GaLaBau 2026: Green Industry Get-Together a Great Success

After four successful exhibition days, the 26th edition of GaLaBau closed its doors today. From 15 to 18 September, the green industry once again gathered in excellent spirits at the Exhibition Centre Nuremberg for its traditional industry get-together. Almost 68,000 trade visitors from Germany and abroad attended the International Trade Fair for Urban Green and Open Spaces to discover innovations, trends and future-oriented topics, strengthen professional networks and establish new business relationships. Compared with the previous event in 2024 (66,567 visitors), GaLaBau once again recorded visitor growth and further increased its international reach to 11 percent. Formats such as the GaLaBau Expert Forum, Landscape Talks, the Forum by asecos academy, the special exhibit “ZKUNFTSRAUM”, and the new networking format women@GaLaBau provided guidance on the industry's current challenges. The third edition of the GREEN-BLUE TRAIL offered practical inspiration for climate-resilient cities and open spaces, while the Guided Tours again attracted considerable interest. Other visitor highlights included numerous award ceremonies, specialist presentations and live demonstrations in the outdoor exhibition areas. One of the event's standout attractions was once again the Landscape Gardener Cup.

"The GaLaBau 2026 demonstrated tremendous innovative strength, expertise and commitment that characterise the international green industry. For four days, Nuremberg served as the central meeting point for everyone dedicated to creating liveable, climate-resilient and future-proof open spaces. The high level of participation and intensive professional networking underline GaLaBau's importance as the leading international trade fair and the industry's most important platform for exchange," says Isabel Grundner, Head of Brand Strategy GaLaBau at NürnbergMesse.

Bundesverband Garten-, Landschafts- und Sportplatzbau e. V. (BGL), the conceptual sponsor of GaLaBau, also draws a highly positive conclusion. Thomas Banzhaf, President of the BGL, commented: "For four days, the international trade fair GaLaBau demonstrated to the world what landscape construction can achieve. This became tangible through our BGL trade fair presence, The Future of Green Living Spaces’ - a miniature urban quarter that brilliantly brought together major challenges in a vibrant and inspiring showcase. Our message to Berlin and the world is clear: We can transform grey surfaces into liveable places. We can retain rainwater where it is needed. We can make buildings, streets and public squares greener, cooler and more resilient. The green transformation of our cities is not an abstract vision of the future. It is achievable - with us." Further information: 

Science journalist and author Ranga Yogeshwar, who opened GaLaBau 2026 with his keynote speech "Emil's World", was impressed by the atmosphere and commitment demonstrated throughout the event: "While many sectors focus on topics such as artificial intelligence and rapid transformation, GaLaBau shows that the future can also be shaped in a very different way: by people who are committed to creating liveable green spaces with expertise, passion and dedication. This positive and solution-oriented mindset gives me confidence for the future."

Strong Participation and Excellent Industry Response

With almost 68,000 trade visitors from over 90 countries, GaLaBau 2026 further strengthened its position as the leading international trade fair for the green industry. High-quality visitor groups included decision-makers and professionals from landscape gardening and landscaping companies, representatives of municipalities, landscape architecture firms and the power equipment trade. Across almost 61,000 square metres of exhibition space, 1,100 companies from 34 countries presented their products, services and innovations in 14 exhibition halls. This provided ideal conditions for professional exchange, new business contacts and the initiation of future projects.

International exhibitor participation also reached a high level. With a share of almost 34 percent, more than one-third of exhibitors came from outside Germany, representing an increase of four percentage points compared with the previous event. Alongside Germany (764 exhibitors), the Netherlands, Italy, Austria, France and Belgium were particularly well represented. This underlines GaLaBau's growing international significance as a key platform for the green industry.

The results of the visitor survey also confirmed the event's strong acceptance. Respondents once again rated GaLaBau highly and highlighted its relevance to their day-to-day professional activities. They particularly valued the diversity of exhibits, the numerous opportunities for professional exchange and the chance to learn about current developments and innovations across the industry.

French Projects Win ELCA Trend Award "Building with Green"

One of the highlights of the exhibition was the presentation of the international ELCA Trend Award "Building with Green" on the first day of the event. This year's winners were two projects from France: the PSG Training Center and the Necker Hospital Garden – Mother and Child Centre. Presented by the European Landscape Contractors Association (ELCA), the award recognises projects that demonstrate outstanding innovation and serve as role models for the European landscape construction sector.

16 Companies Receive the GaLaBau Innovation Medal

Also on the opening day, the BGL presented the GaLaBau Innovation Medal 2026. A total of 16 companies were honoured for products and solutions that simplify daily work processes, conserve resources or unlock new opportunities for the green industry. The awards were presented by BGL Vice President Armin Knauer and Jürgen Hoppe, Chair of the Evaluation Committee, at the GaLaBau Expert Forum.

BGL Education Award Honours Young Professionals and Training Companies

For the tenth time, the BGL presented its Education Award at GaLaBau. Six landscape gardeners were recognised for outstanding achievements in vocational training and professional development. In the vocational training category, awards went to Miriam Rieger, Hanna Kanzelmeier and Sebastian Murrmann. For outstanding achievements in further professional education, the winners were Mischa Engels, Verena-Maria Alt and Sophie Spindler. For the first time, the BGL also recognised three training companies for their exceptional commitment to promoting young talent: erhardt Garten- und Landschaftsbau GmbH, Garten- und Landschaftsbau Kreye GmbH & Co. KG and BOHR – Ihr Gärtner von Eden.

"Motorist des Jahres" Award Presented at GaLaBau for the First Time

Another premiere was the presentation of the entrepreneurial award "Motorist des Jahres" ("Power Equipment Dealer of the Year"). In 2026, the award, presented by the trade magazine Motorist, was held at GaLaBau for the first time. The title was awarded to Stefanie Sabel and the team of Sabel Land- und Gartentechnik from Dornburg-Thalheim. The award recognises companies in the garden, forestry and municipal technology sectors that demonstrate exceptional service quality, entrepreneurial excellence and commitment to the industry.

Young Talents Impress at the Landscape Gardener Cup

The Landscape Gardener Cup once again proved a major crowd-puller in the exhibition park. Eleven two-person teams from across Germany competed to create a four-by-four-metre "Tiny Garden" within two days. The title of German Champion was claimed by Jan Ole Barth and Niklas Brehling representing Lower Saxony-Bremen. Second place went to Felix Körner and Victor Walther from Saxony, while third place was secured by Leon Luca Schade and Hannes Weser from Team North.

See You Again in 2028

With its unique combination of innovation, knowledge transfer, practical applications and personal exchange, GaLaBau 2026 once again confirmed its role as the industry's most important platform and provided valuable impetus for shaping future-proof and liveable green spaces. Following four successful exhibition days, attention now turns to the next event: the upcoming GaLaBau will take place from 12 to 15 September 2028 at the Exhibition Centre Nuremberg, once again bringing together professionals from across the international green industry.