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Asia's largest tulip garden



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.



http://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/opening-of-kashmir-tulip-garden-delayed-due-to-snowfall-114032100277_1.html




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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