the southern shore of Lake Schwerin more accessible to residents and visitors. A referendum was to decide on the organisation of the show on the election date of the Bundestag elections 2017 in September. After the state government failed to provide the financial means, the BUGA 2025 was returned to the German National Garden Show Society mbH 2017. On July 26, 2018, Rostock launched a BUGA application and was officially awarded the contract to host the National Garden Show 2025 on September 10, 2018.

Lower Saxony

  1. 2002: Bad Zwischenahn, „Park of gardens“
  2. 2004: Wolfsburg
  3. 2006: Winsen
  4. 2010: Bad Essen
  5. 2014: Papenburg
  6. 2018: Bad Iburg
  7. 2022: Bad Gandersheim

    North Rhine-Westphalia

  8. 1970: Grefrath
  9. 1972: Mechernich-Kommern, Mühlenpark
  10. 1974: Nümbrecht
  11. 1980: Xanten, LVR Archaeological Park Xanten
  12. 1984: Hamm, Maximilianpark
  13. 1988: Rheda-Wiedenbrück, Flora Westfalica
  14. 1992: Mülheim an der Ruhr, MüGa-Park
  15. 1994: Paderborn, Schloss- und Auenpark
  16. 1995: Grevenbroich, Stadtpark
  17. 1996: Lünen, „LaGaLü“
  18. 1998: Jülich, Brückenkopfpark
  19. 1999: Oberhausen, „Olga“
  20. 2000: Bad Oeynhausen/Löhne, Aqua Magica
  21. 2001: Oelde, „Blütenzauber & Kinderträume“, Vier-Jahreszeiten-Park
  22. 2002: Düsseldorf, Jüchen, Monheim, Mönchengladbach, Willich, Krefeld
  23. 2003: Gronau, Isle park / Losser – joint garden show with the neighbouring Dutch town
  24. 2005: Leverkusen, „Discover new territory“, Neuland-Park
  25. 2008: Rietberg, „dream things up“
  26. 2010: Hemer, „Spell of transformation“
  27. 2014: Zülpich, „Zülpich Millennium Gardens - From Roman times to the 21st century“
  28. 2017: Bad Lippspringe, „Splendor of flowers & forest idyll“
  29. 2020: Kamp-Lintfort
  30. 2023: Höxter

    Rheinland-Pfalz

  31. 2000: Regional Garden Show Kaiserslautern
  32. 2004: Regional Garden Show Trier
  33. 2008: Regional Garden Show Bingen am Rhein
  34. 2011: State Garden Show Koblenz
  35. 2015: Regional Garden Show Landau in der Pfalz

    Sachsen

  36. 1996: Lichtenstein
  37. 1999: Zittau/Olbersdorf
  38. 2002: Großenhain
  39. 2006: Oschatz
  40. 2009: Reichenbach/Vogtland
  41. 2012: Löbau
  42. 2015: Oelsnitz/Erzgeb., „Blütenträume – Lebensräume“
  43. 2019: Frankenberg, „Natürlich mittendrin“
  44. 2022: Torgau

    Sachsen-Anhalt

  45. 2004: Zeitz
  46. 2006: Wernigerode
  47. 2010: Aschersleben, „Nature finds town“
  48. 2018: Burg

    Schleswig-Holstein

  49. 2008: Schleswig-Königswiesen
  50. 2011: Norderstedt, „dreifach einmalig“
  51. 2016: Eutin, „Eins werden mit der Natur“
  52. 2020: a "cross-border garden show" is planned in Flensburg and Sonderburg on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the referendum in Schleswig

    Thüringen

  53. 2000: Pößneck
  54. 2004: Nordhausen, „The new middle“
  55. 2015: Schmalkalden, „Gardentimetravel“
  56. 2017: Apolda, „Flowering time Apolda“
  57. 2024: Leinefelde-Worbis, „Reconciliation between town and countryside“

Austria

Upper Austria