Demand for houseplants has continued to grow since lockdown boom, says Tesco

26 February 2024 , 11:04

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Iliyana Matasheva inspects house plants growing at Bury Lane, a major UK peat-free grower which has completely switched its indoor facilities to the production of house plants (Image: 2024 PA Media, All Rights Reserved)

A UK supermarket has seen a big jump in people buying houseplants with the number of houseplants sold up by more than 130% in the last five years.

Tesco says that one of their suppliers changed from making flowers to just making houseplants because demand is so high. The supplier, Bury Lane, a peat-free grower near Royston in Hertfordshire, cultivates over 500,000 houseplants every year.

Tesco say that people showing pictures of their homes with plants on social media has helped boost demand. Vicki I'Anson, who buys plants for Tesco, said: "We first noticed the trend during the early months of lockdown and it was caused as a direct result of people having to stay at home and not being able to visit parks and other open spaces."

She added: "But the trend caught on very quickly with people keen to show off on social media how they were adorning their homes with houseplants. And it's now even more pronounced than it was then."

Bury Lane says demand is strong amoung young people who want to have greenery inside their homes Will Clayton of Bury Lane, saidd: "The big consumer focus in home plants right now is the leaf rather than the flower, with younger people, especially, being interested in building their own indoor gardens with evergreen plants."

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He added: "Not everyone has an outdoor garden and with interest rates high right now we're seeing younger people who are waiting to get on the housing ladder wanting to make their accommodation as appealing and interesting as possible. One easy and inexpensive way to do that is by having calming houseplants around your home and if you go on social media sites you'll find many people posting the latest additions to their home."

Tesco has made a green move too. Last April, they stopped using peat in the bedding plants they grow in Britain to help the environment. They have also stopped selling compost that has peat in it.

Lawrence Matheson