PLANT FUTURES:
A Future in bloom
NATURE: Installation, Demonstration, Partnership
TIMELINE: Complete, Melboune International Flower and Garden Show 2026
DESIGN PARTNERS: Heliotope, Evergreen Infrastructure and Mood Construction made possible with the support of Austem Foundation, Native Plant Project and Australian Institute of Horticulture.
OVERVIEW:
Plant Futures: The Future in Bloom was an immersive, climate-forward garden presented at the Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show 2026. Led by Super Bloom in collaboration with Heliotope, Evergreen Infrastructure and Mood Construction, the project operated as a living laboratory and demonstrates how resilient, dry-climate planting can coexist with beauty, luminosity and sensory richness.
The garden invited visitors into a layered, floral environment that celebrated the adaptability of plant communities, grown through a process of seed germination, cuttings and modular cultivation. It challenged conventional perceptions of climate-responsive design by positioning hardy, low-water species as both functional and visually captivating.
Image credit: Sarah Pannell
“Resilience is no compromise on beauty. Through wonder and real-life experience, this garden will lead both the audience and industry to the climate-forward possibilities of plants and progressive planting design.”
— Jac Semmler, Super Bloom
PLANTS FOR THE PEOPLE
Plant Futures repositions climate-resilient planting as a desirable and aspirational design language, rather than a compromise. By immersing visitors in a richly sensory, floral environment, it builds a deeper emotional connection between people and plant systems. The project demonstrates how biodiversity, microclimate moderation and reduced resource input can be embedded into visually compelling landscapes.
Importantly, it bridges the gap between industry and public understanding, technical planting strategies into an accessible, experiential format. Its life beyond the show, transitioning into a permanent public garden in Footscray, ensures the project’s legacy continues as an everyday landscape for community engagement. In doing so, it extends its impact from exhibition to lived urban experience.
WHERE ACCESSIBILITY TAKES ROOT
At its core, Plant Futures reflected a shared ethos between Super Bloom and its collaborators, that planting design should be both ecologically responsive and deeply human-centred. The garden prioritised public experience and accessibility, creating a space where visitors could physically move through, connect with, and learn from climate-adapted planting systems.
This commitment extends beyond the temporary installation. By relocating the garden into a public site in Footscray, the project has evolved into a lasting piece of green infrastructure, democratising access to designed landscapes and reinforcing the idea that high-quality, resilient planting should exist not just in exhibitions, but in everyday public space.
Plant Futures ultimately advocates for a future where beauty, biodiversity and accessibility are not competing priorities, but intrinsically linked outcomes of thoughtful, progressive design.
WORK WITH SUPER BLOOM
Equally important was the role of the team in activating the space, engaging visitors and industry peers in practical discussions around growth, seasonality and the potential for positive, climate forward change in the public realm. These on site conversations contributed to the project’s function as a live demonstration, extending its impact beyond the physical installation.
Team Super Bloom for Plant Futures: Vivi Scarpari, Hannah Downie, Christine Williams, Reece Dellora, Liz Swinton, Georgia Willmott, Amelie Parrott, Linden Hockey, Natalie Simmons, Eloyse Edwards, Bec Neeson, Kate Campbell, Sarah Moore, Nanou Dupuis, Nikki Simmons, Flynn Noakes, Libby Buchanan, Kate McFayden, Silvana Cavallo, Cathy Josey, Fran Berry and Alice Ziebell led by Jac Semmler
PLANT FUTURES IN FOCUS
PLANT FUTURES IN THE MEDIA
‘It was easy to pick Jac Semmler’s garden at the Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show (MIFGS). Hers was the one with the coral pink deck and the joyous sea of plants. It was both electrifying and understated at the same time’.
Megan Backhouse, Sydney Morning Herald
PLANT FUTURES IN IMAGES
Soft blues and pops of coral, see Plant Futures through a gallery, up close and in detail with glorious photography by Sarah Pannell.
FULL PLANT LIST
With over 50 diverse ranges of species, the plant list for Plant Futures was a highly curated selection designed for maximum wonder and climate compatibility.