Patrick Fairweather’s journey in horticulture began in 1987 when he joined the family business and started working closely with his father. It was during this time that his passion for plants took root, driven by a shared vision to bring exciting new varieties to the UK market.
The journey with Agapanthus began with the introduction of ‘Glenavon’ and ‘Snow Cloud’—these first two Agapanthus varieties that marked the beginning of Christopher and Patrick Fairweather’s commitment to the genus. Early on, Patrick recognised the potential of tissue culture (TC) propagation. By promoting the use of tissue culture when growing Agapanthus over traditional seed or bare-root material, he championed the benefits of uniformity, vigour, and significantly faster turnaround from production to market.
Seeing that many varieties were bred solely for the cut flower market—and therefore often too tall for nursery production—Patrick set out to identify more compact, early-flowering types and varieties that would flower in their first year in production. His collaborative work with breeders such as Dick Fulner led to the launch of ‘Northern Star’ and a range of hardy, deciduous Agapanthus.
Over the past 20 years Patrick's continued collaboration with breeders and agents such as Plantipp has resulted in the successful launch of numerous standout varieties, including the showstopping ‘Fireworks’, ‘Poppin’ Purple’, and ‘Blackjack’—which was awarded Plant of the Year at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show in 2023.
His deep-rooted passion, broad knowledge, and infectious enthusiasm have not only inspired his team but also earned the respect of customers and fellow Horticulturist across the industry. Under Patrick’s leadership, Fairweather’s has grown into one of the UK and Europe’s leading growers and experts in Agapanthus as well as growing over 90 other genus.
Patrick's outlook is consistently positive and solution-oriented. He is always ahead of the curve—exploring innovative ideas and projects to make Fairweather’s leaner, more efficient, and future-ready.
In addition to running the nursery, Patrick has transformed Fairweather’s Garden Centre into a vibrant destination. It is more than a garden centre—it features a renowned café-restaurant,
He developed a learning garden that produces fresh ingredients for the kitchen, and a space where children can experience the joy of growing. During lockdown, Patrick even had the great idea of by converting a nearby unused hair salon into a takeaway extension of the restaurant so that he could keep serving food—now a thriving part of the business.
When not working with plants Patrick loves nothing more than to travel (your all lucky that he is he today) He enjoys learning about different cultures and food. Patrick is always the go to person for finding the most interesting place to eat when travelling for work and likes nothing better than introducing others to great food.
He is also a great lover of all types of music, enjoying music festivals and has been known to work behind one of the cider bars at Glastonbury.
Patrick Fairweather embodies the spirit of innovation, leadership, and passion that defines a true Ambassador to Horticulture.
He succeeds Bruce Harnett of Kernock Park Plants, Stefano Sogni of Zelari and Kyle Ross of Wyevale Nurseries as award holder.
