For the first time this year, the Royal Horticultural Society's Chelsea Flower Show, which opens officially on Tuesday (it's sold out, sorry) is giving an award for the Plant of the Year. The award will go to "the most inspiring new plant" at the Show.

The twenty finalists have just been announced this afternoon (this evening UK time), and the RHS Plants Advisory Committee will vote for the winner tomorrow.

The finalists range from an orchid to an egg plant, with two irises, two pitcher plants and two roses amongst the contenders.

But for the plant that's the most appealing to the widest range of gardeners (I wonder if that will be considered - hardly anyone grows tropical pitcher plants, after all) I'd say it's between the Balconita trailing pansies (top picture) bred by ace petunia and primrose breeder David Kerley, the Buzz Series of dwarf buddlejas bred by Thompson and Morgan (second picture), the new disease resistant rose Princess Anne ('Auskitchen') from David Austin Roses (third picture), and the spectacular variegated Impatiens 'Masquerade' (fourth picture).

Check out the full list of twenty contenders. I'll let you know the winner as soon as it's announced.