Logo

1 of 7
A customer requests a plant from a stallholder working for Andrew Barker Garden Plants at the Chiswick Flower Market in London.
A customer requests a plant from a stallholder working for Andrew Barker Garden Plants at the Chiswick Flower Market in London.Jonathan Brady/PA Images via Getty Images
People visit Columbia Road Flower Market in London.
People visit Columbia Road Flower Market in London.Kirsty O'Connor/PA Images via Getty Images
Advertisement
People visit Columbia Road Flower Market in London.
People visit Columbia Road Flower Market in London.Alamy Stock Photo
People visit Columbia Road Flower Market in London.
People visit Columbia Road Flower Market in London.Alamy Stock Photo
People walk through Columbia Road Flower Market in London.
People walk through Columbia Road Flower Market in London.Kirsty O'Connor/PA Images via Getty Images
Advertisement

Flowers may just power Brits through the pandemic this winter.

Sales of plants and bulbs are skyrocketing across the UK, especially for ones that healing properties, numbers show.

Customers who shop at Gardening Express can’t get enough of medicinal plants such as echinacea, gingko, sambucus and green tea, the online store told the Guardian. Sales of echinacea alone increased by almost 3,000 percent over last year.

At Patch, also an online marketplace, sales have jumped by 500 percent during lockdown. And the DIY chain Homebase reported a 45 percent spike in fruit and vegetable plants compared to last year.

“Grow-your-own edible plants have seen huge interest,” said Guy Barter, the Royal Horticultural Society’s chief horticulturalist. “Over 3.5 million people have taken up gardening for the first time and there have been shortages of seeds and plants.”

Barter credited the keen interest to Brits simply having more time on their hands, being indoors more and wanting to make the best of their gardens.

“Gardening is also a comfort in troubling times,” he said.

Comments
anonymous profile image
Powered by RoundtableBuilt on infrastructure designed for real-time media. Learn more at RTB.io.© Roundtable 2026. By using this site you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy