Garden gnomes popular in many parts of the world have become scarcer than a supporter of the European Super League – the ill-fated attempt by eight European and UK football clubs to create a rival to UEFA’s Champions League.
In the UK where there was a coronavirus lockdown from January 6 that began to be relaxed in March, every garden gnome was bought and the shelves have not been restocked. To add to the misery, a large shipment was stuck by the Suez Canal blockage.
“We haven’t seen a gnome in six months now, unfortunately,” Ian Byrne, Highfield Garden World in Whitminster, Gloucestershire, told The Guardian.
“There aren’t any (gnomes). There’s definitely a shortage. It’s a combined thing with garden centres being so busy. I looked at some figures based on March which said garden centres were 97% busier than they were in 2019.”
“Every day has been like a bank holiday. That’s good but it’s definitely causing some issues because it’s not just English garden centres that are booming, it’s all across Europe, so it’s causing issues with supply.”
The high demand for garden items is not restricted to gnomes, although it has been hit by a lack of raw materials for plastic, stone and concrete varieties.
“Most garden centres haven’t noticed – although they will. We’re facing a perfect storm of lockdown, everyone being stuck at home, and one thing people can do is their gardening,” said UK Garden Centre Association CEO Iain Wylie.
Sounds like the basis for a very unusual black market.
