It’s been discovered this week that retailers Lidl and B&Q have accidentally been selling rare plants that are worth thousands for some very reduced prices.
According to the Mirror, it’s not necessarily the type of plant that’s so rare, but what supermarkets and retailers don’t always know is that some small naturally-occurring variations in the common plants that they do stock can actually make them extremely valuable – and what’s more is that these variations are sometimes mistaken for disease.
This common disease mistake often means that the shops end up selling the plants at a reduced price because it.
As mad as it sounds, apparently some of the plants are being sold by Lidl and B&Q for around £10, but when you do a little bit of research into the type of plant, you’ll find that they’re listed for much higher online.
Even just a small part of it, like a leaf or stem, would set you back thousands.
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One of the most common plants to find in any shop is the Monstera Deliciosa – which is more commonly-known as a Swiss Cheese plant, because of the holes in its leaves – but while a regular green plant isn’t worth much, a variegated monstera is very rare, and because the signs of this can be subtle in young plants, shops often mix them up with the plain variety and sell them for £10.
Even a single branch of the plant could end up costing thousands, with Etsy’s most expensive listed at £4,562.18.
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A regular Monstera Adansonii can develop white spots that cause shops to sell them for cheap, but yet again, these spots are easily-confused with the beginnings of variegation – which has the same white stripes on the stem as the Deliciosa – meaning listings on Esty have been found to start at £200, going up to as much as £1,533.39 for a single leaf, with the most expensive variegated Adansonii currently listed for sale on eBay at £3,699.
Another rare plant is the Philodendron White Princess, but with over 400 species of Philodendron in the world, shops might struggle to differentiate between them, and just like the Monsteras, a Philodendron with white leaves is worth more than a regular plant.
Variations are commonly mistaken for disease, and shops end up selling the plants at a reduced price because it / Credit: Unsplash (Annie Spratt)
These plant variations have been spotted by eagle-eyed shoppers at reported in the Mirror as being sold online for £40, while others are stocking them for £120, and on Etsy, they are even listed for as much as £4,216.82.
Other rare and expensive plant variations spotted being mistakenly sold for reduced prices include the Pink Princess Philodendron (PPP), and Monstera Obliqua.
Featured Image – Lidl GB
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BBC is casting for next series of The Traitors and wants Mancs who are ‘good at lying’ to apply
Emily Sergeant
The BBC is currently casting for the next series of The Traitors, and is looking for some deceptive Mancs to take part.
The Traitors is pretty much a cultural phenomenon at this point, let’s be honest.
Producers describe it as a ‘game of trust and treachery’, and there’s always plenty of twists, turns, shocks, and surprises along the way – but do you reckon you’ve got what it takes to play? If so, the BBC is currently casting for the next series of the popular show, and is calling on people in Greater Manchester and across the UK to apply.
Applications are currently open to ‘fun, smart, and strategic players’ who are over 18 years of age and have the right to legally reside in the UK.
The first series of the smash-hit BBC reality competition show proved pretty popular when it premiered back in 2022, but the second series took things to a whole new level, and truly seemed to capture the attentions of the nation like no other – with millions of viewers tuning in to watch the three episodes each week.
Currently, you may be one of the millions watching The Celebrity Traitors, which airs each week on Wednesdays and Thursdays.
But in case you haven’t seen it, The Traitors is, put simply, a competition series that’s built on strategy, suspicion, and deception, where a team of players are tasked with competing in a series of missions – with the more missions they complete successfully, the bigger the prize pot gets.
However, hidden among the players are the ‘Traitors’, who meet in secret and decide who to eliminate from their fellow players known as the ‘Faithfuls’.
The aim for the ‘Traitors’ is to stay undetected until the end, while the aim for the ‘Faithfuls’ is to banish all of the Traitors before the game ends.
Up for it? You have until 31 May 2026 to get your applications in online here.
Featured Image – BBC / Studio Lambert Assossiates
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Tom Aspinall to undergo more eye tests after injury sees title defence fight end in no-contest
Danny Jones
Manc MMA fighter Tom Aspinall is said to need further eye tests after an injury saw his title defence against Ciryl Gane at UFC 321 end in a no-contest.
The Atherton-born UFC star was set to face the Frenchman former Muay Thai pro, 35, in the first competitive match since being declared the undisputed heavyweight champion earlier this year.
Aspinall was handed the belt by default after fighting legend Jon Jones retired from the sport, only to seemingly put himself back in training and the testing pool not long after.
Ultimately, the local athlete was unable to fully demonstrate why he’s found himself top dog in the division after an eye-poke from Gane saw Tom unable to continue. Brace yourselves: it’s rather unpleasant to watch…
Unsurprisingly, UFC fans are still wrapped up in fierce debate online, with many arguing whether or not the fight should have been stopped despite Aspinall making it clear he could no longer see properly after the illegal move.
In fact, Aspinall’s father and trainer, Andy, told various media that Tom was still unable to see out of his right eye as an ambulance quickly took him to a nearby hospital following the abandoned bout at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi.
Nevertheless, plenty are questioning the ins and outs of the moment, with some believing that Aspinall was supposedly looking for “a way out” after the early rounds against Gane, while plenty more are wondering whether the eye poke was even ‘accidental’.
The Wigan native gave fight fans plenty of grief back, though, expressing his shock at those up in the stands booing and asking what else they expected him to do.
It was in front of his opponent’s home crowd in Paris, in fairness, but he and his fans were left, nevertheless, disappointed by the reaction following what is an extremely serious injury.
You only have to hear Michael Bisping talk about losing his right eye to know how much it changed his life, and Aspinall actually referenced the fellow Northerner in the aftermath of the eye poke, stating, “I really respect what Bisping has done; he’s done more than I would.
“I wouldn’t carry on fighting with one eye. No chance.”
While doctors have so far assured that there should be no permanent ocular damage, both pain and precaution are inevitable; it will be some time before Aspinall gets back in the octagon, and who knows when we can expect a rematch against Ciryl Gane.
You can watch the highlights before it was called early HERE, and see the ‘Honey Badger’s reaction after the fact on this official Tom Apsinall YouTube down below.
Emily Sergeant -
25th January 2022 
