Nurseries reap the benefits of ‘miracle May’ and Instagram-led craze for cacti
After a frosty winter and a dismal spring, garden centres were bracing themselves for a bad year. But now retailers are reporting record-breaking plant sales, as a result of the hottest May weather in a century and a newfound passion for gardening among millennial Instagram users.
“At the end of April we had a huge [sales] deficit and were frighteningly behind,” said Colin Dale, head of plants at the family-owned Notcutts garden centre chain. “May was a miracle: it has been so good it has taken us over budget for the year, which seems almost impossible.”