ith Onam celebrations around the corner, there is great demand for flowers to make pookalams and other decorations at home and institutions. Flowers arrive from different growing centres to Coimbatore from 4 a.m. And the buyers purchase them in bulk to sell in the neighbouring State of Kerala. With Onam festival on Friday, the demand and prices of flowers have shot up in Coimbatore.
Marigold and globe amaranth ( vadamalli) are some of the varieties that are widely used during the festival. M.C. Mohideen, a trader at the flower market for more than four decades, says prices of vadamalli was just Rs. 20 to Rs. 30 a kg two weeks ago and it is Rs. 160 to Rs. 200 on Tuesday. Nearly 60 per cent of sales during this season is to Kerala, he says.
Arrival of flowers has dropped sharply this season compared to last year because of unseasonal rains in April-May and deficit rainfall now. Coimbatore gets majority of its supply from Sathyamangalam area and Hosur. This year, Varalakshmi Vratham, Onam and other auspicious occasions have fallen around the same time, and hence, the demand is high for other flowers too. Balu, another trader at the flower market, says the price hike is because of increase in demand in the local and Kerala markets.
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Flower trader D. Ramu however says the decline in arrivals is not much and sellers purchase directly from local farms and other districts in the State too. With the festivals, prices of all varieties of flowers have shot up. They are expected to remain high for the next three days.