Floriculture farmers dumped vast quantities of tuberose on roadsides and into waterbodies after merchants refused to buy their blooms amid the COVID-19 lockdown, despite their harvests being ready and their supplies destined for multiple states across India. Having planted flowers across nearly 1,000 acres, the growers were offered as little as ₹5 per kilogram—far below the ₹50 they expected and the cost of cultivation—yet still had no choice but to harvest early to prevent plant damage and then discard the unsold blooms.