Why are Garden Centres essential?

Garden centres have been the powerhouses of the nation and have strengthened their importance in our life during the ongoing pandemic. Whilst their mental and physical benefits and allowed local communities to thrive during the multiple lockdowns, their vital role in the British supply chain must not be overlooked.  

 

The UK government has now classified garden centres as ‘essential retail’ emphasising their advantage to social and physical life. Studies conducted by the university of Exeter show that spending more time in nature can improve general and psychological wellbeing as well as physical activity levels.

 

Levels of loneliness in Great Britain have increased since spring 2020 with 5% of people (2.6 million adults) stating that they have felt lonely “often” or “always”. Garden centres act as a solution to this problem, increasing the possibility of ubiquitous meetings. For example, Perrywood Garden Centre invites customers to visit their coffee shop where they can meet like-minded individuals at their ‘social tables’. John Smith, a head of human resources, reports the importance of garden centres in “widening [his] social horizon”

 

More importantly during the pandemic, garden centres allowed locals to experience the benefits of nature whilst remaining at home. Providing portable plants and tools has encouraged people to remain at home and explore gardening as a hobby. Research displays that three million new gardeners have adopted this hobby since the first lockdown and many have reported a boost in their morale since doing so.

 

A cancer survivor described her newfound interest in gardening as a “refreshing diversion from stress” whilst also being “crucial in accelerating [her] recovery”.

 

As well as this, garden centres are essential in the British supply chain, selling 60% of all UK produced plants.

 

With the increased uncertainty planting regimes have been delayed impacting the availability of certain plants. Garden centres being classified as ‘essential retail’ provides growers reassurance of a secure outlet of their goods, however garden centres have suffered massive financial impacts; decreasing the ability of this industry to be an economic powerhouse for the UK.

 

Covid-19 has created several unknows and uncertainties for the season ahead and it is clear garden centres will play a huge role in limiting its damage. However, it is pivotal to support garden centres in order to aid the recovery of the country’s economy whist improving the quality of life for all.