The Garden Media Group, has released its 2026 Garden Trends Report for next year, and 'faded petal' is the color of the moment. It's a dusky, whisper-soft ballet slipper pink, a subtly unpigmented saccharine hue. Some of the best pink plants we all know and love are rather more of a shout than a whisper. 'Faded petal' is, by contrast, a wonderfully nostalgic, antiqued rose hue that has undergone something of a resurrection according to the 2026 Garden Trends Report.
Muted, hushed pinks such as 'faded petal' work famously well with mossy green hues, and since pink and green are always happy bedfellows, this color will work in any garden, no matter what color palette or mix thereof is at play. It's a safe color to incorporate in mixed beds; it runs no risks of clashing and draws little attention to itself, yet acts as the perfect foil for stronger and more charismatic tones.
A firm cottage garden favorite, here we uncover how to incorporate faded petal hues into your garden.
What is faded petal?
Thanks to Gen Z's latest obsession with the Nancy Meyers aesthetic (think The Holiday, Something's Gotta Give, The Parent Trap), there has been a collective shift toward a more cinematic, classic, elegant look in gardens.
This is part of a broader yearning amongst many gardeners to incorporate classic and timeless plants and colors into our gardens and into our homes.
Enter: faded petal. Faded petal ticks all the boxes if you're looking for a quiet, understated, dusky pink. It's definitely not a pastel, so there is nothing sickly sweet about it. It is, in fact, a far more grown-up version of baby pink. Crucially, it is not an assault on the senses, it is an intrinsically soothing, calming color.
6 faded petal spring bulbs to buy
Bulb planting season is looming large, and it's time to get your bulb order in now, as they tend to sell out quickly. These six spring bulbs are all on the faded petal color spectrum, each as oh-so-pretty as the next.
A highly unusual muscari variety in the most delicate shade of creamy pale, pale pink. The pink tone is so hushed, its barely there. A must have for Easter tablescaping next year.
Once this faded petal tulip is in full swing it's hard to decipher it from a peony in full flower. Just as suited to pots and containers as it is to beds and borders, this tulip is the buy for enviable cut flower displays in spring.
These are seeds, rather than bulbs, but they're worth buying now as come springtime, they are nearly always impossible to get your hands on. For good reason, too, they are a magnet for bees and butterflies and bloom for an absurdly long time.
This darling pretty-in-pink plant makes for the most beautiful and whimsical ground cover in spring gardens. Plant it beneath tall, leggy plants, in the dappled shade of trees, and watch it flourish.
'La Dolce Vita' is a beautiful faded pink Italian ranunculus which makes for the most exquisite cut flower. Plan by the end of November borders or containers and come spring, the most amazing blooms will appear, up to 27 inches high.
Sicilian Honey Garlic has the most absurdly beautiful pale blush-colored flowerheads, and the seedheads look even more staggering than the flower itself. If you adore the faded petal trend, then there is no allium more perfect for you.
6 best faded petal plants to buy
I very rarely see these grown, and I think more people should try peony asters. This one is in the most beautiful delicate pink shade and is wonderfully drought tolerant.
I am a sucker for hellebores of any kind, but this dusky, antiqued rose shade is simply divine. A must-grow for winter interest when the dark, dreary weather rolls in, and these will be such a joy to see.
Rosa 'New Dawn' is one of the best performing roses of all time. It flowers on repeat all summer and right through Christmas and into the new year and gives off the most remarkable perfume. If you grow one pale pink rose in your garden, let it be this one.
If you want to nail the Nany Myers aesthetic in your garden, then this classic faded pink hydrangea tree should be top of your wish list. It makes a wonderful cut flower in floral arrangements either fresh or dried, and can even live happily in a large container.
This highly fragrant camelia is a truly beautiful evergreen shrub with masses of faded dusky pink flowers which smell divine, which is rare for camelias. Its delicate faded petal color makes it far more appealing then its stark white or magenta pink cousins.
If you love fragrance in a garden, then this lilac will simply blow you away. Its perfume is pretty staggering, and its enormous flowers are white with a barely there faded pink tinge that are nearly always topped with butterflies or honey bees. A true pollinator magnet.
These pale, faded petal-hued plants act as a wonderful foil to any range of colors, particularly when paired with chocolate colored flowers, deep inky purples plants, and the sweetness of the pink can be softened by the strategic use of butter yellow plants, like sunny cosmos and pale yellow rose varieties.
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