Where
is Asia’s largest tulip garden? It is located in Jammu and Kashmir, mostly a
mountainous region of the Himalayas bordering the Indian states of Himachal Pradesh
and Punjab in the south, China in the north, and separated from
Pakistan-administered Azad Kashmir by a Line of Control.
In
this beautiful region is the Indira Gandhi Memorial Tulip Garden on the banks
of Dal Lake, Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir. The lake, known
as the Jewel in the crown of Kashmir, is the second largest in the region. It
shoreline is 15.5 kilometres (9.6 miles) lined with gardens and parks. The lake
covers an area of 18 square kilometres (7 square miles) and is part of a
natural wetland which includes a floating garden known as Rad.
Unfortunately
Dal Lake has a eutrophication problem, often called hypertrophication, in which
the ecosystem reacts to substances such as nitrates and phosphates (caused by
fertilizers and sewage). The reaction appears as a ‘bloom’ of phytoplankton in
the water. A negative consequence of the bloom is hypoxia, the depletion of
oxygen in the water which affects, and reduces, the number of fish and water
species. The Government of India have invested funds to restore the lake.
Last
year, in 2013, more than 45,000 tourists visited the Memorial Tulip Garden
during the 4-week period, commencing from March 26, in which the tulips bloom (Business Standard, March 22, 2014).
However,
the opening of Asia’s largest tulip garden has been delayed this year due to
heavy snowfall across Kashmir. On March 26, the officials of the Floriculture
department will decide on the opening date for this year’s tulip festival,
which is expected to be early in April. The dop in temperature means that the
tulips have not yet bloomed. As soon as the daytime temperatures increase, the
tulips will begin to bloom.
More
than 20 million tulip bulbs have been planted on a 12-hectare garden. The
average life span of the tulip is 3-4 weeks, although they are susceptible to
rain and heat. The Floriculture department use hi-tech poly-houses to protect
the tulips during harsh weather.
MARTINA NICOLLSis an international aid and development consultant, and the authorof:- Similar But Different in the Animal Kingdom(2017), The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).
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