The Tamesis
If the Cabbage needed a mascot, Gerald Stratford might be the best man for the job. On Instagram, you’ll find the 77-year-old wearing a cabbage-print wool jacket and hat, proudly showing off a red cabbage plant from his garden, or penning an ode to the marble wonders of nature.
Stratford, who lives in the English village of Milton-under-Wychwood in Oxfordshire, is a beloved figure online. The retiree took great pleasure in posting parcels of his harvest of very large vegetables (or “big greens” as he likes to say) on multiple social media platforms for an audience of around half a million people.
Photo: Courtesy of Gerald Stratford
Since his first viral hit in 2020 (when his nephew told him, “Gerald, your potatoes have gone viral”), he has become a gardening influencer and fashion muse. That cabbage hair? This is Alexander McQueen’s McQ.
“Every time I wear it on screen, it just takes off. I get a million clicks every time,” Stratford said Fashion wool clothing. Stratford was a collaborator on the project and the brand, along with other creatives, bears his name. “You know, I’m very proud,” he said. “I brought vegetables into fashion.” (In addition to McQueen, Stratford has collaborated with Gucci, Burberry and White Stuff.) He likes to cut vegetables in a way that highlights their inherent beauty, and says cabbage is one of the best. “Cabbage always seems to capture people’s imagination,” Stratford said.
If recent reports are any indication, Stratford is onto something in that regard. Pinterest Predictions Trend Report says our obsession with cabbage will be at its peak by 2026. You can already find cabbage (and lettuce, if we’re being technical) patterns everywhere: Sandy Liang cabbage buns in the designer’s Spring 2025 collection, Dodie Thayer in Tory Burch’s ceramic collection, Buccellati’s sterling silver cabbage centerpieces, and the use of cabbage as decoration in flower arrangements and advertising campaigns, such as the Highgrove x Burberry collection.
Photo: Courtesy of Burberry
In Taiwan, the jade cabbage sculpture is the star attraction of the National Palace Museum and is so popular that it has its own exhibition hall, CNN reports. On TikTok, many “viral” cabbage recipes have emerged, such as cabbage boil and Green Goddess Cabbage Salad.
