Growing Summer 2025
With the summer solstice almost here and warm weather to boot things are looking positive for Ornamental plant production.
Growers have been busy shifting stock out of the door and the appetite for plants is really strong. For those who don’t get the HTA monthly market updates, they are a great way to keep your finger on the pulse of plant buying trends in the UK. Would definitely suggest subscribing if you don’t already.
For May 2025:
From HTA Market Update June 2025.
It’s great to have some positive sales figures. Compared to rapidly moving stocks during the COVID 19 pandemic, the years after have been harder for many growers so it’s nice to have it moving in the right direction again and see demand on the rise.
Across all the ornamental plant categories the numbers are looking really good, suggesting strong customer demand continues. For almost all plant groups sales are up compared to May 2024, with the exception of bulbs and hardy stock. But as you can see in the table below figures for the year so far show really strong demand in every category compared to last year.
Data from HTA Market Update June 2025.
It turns out that whilst very little rain and strong sunshine hours can make it challenging to grow ornamental crops, the general public find these conditions conducive to encourage them to part with cash in exchange for beautiful plants for homes and gardens.
We can see that the story continued to play out in May in the weather figures below. All signs (bar temperature) pointed to it being a nice month for people to be outside tending gardens.
From HTA Market Update June 2025.
We hope to see these warm sunny days continue for the rest of the Summer, to give us a season quite unlike the washout that was Summer 2024.
Ready to Regulate
Warm weather and intensive sun are great for most ornamental crops, but if you have crops which you know can get away from you, and end up a little leggy, consider getting them in a plant growth regulator (PGR) program early.
PGRs like Bonzi from Syngenta, first approved in the UK in 1999 has a long (26 years to this point!) history of helping professional growers deliver best in class plants.
If you are not already working with Bonzi in your cropping program, speak to your local distributor or dealer rep to find out more.
Visit our Expert Centre for the latest technical insights, research, and best practices. For specific technical queries, contact Sean Loakes, UK Technical Manager, at sean.loakes@syngenta.com.
