Like all quintessentially British things, gardening is a pastime that has long been in decline. From a high point of £5 billion in 2001, spending on plants, tools and garden furniture has fallen every year since then, to around ~3 billion in 2008.The arrival of economic recession only deepened the gloom: to credit-crunched consumers, shrubs and hanging baskets seemed obvious candidates for cuts. Yet the latest figures from the Horticultural Trades Association (HTA) suggest a bumper year for garden-related expenditure is in the making. Sales volumes were up by 21% in March and 28% in April compared with the same months a year earlier. This was not the result of deep discounting, a strategy that many other retailers have been adopting. The value of garden goods sold was 37% higher in March and 42% higher in April than a year earlier, whereas the value of all sales had increased by just 3% in April. Datamonitor, a market-research firm, reckons that gardening will continue to outperform the rest of retailing for at least the next two years. Much of the good news is due to the weather, admits Tim Briercliffe, the HTA’s director of business development. Last year the vital spring months were damp and miserable; this year sunshine (and weathermen’s prediction of a hot summer) has boosted custom. But the economic downturn itself has turned out to be as much a blessing as a curse. Gardening may be a luxury, argues Mr. Briercliffe, but it competes with other, more expensive luxuries. "People who might have otherwise booked a city break to Prague are staying at home and making the best of what they have," he maintains. According to Ipsos MORI, a pollster, three-quarters of people plan to spend at least as much on their garden this year as last. Economic hardship has created a new breed of gardener too. Partly, that reflects people making the most of their enforced leisure: "We get some unemployed city types who are just filling time while looking for another job," admits a garden-centre worker near the London commuter town of Guilford. But there are more positive developments. Much of the growth in garden spending has come from the under-35s, not traditionally a green-fingered demographic. One explanation is that environmentalism and thriftiness have made growing vegetables trendy, an idea that is supported by growing shortage of allotments. But there is more to it than pleasant weather and belt-tightening. The HTA detects deeper, and darker, changes in the national psyche. Citing research from the Future Foundation, a prognosticatory consultancy, it reckons that people are spending more time in their homes, fortifying them into havens from an unwelcoming world haunted by crime, bureaucracy and rising unemployment. The longer the downturn persists, the greener the grass may grow.
A.England enjoys good weather for several springs.B.Gardening is classified as a luxury.C.Many English people take vacations abroad.D.Good weather is the sole reason for the increase in gardening.
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为了减轻家庭负担,小肖初中毕业后就外出打工,一直在玩具厂的生产线上工作,最近,因企业智能化改造而失业。小肖认为失业的原因是自己没有一技之长,文化程度不高,跟不上时代的发展,觉得自己很无能,对未来感到茫然,遂向社会工作者小张求助。小张同小肖一起分析了她的个人现实条件与企业发展的相互关系,引导她认识个人失业与社会转型的关系。小张的做法属于性别视角妇女社会工作方法中的(,)。
A.建立信任关系
B.挖掘自身潜能
C.链接周围资源
D.重新界定问题
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