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Floriculture Today July 2020
July 2020
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Floriculture Today July 2020
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Contents
v Cover Story
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Floral Salute to Covid Warriors in Bangalore
Launching #ChangingTheGloomToBlooms
v Appeal 13 A Silverline through Black Clouds! – Ashish Phadke
v 14
Webinar Report Native Trees and Plants A Big Business Opportunity For Indian Nurserymen Creating Greener and Protected Environment…
v Dry Flowers 30 The Untapped Potential of Dry Flowers — Dr Bharati Kashyap and Rajesh Bhalla v Training 35 One Day Training Programme on Dry Flower Crafts — Dr. P. Neelima v Arboriculture 36 Tree Surgery — S. Chellaiah, Director (Horticulture) 6
Floriculture Today July 2020
v Maintenance 38 Hot Composting ‘How-to’ Guide — Colleen Vanderlinden v 39
Floral Beauty The Beautiful Story behind A Rose that Blooms at Disneyland in Disneyland Resort
40 Blue Daze Named Texas Superstar v Obituary 43 Tribute to Mona Pingle 43 Amjad Ali v News 44 Dr. T. Janakiram Assumes Charge of Vice Chancellor at Dr. Ysr Horticultural University 44 New Market for Hydrangea Opened in Russia 46 Flowers at Esplanade at Tmc 21/7 Gathering 46 Learn about the Flowers in Bengaluru by Scanning this Postcard... 47 Iblur Lake Bedecked with Flowers: Volunteer Efforts Pay off 48 Flower Blooms at Stan State in Rare Event
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www.floriculturetoday.in
Chief Editor: S Jafar Naqvi Consulting Editor T.V. Satyanarayanan Chief Coordinator: M.B. Naqvi
Editorial Coordinator: Syed M K Layout & Design Mohd. Iqbal Faiyaz Ahmad Head Office New Delhi: +91-11-29535593 / 64519106 / 65655264 E-mail: MediaTodayMails@gmail.com Other Business Offices Mumbai 9702903993 mtpl.mumbai@gmail.com
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Printed, published and owned by Syed Mohammad Baqar Naqvi, Printed at Sonu Printer, B-180, Okhla Industrial Area Ph-I, New Delhi - 110 020, and Published from A-44, 1st Floor, Freedom Fighter Enclave, Neb Sarai, New Delhi-110068 (INDIA) Editor : S. Jafar Naqvi Vol 25 ....... Issue 2....... July 2020
Editorial Dear Reader, Horticulture, more particularly growing of ornamental plants and landscaping, has been associated intimately with India’s rich heritage of art, culture and religion since time immemorial. Now it is poised for a transformation, driven by increasing demand, innovative technologies, and, above all, growing consumer awareness about environment and demand for quality flowers, plants and Trees. Commercial production of ornamental & fruit plants and other horticulture crops received the attention of Government as they are keen on utilizing the climatic variability across the country harness the untapped potential fully. Adoption of improved technologies, including greenhouse technologies, and introduction of new cultivars through tissue culture labs have given multi-dimension to this important industry. Efforts by Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, MIDH, SHMs and National Horticulture Board are supporting horticulture development. These efforts are targeted to double the production of all horticulture crops, including ornamental plants and fruits & vegetables. At another level in India, surging per capita income and progressive lifestyles of people have led to phenomenal increase in landscape & gardening market. A good aestheticallyappealing landscape is a desirable asset for any high value residential project. No town planner can afford to miss out on this key component. The rapid urbanization and industrialization leading to the ongoing construction boom, mails culture, green airports, amusement parks and residential townships, all these have given a new dimension to the art of landscaping. In India, environmental horticulture is emerging as an organized sector. It is imperative to bring together all segments. As a way forward, Media Today Group, is going to print a ‘Source Book’ containing all essential information on landscape & nursery sectors and allied interests. This edition of Environmental Horticulture & Landscape Industry Source Book will be updated version of previous directories released by Media Today Group. Together, let us make India more greener. S Jafar Naqvi Chief Editor, Floriculture Today Magazine Comments are welcome at: editorialmtpl@gmail.com
Views expressed by individuals and contributors in the magazine are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Floriculture Today editorial board. Floriculture Today does not accept any responsibility of any direct, indirect or consequential damage caused to any party due to views expressed by any one or more persons in the trade. All disputes are to be referred to Delhi Jurisdiction only. .....Editor
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Cover
Story
Floral Salute to Covid Warriors in Bangalore
Launching #ChangingTheGloomToBlooms
A
s a token of appreciation to Covid-19 warriors who are working across India, The Growers’ Flower Council of India installed floral artworks across Bangalore from June 11 to June 13. The initiative #ChangingTheGloomToBlooms was a joint venture between Flower council of India & SIFA which was supported by various event management companies in Bangalore. The initiative focused on bringing the Blooms back to the Garden
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City of Bangalore. The floral installations at the following locations were displayed from public viewing: Windsor Manor Circle by Ethereal Celebration Management, Minsk Square by Sneha Florist, Vidhana Soudha by Baisakhi Flowers Pvt Ltd, Brigade Road by Prratha Weddings, Shivaji Nagar by Zzeeh Productions Pvt Ltd and Emaginations Inc, Frazer Town by Zzeeh Productions Pvt Ltd, Mannequin Setups At Vidhana Soudha by Zzeeh Productions Pvt
Ltd and Avant Events and Entertainment, Whitefield Police Station by 9yards Events, Anil Kumble Circle by Shubhkamanaye, Infantry Road – Commissioner of Police by Shubhkamanaye, Town Hall by Sneha Florist and Bbmp Commissioner Office by Emaginations Inc. The initiative, which was inspired by a similar act in New York, was supported by the members of South India Floriculture Association (SIFA), Growers of Karnataka, Karnataka Event Management Association
Cover
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O (KEMA), India Florist Association (IFA), Horticulture department, Government of Karnataka, Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) and Bangalore Flower Growers Association (BFGA), Cut Flower Growers of Karnataka & Tamil Nadu, Bengaluru City Police and Karnataka State Exotic Flower Grower & Sellers Association (KEFGSA). Growers’ Flower Council of India, President Srikanth Bollapally said that they’re looking at installing these artworks across India, starting with Bangalore. “The work that the medical staff, government officials and the state police departments have done is incomparable and we were looking for ways to showcase our gratitude for their hard work and services. When we read about the flower arrangements at streets and landmarks in NYC, we decided to do a similar initiative,” he says. The installations were facilitated by six wedding and event planners from the city - Kalidas Raj, Viveck Bharadwaj, Zubair Abdul Waheed, Srikanth Kanohi, Srikanth Bollapally, Sanober Mannan and Anitha Raj. Florists and growers from the city and neighbouring parts of Karnataka contributed their floral produce to the initiative for free.
Srikanth Kanohi, Director, Ethreal Celebration Management
Apart from finding unique designs, I had to keep certain things in mind, like the surroundings of the place chosen, the kind of flowers being used - their durability, shape, size and colour.
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Srikanth Kanohi, event planner and florist who has worked on styles for the different installations, said, “Apart from finding unique designs, I had to keep certain things in mind, like the surroundings of the place chosen, the kind of flowers being used - their durability, shape, size and colour.” Zubair Abdul Waheed, Managing Director, Zzeeh Productions Pvt. Ltd. said, “Each planner has taken up a different viewpoint to portray as a floral display. My installations are showcased at Brigade Road, Frazer Town and Shivajinagar. I also installed a multifloral cape around different mannequins dressed as policemen, doctors, nurses and more.” He added, “For the Bowring hospital Shivajinagar floral installation, we got a football sport mannequin and decided to have a corona ball in front of it by a doctor who is kicking the corona ball. It actually came out brilliantly.” Flowers mainly used for the installations included Roses, Carnations, Anthurium, Oriental lilies, Chrysanthemum and Birds of Paradise. The Council stated that the warriors, ‘did not care for their comfort, relentlessly worked to save us from the deadly
verwhelming feedback has been received from everyone who all has visited the places. The crowd included officials, IAS Officers, Ministers and many more personas. People had stayed back for 90 days in their houses, and now coming out of the house having a glimpse of these cheering flower arrangements was wonderful. Doctors, Nurses, Policemen, Cleaners and others were very pleased to be saluted like this. They thanked the floriculture industry. The floriculture industry felt like a dead market, but through this event we tried to get back to the normal. The Grower’s Flower Council of India took up this initiative in support with South India Floriculture Association (SIFA); we approached designers, decorators and the flower growers of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu and each one of them agreed to contribute to the initiative. We also visited the government offices to get support, however their support was nominal. Subsequently, we ourselves as flower growers had to take up the issue to be successfully implemented. Almost 1,70,000 flower stems of different flowers such as Carnation, Anthurium Chrysanthemum, Oriental Lilies, Peonies, and other foliages were used. In Bangalore, we had taken 11 major places that usually have a good crowd. By the support of the decorators, the event came out to be very eye-catching and inspiring. A positive outlook was presented to everyone. Everybody thanked the flower growers. In return, we also felt blissful. It was indeed a very good moment for all the floriculture professionals. Indian Florist Association, Srikanth Kanohi, Rajeeb Roy and many growers of SIFA were the leading supporters behind the organization of this event. And I’m thankful to all of them. – Srikant Bollapally, President, Growers’ Flower Council of India
Extracts from live interview with Floriculture Today TV
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Cover
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The nurses and doctors lose a part of themselves while looking after the patients and some have lost their lives saving others. We thought innovative floral décor at three of our assigned venues would be the best thing to do.
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They, who did not care for their comfort, They, who have relentlessly worked to save us from the deadly corona virus, They, who risked their life and their family’s life, to save ours, They worked 24*7 when we were in the comforts of our home during lockdown. They faced the anger, the violence and the hatred, but they refused to bow down and stood their ground in the line of their duty. They are our selfless, dedicated and committed CORONA WARRIORS.
Sanober Mannan, Founder & CEO, 9yards Events
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We wanted to give the best to the heroes of our country. The location - Whitefield Police Station was strategically chosen to pay our respect to the policemen working at the ground level and keeping us protected at these times of crises.
Zubair Abdul Waheed, Managing Director, Zzeeh Productions Pvt. Ltd.
coronavirus, risked their life and their family’s life to save ours, worked 24×7 when we were in the comforts of our home during the lockdown; faced the anger, the violence, and the hatred, but they refused to bow down and stood their ground in the line of their duty. They are our selfless, dedicated, and committed Corona Warriors. “We choose pink, white, and green as the theme colour - all these colours are the signs of positivity, peace, and vibrance. The choice of flowers was lilies and roses which are both exotic. We wanted to give the best to the heroes of our country. The location - Whitefield Police Station was strategically chosen to pay our respect to the policemen working at the ground level and keeping us protected at these times of crises” said Sanober Mannan, Founder, and Director, 9yards events. Tanya from Avant said, “A brief was given to us by the Grower’s Flower Council of India and Srikanth Kanohi. We innovated on that idea and created mannequins of police, nurses, and doctors to give them flower capes. For the Frazer town installation, we had a nurse and created a floral gown for her. As the nurses and doctors lose a part of themselves while looking after the patients and some have lost their lives saving others. We thought this would be the best thing to do.” The GFCI requested all the citizens to join them in saluting the Corona Warriors by visiting these locations, clicking pictures and sharing them on their social media with the following hashtags: #ChangingTheGloomToBlooms #FlowerfulBLR #FlowerPowertoCovid19Warriors #FloralSalute4CovidWarriors #StaySafe #BeingHopeful
Appeal
A silverline through black clouds! – Ashish Phadke (Sr. Marketing Manager, KF Bioplants Pvt.Ltd)
Since primitive age; agriculture and horticulture have been the source of survival for mankind. While agriculture ensures food safety; horticulture nourishes our body and mind with healthy fruits and vegetables and amazing assortment of flowers and plants. It brings us close to nature! However; still this sector is poorly explored as a professional sector. Though government agencies, policymakers and common citizens are aware of its importance; we all have failed to recognize its immense potential to take our country on a different level on global map. We are a rich nation with so much of natural resources, various climatic zones, varies flora and fauna with a vivid biodiversity. All the time our farmers and this sector is being hit due to factors like inadequate rainfall, shortage of labours, farmer suicides, no assurance of prices for finished goods and many more. Floriculture sector has been hit massively since it is not even
recognized as an industry! The worst part during Covid19 pandemic was flowers and plants were not considered as “Essential products”. Even state governments & central government announced the relief measures to agriculture but exclusive of floriculture! Due to the outbreak of Covid and its consequences futher; this sector is not in a good shape. To encourage floriculture fraternity, to uplift the morale of our growers and each stakeholder whose livelihood is dependent upon floriculture sector; KF Bioplants has put forward our plea to central covernment officials and is awaiting their valuable response and support. To ensure our voice heard by the country as a whole; we all have decided to come together on one single platform as a Growers’ Flower Council of India; a platform which will promote the use of flower and flowering plants on daily basis
as a part of our culture. This will help us a industry to survive and sustain successfully. The first ever promotion activity took place in Bangalore by our growers with the support of all stakeholders and make it a grand success. We were successful in gabbing attention of state government policymakers and media both. And we are quite sure that it is a milestone in floriculture industry in India and beginning of new era! KF Bioplants appeals to all growers and every link in this activity to participate and promote the importance of flowers and plants in the urban society. With the Council just round the corner; it will ensure speedy recovery of lost ground by Floriculture Industry and establish new milestones in India for us.
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Webinar Report
Native Trees and Plants
A Big Business Opportunity for Indian Nurserymen
Creating Greener and Protected Environment…
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ative trees — naturally found in a region — boast many good reasons to be considered for planting. When we plant local trees, we help local wildlife like birds and butterflies to live and thrive. When there aren’t enough native trees around, these populations can quickly decline. That’s why native trees are important—they help support our local ecosystems. Appreciating the benefits of planting native trees that is not limited to wildlife only, it can help the humans too; Media Today Group organized a webinar on “Importance of Native Trees and Plants for Landscape Professionals An opportunity for Indian Nurserymen” on 23rd May, 2020. The webinar discussed the possibilities and sustainable features of Indian Nursery sector in increasing
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the consumption of native trees, plants and flowers domestically, whilst exploring the export prospects. Several important leaders of the industry were invited as Guest Speakers/panelists. Dr. Suresh Malhotra, Agriculture Commissioner, Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Government of India and Chairman, Indian Society of Ornamental Horticulture (ISOH) was the Special Guest of the webinar. S. Jafar Naqvi, Chief Editor of Media Today Group and Convener of the Forum introduced the other panelists Dr. Sreelatha U., Professor & Head, Department of Floriculture and Landscaping, College of Horticulture, Thrissur; Prasannamurthi Desai, Vice President, Head Landscape, Bangalore International Airport Ltd.; Dr. H. P. Sumangala, Senior Scientist,
IIHR, Bangalore; Ms. Asiya Khan, Naturalist, Hyderabad; and Dilip Jadhav, Managing Director, A-One Biotech and Tissue Culture Pvt. Ltd. The webinar talked about the accessibility of planting materials, the current scenario of native trees and plants, growth drivers and different climate zones whilst focusing on improving the lives of small- and medium-scale nurserymen across India. Scenario of Native Trees and Plants in India Beginning with the objective of the webinar, Jafar Naqvi stated that trees are very important and nowadays their value is increasing and more benefits of them are
being discovered as their role expands to satisfy the needs created by our modern lifestyles. Dr. Suresh Malhotra valued the importance of native plants, trees, shrubs, ground cover & grasses which are endemic to the Indian subcontinent. He said, “India has tremendous potential in terms of native flora for landscaping purposes. Indian native plants possess an aesthetic value of their own and fulfill all the essential criteria for landscaping.” He referred to several native plants and trees in India such as Palash, Ashok, Neem, Peepal, etc. He also drew attention towards the significance of native
Webinar Report
S. Jafar Naqvi
gardening, which requires very little to no maintenance; supports ecologically sustainable development and has medicinal importance. He assured that the government will let the nurserymen to export or import any native species as per their requirement and would also assist them in all sort of monetary support. Another significant point he made was that the government has label claims for the use of pesticides on pulses, cereals, fruits & vegetables, but there is nothing for the ornamental plants. He said, “We don’t have label claims for ornamental plants; even the industry is not coming forward to take the label claim. However, we have made a concept of crop grouping as many ornamental plants belong to species which have food value. We have put them in one category
Ms. Asiya Khan
Dr. Suresh K. Malhotra
and common insect, pests or diseases can be treated as well.” He called out to all the researchers and the industry professionals that if any of them have generated some kind of data/activity or bioefficacy, particularly pesticides, then he will accord the permission for label claim. He said, “Being the Chairperson of Central Insecticide Board and Registration Committee (CIBRC), I take this liberty to extend this kind of support to the industry.” Dilip Jadhav, who handles a lot of greenery projects and is a specialized professional in vertical gardening, said, “I had been producing planting materials by tissue culture and cuttings of ornamental plants only. But recently, I observed that many of the native plants are good for ornamental, aesthetic, medicinal and aromatic value purpose.
Dr. H.P. Sumangala
Dilip Jadhav
Moreover, they can be grown as potted plant in a garden or as a roadside plant.” He remembered that a few years back, most of the nurserymen were dealing in other plants which are odourless and are in acceptable condition, but these days the focus has shifted. He said, “Being a tissue culturist, I have shifted my total focus on the production of native and indigenous plants, which has potential to pick up exports soon.” He added, “We have lot of tissue culture labs in Pune, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Delhi where much work is being done. Many of them are engaged in bananas, ornamental flowering plants and have collaborated with other companies; however a few are also doing in indigenous, aromatic and medicinal plants. Amid the current scenario, we need
Dr. Sreelatha. U
Prasannamurti Desai
to become ‘aatmanirbhar’ in producing indigenous plants and export to other countries. It’s a good opportunity to export young plants and tissue-cultured plants.” Prasannamurthi Desai believed that the topic is quite endless and serious. He exclaimed that the resources we utilize in terms of our potential are not even 5% of what India has. He said, “India hosts for more than 1 lakh different species of plant material. And has 1620 agro-climatic zones, which means having entire world’s climatic conditions whether it’s tropical, dry, humid etc. Potential in terms of internal consumption and becoming the world leader lies entirely with us. It is all about how we want to take up and go ahead with the industry. We promptly need to bring in scientific material in proper quantity, price band and
Robert Fernandes
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Vishwas Jogdand, President, Maharashtra Nurserymen Association (MNA) packaging to sell it along with stating its importance. We all know how important native plants are to the existing ecological system.” He added, “Big infrastructure like airports require large, grown-up, properly maintained and developed materials. Thailand is supplying Indian native trees to the booming Middle East region. They sell Indian Neem trees, Saraca Indica and much more. I’m struggling to get a full grown Saraca indica since last two years as there are no ample producers. If I need 100 trees of one shape and size, it is not there. These are the potentials that we need to harvest. There is a big way of native trees to explore in terms of infrastructure.” “Native endemic plants are being imported from other countries. But what is the necessity when we are already growing them in our gardens
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For subsidies, government has some fixed models for floriculture and vegetables cultivation. To propagate certain species, we need different infrastructure which is not also allowed by NHB, NHM or any other nodal body. I request Dr. Malhotra to ask NHB, NHM etc to be flexible. They have to move from rigid mind to a pledged mind.
unknowingly,” said Asiya Khan. She believed that the landscapers should advertise and create awareness on the need of natural plants among the masses. When the demand will be there, the nurserymen will accordingly work to meet the supply.” Dr. H. P. Sumangala explained that we are living in an era of rapid urbanization with climate changes and at present with Covid-19; it is estimated that in the coming years 60-65% of the Indian population will reside in urban areas. When rapid urbanization happens the city suffers from food security, environmental security and nutritional security issues apart from other policies. These are the three major securities that the city needs to address. In that context, horticulture plays an important role. Likewise, when we talk about environment, the role of native
plants capture attention. She elaborated, “India has 2 mega biodiversities and there are enormous genetic resources available that are untapped. Being a horticulturist, we need to identify them, create more awareness among the nurserymen and popularize them. Adding native plants not only enrich the biodiversity, it also restores the ecologies of the city as it supports other small insects and birds, thereby, taking care of the food chain. If we introduce species from other countries, the biodiversity suffers.” She added, “I’m happy that our institute is working for the past 10-15 years in this direction… but there are no takers of our research outcomes; the landscape industry never asks for any native ornamentals to be used in landscaping. However, nowadays, industry people
are coming forward to multiply the outcomes in large scale. We need to identify the species and multiply them and soon we will be at a new height.” Working in the subject of native plants for the last 10 years, Dr. Sreelatha stated, “We have identified many native endemic plants that have great potential to be used as ornamentals for the landscaping purposes. We are trying to improve some of the endemic plants like Exacum bicolor and Pogostemon quadrifolius found in hills of Kerala. We can propose the utilization of endemic native species for landscaping in public parks and botanical gardens. We can have butterfly gardens and theme parks exclusively with native plants, in a way to promote beautiful endemic flowering plants.” She added, “When we are going for domestication or multiplication of plants, particularly herbs, we face many difficulties in domestication as they don’t multiply out of their natural habitats. We have to work more with the domestication and the multiplication, if it is made to produce in the large scale, thus appealing to support researches of native plants.”
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Availability of Planting Material and Scope of Mass Production Dr. Malhotra believed planting material to be the base of success achieved for any programme that one carries forward. He explained, “We need to see the amenability of the plant species for multiplication through tissue culture. All plant species may not be amenable because we don’t have protocols for all. Another thing we need to see is the economic aspect behind a mass production technique. The activity should only be carried out through a particular technique if it is feasible, planting material
ratio is more, has a kind of value and has a protocol; otherwise find other simple conventional approaches.” “Quality is also lacking. We don’t have planting material certification standards for native species. I have already given this assignment to ICARDirectorate of Floricultural Research (DFR) in Pune and they are developing the standards. Once the standards are developed we will bring out a publication. These standards will help in deciding what should be the acceptable size, how much time is required to grow the specie to a certain stage and what kind of protocol is
needed for further meeting the requirement,” he said. He suggested, “We need to have a real time information system. This is only possible when all the industry people and nurserymen will join hands in developing the same and keep the planting material stock available for when anyone needs a kind of planting material, it is easily accessible and in such a way business could be taken forward.” “Further, government has started several programmes particularly about floriculture, it is covered in the Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture (MIDH),” he
added. “If small farmers and nurserymen want to establish nursery of 1-4 ha area, they can do it as financial support in the form of subsidies are available. In case of perennial native plant trees, they need to first create a mother garden enabling uniform planting material production.” Ms. Khan agreeing to other panelists said, “We have to identify the native species for which awareness is required. Many people ask which species are endemic according to our region. It’s hard to explain them and ask them to go and look around to know what is growing naturally. For the past few years, we are only
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growing ornamental exotic plants, and it is very difficult to get a glimpse of any native plant.” She added, “Lately we have come up with native plants. We need specific biodiversity parks and consciously start creating these areas where we will be growing only native plants.” “It is indeed very difficult to replicate and domesticate these plants but if we divide India on a whole into different endemic spots and identify the each region, it will be helpful in long run as it’s not just plants themselves, you also need pollinators. It’s a lot of things that come into play when we talk about domesticating plant.” Meanwhile, Dr. Sreelatha shared a presentation on “Landscaping with Native Plants - An approach for Conservation of Valuable
Natural Wealth”. “India accounts for 7% of world’s total flora,” enlightened Dr. Sumangala. “Only the research institutes like ICAR-IIHR, KAU and some of the institutions in North India have worked in this topic. Apart from this, the Botanical Survey of India has documented all the available variability in the country. They have extensively surveyed and because of them we have all information about the species handy. We only need to identify them region-wise.” She then shared a presentation on “Changing Trends of Landscaping”. Consecutively, Desai also presented a presentation on “Native Plants in Landscape - Opportunities for India Nurserymen”. Robert Fernandes, Associate Vice President
- Horticulture, K Raheja Corporation stated that it will be the happiest day for him when he will get to know that natives have replaced 60% of plants and shrubs occupancy in the nurseries in India. And for this, the government, research stations, and other collaborators need to come together, which will help in ecology, biophillic landscapes and restoring the environment the way it is supposed to be. He asked whether we can hybridize native plants for domestication and multiplication -- an area where the industry lacks and is there any nursery that has approx. 5000 species each of shrubs and ground covers of native plants. He stated that this is the basic requirement of the industry at present and as many airport projects will be coming up, there will be a
massive shortage of plants. Landscape architects need to understand the role of native plants. He recalled that a year ago Jadhav came to his office and he had told him to start propagating native plants in his tissue culture lab. He said, “I have noticed that the government and municipal bodies are encouraging native plants to be put into compliance purposes, creating value of natives.” Availability of Planting Material with Research Centres Dr. Sreelatha asserted on the availability of plants that plant material can be shared but it will be in hundreds only, which can be multiplied afterwards accordingly. Meanwhile, Dr. Sumangala also averred that the institute has nearly 90-100 different
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Webinar Report species belonging to different varieties, which can be readily shared to the nurseries that come forward. She requested Dr. Malhotra to give them some projects to take up on a large scale. She informed that other source of all available collection of Western Ghats is with TBGRI, Kerala. The institution has a huge collection. Apart from this, Botanical Survey of India has also sentenced across the country including northeastern India. She said, “We only need to bring all the different agencies on a common platform; make a list, then tissue culture laboratories multiply them and provide the same to the nurserymen. We require a mechanism to make strong collaboration between all the agencies and come together and make it happen.” Differing a little, Ms.
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Khan stated, “Institutes and the Botanical Survey of India might have a good collection of species but it is mostly for academic purpose. They have 5-10 samples of each species. Nurseries want thousands of plants and it’s not easy to grow the available for commercial purpose.” As we are developing in a rapid way, Fernandes stressed that with the upcoming airport projects, we will require plants in millions. He said, “This is the scope for native plants to come in the limelight but unfortunately nurserymen do not understand. It should be made compulsory by the government to have atleast 60% native plant in the nursery. And if this is enforced, we would have good ecology in every state.” Multiplication on Large Scale
“It is possible to multiply the native plants by tissue culture,” said Jadhav. He explained it takes about 1524 months from the initiation period to the young plant production and subsequent delivery of the plant to the customer. He said, “We should plan which plant is good to be multiplied. Tissue culture can produce 10,000 50,000 of plants every month to lakhs in a year. Only thing is market should be available as we tissue culturist cannot grow big size plant; we can only produce the young plant and sell them to nurserymen, which they can further grow and sell to landscapers, retailers or any projects.” He added, “Through tissue culture technology, we can easily propagate non-wood and soft-wood plants but wood plants are critical and require technical assistance. Majority of labs of India produce non-wood and softwood plants. Woody plants need attention on the media and culture standardization. However, nowadays we can multiply and define the media and total production structure of wood plants.” Bamboos, Ficus religiosa, Azadirachta indica and many more are propagated by tissue culture. He remembered that 15 years back, when he was working for an organization, he exported 15 lakhs of A. indica in a year and about 10 lakh of Ficus religiosa to Europe. People adorn exotic plants, because of which tissue culturists import them and completely divert themselves from natives to exotic plants. For instance, in winters, there is huge demand for poinsettia plants, at that time every nurseryman produce poinsettia and sells it out but for native plants, there is no
demand and no assurance of its being sold out timely. Pune is the hub of production of plants, where mainstream production is only exotic plants. Only a few nurseries have native plants available. He believed that there will be a huge demand of trees in coming years in India. Horticulturists and landscape architects can change the scenario by creating demand of native plants. Dr. Sumangala responded that there was no demand and awareness for native ornamentals. She said, “We started working in 2006, no landscape architect asked for native species. In 2013 also, I was struggling to tell about natives. I am also in support of having a mandatory policy to include natives in the inventory stock of nurseries.” Need of Specialized Nursery Raising the question of the need of highly specialized nurseries working on large scale specialization, multiplication and cultivation of high quality plants, Naqvi stated that India will emerge post-Covid situation with many large scale developments. Most of the masses are becoming environment conscious and the norms of social distancing may convince/ persuade people to use more greens in their life. Dr. Malhotra cleared that the government doesn’t have a proper working system for native tree species. He explicated a plan to be implemented, while appealing the industry to devise an action plan for this sector. Keeping in mind the impending demand, the industry can plan the further strategies to be put into practice. He said, “We have a
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great wealth available with us; we need to collect genetic resource. Many of our research institutes have done this, but it’s limited and we need to explore and collect all the hotspots and make it available at a common platform.” Responding to Fernandes’ query of hybridization, he said, “These native plant species are already hybrids in nature; they are heterozygous.” He stressed on the need to have a standardized propagation technique. He explained the process -- the planting material is required to be placed at the field gene bank, where the screening will be done and then selecting the best ones, through commercially planned propagation technique, the multiplication will be done. He said, “The native tree species are required to be conserved and whole site conservation should be done to meet the demand. All we need to identify is the important idiotypes, create a mother gene bank from where the planting material will be taken for further multiplication and multiply them.” Fernandes recalled what Rohit Jadhav had said about the trend in nurseries to propagate commercially viable and in demand variety. He emphasized that
at this point, the government should come in to play to protect the environment. “The Government needs to put into effect that all the landscape architects and all the planners should use native trees to a certain extent.” Another aspect he touched upon was to identify how many nurserymen are in fact involved with native plants in India. He observed, “There are a few people who are doing it. Those nurserymen need encouragement from the government.” Further he added, “There are forest departments in each state, which can take the task of propagation of trees and woody plants. The other shrubs and ground covers can be left to commercial nursery plant growers. Through this way, we can bring in more plants and scale it up to thousands, lakhs or millions.” Desai, crossly replied that forest departments are not serious and they have their own typical clingy way of working. “Even if you are ready to pay them to get the planting material, there is no affirmative reaction.” He added, “Certainly there are some nurseries that are producing native plants, but looking at the demand we need more people. I have been in association with a few tribal
groups who are collecting the seed to get the samplings done.” “The problem with plants and trees are if you need them today you need minimum 10 years to grow them to a certain height.” said Ms. Khan. “For airports, plants of 2-3 ft height are not of any use; they need to be atleast 6-7 ft. If we start today, after 10 years they will have sale value.” She added, “Forest departments have collections of plants that are 6-7 ft height but they are not native trees. They have Gulmohar Tree (Delonix regia), etc. Most of the planting is done by government body themselves, so they can employ native plants in their planting practice and can definitely make a difference.” Fernandes said that the departments have a lot of funds to do the plantings. “Each and every district or regional officer should be held responsible for maintaining and keeping the native trees propagation by any suitable method. There is technology available for them. They can easily create tree banks of native plants. Once they create, it could be a continuous process; otherwise native trees are not going to be a success.” Presenting a scope to increase the consumption of native trees, Desai
informed about the MSRDC’s project of Mumbai-Nagpur Expressway. “The project will be utilizing only native trees for the beautification of the expressway and this will generate huge demand for natives.” On being inquired about the species required by Dr. Sreelatha, he said that from Kerala, he is looking for local orchids, ferns, linea plants, 54 species of neelakurinji and many more. He showed his desire to recreate Thattekad rainforest area of Kerala. Acknowledging the project, Fernandes said, “It will definitely give a boost to the native trees.” He further suggested Miyawaki method to grow forests of native trees. Germination Technique Dr. Sreelatha informed the panelists that they are working on the standardization of techniques used for germination. She said, “Most of the trees require soaking treatment to germinate properly, some require some other method. So there is a need to work on the standardization part.” It is possible to propagate a plant by many methods, explained Jadhav, such as Embryo culture, Meristem culture, shoot-tip culture,
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protoplast fusion and many more. He said that the Meristem culture is the mostaccepted technique employed in most of the laboratories for propagation purpose. Invasive Species - A Threat Meanwhile, Fernandes spoke about the introduction of exotic foreign non-indigenous or non-native plant species that are considered as naturalized species. He said that many invasive plants are admired by people who may not be aware of their weedy nature. He said, “Invasive plant species pose a serious threat to the native biodiversity, leading to economic loss and also don’t allow local species/ wildlife to grow and to move through. Many such species of flora, have multiplied to a great extent mainly in the Western Ghats. Most species such as Eucalyptus, Wattle (Acacia), introduced from Australia, have become highly
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invasive.” He added, “In the last few years, the Forest Department has taken measures to stop the invasive species from spreading such as planting native floral species. A dedicated and scientific approach is the need of the hour. It is time that state and central governments address the situation with the view to increase the biodiversity and maintain the ecological equilibrium.” Government Assistance Dr. Malhotra stated that if any person wants to establish tissue culture lab, there is a provision for about Rs. 2.5 crore and/or 40% subsidy is available on that part. He also told about the other flagship programmes run by the government such as Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana (PKVY), Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee
Yojana (PMKSY), Rashtriya Kisan Bima Yojana (RKBY) and many more. Vishwas Jogdand, President, Maharashtra Nurserymen Association (MNA) said, “For subsidies, government has some fixed models for floriculture and vegetables cultivation. For instance, you need a certain climate, particularly hot and humid, to propagate Ficus species. They need humidity around 90% and temperature in between 300C - 360C. To develop this type of climate, we need different infrastructure which is not really required for Floriculture. And moreover, it is not also allowed by NHB, NHM or any other nodal body. This makes difficult to propagate these plants.” He requested Dr. Malhotra to ask NHB, NHM etc to be flexible. He added, “Future is actually indigenous technology; we have enough
technical capacity to develop such technologies and it is the need of the hour. Indian Greenhouse Manufactures Association (IGMA) is there to provide the technical support to NHB. Only they have to move from rigid mind to a pledged mind.” Way forward The panelist admired the launch of Green Highways, maintenance of the green cover along national and state highways, which will definitely improve the usefulness of native trees. They urged all the nurserymen to start with 5-10 species of native plants according to the agro climate. They also requested for encouragement to nurserymen by government bodies as the link between the demand and information is lacking; strong collaboration between industry and researchers is extremely vital.
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The Untapped Potential of Dry Flowers
— Dr Bharati Kashyap and Rajesh Bhalla
S
ince ancient times flowers have been used to celebrate, commemorate and decorate for occasions like wedding, birthdays and festivals. However, decorating with live flowers is not longlasting, as the fresh flowers wither and die very soon. Dry flowers have come up with the contemporary alternative to fresh flowers as these are near to natural, long lasting, eco-friendly products that are available throughout the year. Increased modernization and urbanization has also given
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impetus to this industry with increasing demand to decorate the interiors and living spaces with dried flowers. The dried flowers can also be an alternative to plastic flowers. In recent years, dried flowers and foliage have been forming a large part of floricultural product export from India and contributes about 70% to the floricultural exports. The country has exported 20703.46 MT of floriculture products to the world for the worth of Rs.507.31 crores in the year
2017-18. United States, United Kingdom, Germany, the Netherlands and United Arab Emirates were the major importing countries of Indian dry flower products during the same period. India is the fifth largest exporter of dried flowers and second largest exporter of dry foliage in the world, and the industry exports 500 varieties of flowers from India to 20 countries. India is one of the major exporters of dried flowers to the tune of 7% of world trade in dry flowers. The UK is the
largest importer of dry flowers followed by France and Japan. West Bengal accounts for around 70% of the dry flower export from India. The dried flower ornamental business is confined to about sixty private companies operating from Kolkata, Tuticorin and Mumbai close to sea ports, as the material being bulky is usually shipped through the sea routes. Ramesh Flowers; Tutikorin, Singhwi International; Kolkata, Salem Spices; Tamil Nadu, Fauna International; Tutikorin and
Dry
Sibaflor Natural Decorations; Tutikorin are the main companies involved in dry flower business. Flowers and plant material are collected from Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Assam, Bihar and West Bengal (Kolkata). The dry flower industry is expected to contribute a lot to the country’s economy in the future, in comparison to the fresh cut flowers and live plants. The dried flowers and foliage can be utilized for making a large number of value- added products like potpourries, incenses, fragrant candles, greeting cards, dry flower sticks, arrangements, bouquets, wall-pictures, floral designs, pomanders, floral wreath, paper weights, dolls, mirrors, handmade papers,
hangers, soap cases and other gift items which are in high demand at present. Owing to the availability of diversified variety of plant materials in India, the country is a leader in the world in dry flower export. Easy and wide availability of raw materials from forests and manpower for labour, intensive craft making have greatly contributed to flourishing of the dry flower industry in India. This business can be a source of income generation to the unemployed youth, women and even the handicapped persons. Indians are famous for their creativity and craftsmanship. People can grow/ collect the material and prepare the handicraft/ floral craft in their pastime. The top ten cultivated dried flower genera as
“Everlasting” are Helichrysum sp., Helipterum sp., Limonium sp., Nigella sp., Gypsophila sp., Delphinium sp., Amaranthus sp., Papaver sp., Carthamus sp. and Rosa sp. can be cultivated easily in India. Apart from these, the valleys and mountains of India harbour a large number of native plants comprising of cones, ferns and grasses which are very unique and hold a great potential to be utilized for dry flower production. Above all, the agricultural waste of crops like maize, sesamum, pearl millet, sorghum, linseed, wheat etc can be utilized for making dry flower products. ‘Dried flowers’ today is a lucrative industry, yet a little attention has been given towards it. The raw products from the wild
Flowers
such as cones are still being harvested through illegal means and sent to dry flower markets/ collection centres at very low rates from where the value added products are sent/ exported to bigger markets at very higher rates. The technology for dehydration and valueaddition of a large number of cultivated crops, native flora has already been standardized in the Department of Floriculture and Landscape Architecture, Dr YSP UHF, Nauni, Solan and a laboratory for demonstration of technology and the value-added products has been established which is acting as a role model for the students, distinguished guests and the farmers. The value -added products prepared
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Dry
Flowers longer time. Silica gel has proved to be the best absorbent for removing moisture from flower and foliages. Flowers like rose, carnation, zinnia, chinchirinchi, gomphrena, chrysanthemum, larkspur, geranium etc. are dried well in silica gel. Hot air oven drying: Flowers and foliages embedded in desiccants are kept in hot air oven at controlled temperature for appropriate time. Flowers are dried at a temperature of 40-500C for 12 to 24 hrs in a hot air oven. Standardization of drying time and temperature of some of ornamental crops has been done at NBRI, Lucknow.
from this lab are being sold from the University. Many NGO’s, SHG’s and farmers have shown interest in adopting the technology. A small cottage industry/ entrepreneurship can be started in the field of dried flowers with the minimum amount of rupees 10,000/ only. The dried flower products fetch good returns in the market and a single person can earn from rupees 200 to 1000/ day. Moreover, the dried flowers do not require very large area for cultivation. It can be started by the farmers who have limited landholdings. The dried flowers do not have the problem of storage unlike fresh flowers which are perishable commodities. Techniques of Flower Drying Drying techniques assume a great significance in determining the final quality of dry flower products. Removal of moisture while retaining the original shape, colour and texture of plant material is the goal of drying techniques. The flower drying technique involves reducing moisture content of flowers to a point at which microbial activity and the ageing effect come to a standstill and biochemical changes are minimized thereby cell structure, pigment level and flower shape are maintained and retained. Air Drying: It is the most common
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and cheapest method of drying. In this method, plant materials are tied with the help of a rope in a hanging position to a stand. It requires a warm clean dark and well ventilated area with low humidity. Grasses like Lagurus, Brija, Bromus, agricultural crops like bajra and jowar and ornamentals like statice, gomphrena can be dried by this method.
Microwave drying: It is the quickest and efficient method of drying of flowers which not only fastens the process of drying but also preserves the colour of the flowers. Microwave safe containers in which plant materials are embedded in desiccants are kept in microwave oven for 2-3 minutes; which is known as microwave time. After that the container is taken out and flowers are left in the same container for 12-24 hrs known as setting time the principle is based on liberation of moisture by agitating water molecules present in organic substances with the help of electronically produced heat. Rose, ornithogallum, chrysanthemum and gomphrena are dried by this method.
Press Drying: The flower and foliage are placed between the folds of blotting sheets by giving some space among flowers. These sheets are kept one above the other and card boards of same size are placed in between the folded sheets so as to allow the water vapour to escape. The press dried material is suitable for making greeting cards, file covers, portraits and sceneries etc. Ferns, leaves, flowers with soft petals like calendula, pansy, acroclinum etc. are through press drying.
Glycerine drying: Some foliage can be preserved using glycerine, which is available at drug stores. Glycerin not only preserves the green colour, but the foliage retain its soft, pliable feel that can be painted or used naturally in arrangements. Foliage preserved with glycerine can be wiped or cleaned and will last indefinitely. Leaves of Buxus, Polystichum, Podocarpus, and Thuja etc can be preserved by this method.
Embedded Drying: It is the most efficient method of drying plant materials in which different desiccants like silica gel, borax, river bed sand, alum powder and saw dust can be used. The desiccant should normally have the ideal size of 0.02-0.2 mm. It should be heavy enough to keep the plant material in its original shape, neither sticky nor costly. Sometimes borax bleaches flower petals if embedded for a
Freeze drying: Freeze drying is a process that causes vaporization of water directly from solid state to vapour state. By removing water, the flower dry up with a life freshness and retains better integrity and more durability. Thus rapid dehydration at low temperature results in better-coloured products which also retains fragrance. Flowers of carnation, antirrhinum and roses are dried by this method.
Dry
Flowers
Skeletonization: As the name suggest, this treatment eliminates all tissues but the ‘Skeleton’ or veins of the leaves. Skeletonized leaves lend an interesting, lacy appearance to dried arrangements and craft works. Heavy textured leaves like Ficus religiosa, Magnolia grandiflora, Tectonia grandis, Mangifera indica, Quercus spp Cocculus laurifolius and Artabotrys hexapetalus are the best choices for this purpose. NaOH is used for skeletonizing the leaves after boiling and then rubbed against the brush to remove the green pulp from the leaves. Soaking the selected leaves for 12-24 hours prior to treatment is beneficial. Different Value Added Products from dried flowers 1) Pot pourries: Pot pourri is a sweet smelling dried floral arrangement which is a mixture of dried flowers, petals, fruit, pod, leaves, spices, seeds, root and distilled essential oil which are filled in pillows or transparent sachets. It consists of an attractive mixture of dried plant materials of different shapes, size, texture and colour which makes it as a decorative item as well. The important dried ornamental plants used for making pot-pourries are roses, lilacs, lavender, pinks, hyacinths, lilies, violets, wall flowers, marigold, salvia, helichrysum, gomphrena, craspedia (bora flowers), acroclinum, rosemary and geranium etc. We can use also use fruits of koelreuteria, jacaranda, nicandra, cotton, walnut, casuarina, birch, almond, rose, acer, luffa, lotus, arjun, michelia, coix, wood roses and maize cob & citrus slices in making pot-pourries. 2) Dry flower sticks: Beautiful dry flower sticks can be made from dried flowers of helichrysum, statice, acroclinum, craspedia, lagurus, briza, bromus, gomphrena, fruits of tithonia, bixa, lagerstroemia, jacaranda, moti dana (Coix lacyrma) bell cups, lotus, acacia, luffa, michelia, badam, pine cones and sponge mushroom. Elegant sticks can also be prepared by shola sheath (Aeschynomene aspera), maize sheath, coconut husk, cyperus, bamboo (bamboo flowers, bamboo sheath flowers, bamboo leaf triple, bamboo
mat, curly coils and ting tings etc) and palms (palm spears, coco five fingers, dried palm leaves, palm lavender, palm leaf weaving, palm male chakra etc). Some of the natural materials from nature’s trove with long sturdy stems can directly be used as dry flower sticks such as millet, pearl millet, statice, wild tobacco, flax, hydrangea, leek, typha, sesamum etc.
5) Greeting cards: Dried foliage and flowers pressed in one dimension are used to prepare greeting cards to present to friends and relatives on some social occasions. To prepare a dry flower card skeletonized leaves, pressed flowers and leaves, small thin sticks and twigs, grasses, fern and paper etc. are required.
3) Pomander: Pomander is derived from a French word, ‘Pomme d ambre’ meaning an apple of amber, a ball made of perfume. In general, we make a ball from floral foam which can be covered with gomphrena, tithonia, acroclinum, helichrysum, rose hips, nicandra berries, samara of acer etc. Usually pomander is carried in a vase and may be hung down from the neck through chain or belt. Though, pomander is a decoration product but can be used to modify bad smells. We can make it perforated and add perfume sachets in it.
6) Flower arrangement: These are used to decorate tables, shelves, corners of offices and home. To make a flower arrangement we need a vase/ bamboo basket, floral foam, dried flowers, leaves, grasses, cones, fern, twigs and pods. Helichrysum, acroclinum, gomphrena, molucella, rose, statice, chrysanthemum, achillea, ornithogalum, cocks comb, flax, hydrangea, anaphalis (buke flowers), celosia, lagerstroemia, millets, rice panicles, celastrus and abrus fruit and grasses like lagurus, briza, bromus, setaria, saccharum and leaves of cycas, peepal, magnolia,fern and oaks etc.
4) Collages: Collage is derived from French word, ‘Coller’ and literally means glue. It is an artistic floral handiwork containing pieces of coloured papers, texts, photographs, natural objects, in addition to dried flowers, leaves, roots, bark, etc. It is a typical art of novelty.
7) Flower bouquets: A flower bouquet is a collection of flowers in a creative arrangement and is normally used to decorate homes and present to greet the dignitaries. Dry flowers and grasses can be used naturally or can be dyed with various colours. Statice, hydrangea, ornithogalum, gypsophila,
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Flowers
roses, helichrysum, anaphalis, pearl millet and grasses like lagurus, bromus, briza can be used to make a good flower bouquet.
Sometimes value added products made from dry flower get faded with time and spoiled or damaged by dust particles. Therefore to protect them we have to keep them in transparent plastic and glass containers.
8) Wall pictures: To make wall pictures we need dry flowers, fern, leaves, grass and small thin twigs. We can also frame the wall picture to maintain their beauty. 9) Dry flower wreath: It is an assortment of flowers, foliage, twigs, grasses, fruits, cones and various other construction materials which resemble to a ring. Dry flower wreath is used to decorate doors, empty walls and for Christmas celebrations. However, fresh flower wreath is used only for paying homage to the departed soul. 10) Dry flower ornaments: Different ornaments like bangles, ear rings, garlands and pendants can be prepared from dry flowers. Flower bearing crops like helichrysum, gomphrena, Abrus precatorius, Coix lacyrma and rose hips can be used for this purpose. Permanent type of ornaments can be prepared by putting epoxy glue resin. Apart from these; products like wall hangers, dolls, bird’s rakhi, mirrors, pen stands, paper weights, soap cases, phone covers, coasters, garlands and bandhanvaar can also be prepared from dry flowers. Dyeing and painting of dry flower products To make dry flower and their products
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Dissemmination of Technology: The technology developed on dry flowers and value addition is also disseminated to the farmers and extension workers through various training programmes from time to time. The trainings are organized by the Department of Floriculture and Landscape Architecture in collaboration with the Directorate of Extension Education. more beautiful and versatile, sometimes we have to dye them with different colours. Different types of dyes like fabric dyes, indicator dyes, food dyes and biocolours can be used to dye the flowers and grasses. Among, these fabric dyes have been found good and cheap. Apart from these indicator dyes like Rhodamine, Crystal Violet, and Brilliant Green also give appreciable results. Dry flowers and ornamental grasses are dipped in boiled water container containing a mixture of dye and salt. After this, these are kept for drying in a room. Food colours are also good for temporary displays but in the long run they get faded away. There is a strong need to work on colours obtained from the natural flowers and plant parts. Dry flowers, cones, leaves and flower sticks can also be painted. Nowadays various water soluble metallic paints and lacquers are available in the market.
Further Needs: There is a tremendous scope in the field of Dry flowers for India. It is mainly due to the availability of a vast variety of untapped raw material in every region of India and the craftsmanship of Indians. APEDA, GoI has also identified dry flowers as a potential item for export. The scope can further be extended by searching more markets which prefer handmade articles. The value added products can be sold in the major tourist destinations as novelty items. n Authors: Dr Bharati Kashyap* and Rajesh Bhalla**, *Associate Professor, Department of Floriculture and Landscape Architecture, ** Professor and Head, Department of Floriculture and Landscape Architecture, Dr YS Parmar University of Horticulture ad Forestry, Nauni, Solan, HP.
Training
One Day Training Programme on Dry Flower Crafts — Dr. P. Neelima, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Horticulture, Agricultural College, Aswaraopet, PJTSAU, Telangana, India
Inauguration of “Dry flower Crafting” Training programme
F
lowers are an integral part of the man’s life since dawn and unveil a prominent role in each and every occasion. Unfortunately, the nature’s beautiful gift tragically ends its life with in few days due to its high perishable nature. In this regard a technique so called “drying technology” came in to picture to extend the charm and beauty of flowers and ornamental plant parts for everlasting period. Drying and preserving ornamental plant materials is a form of artistic expression that was very popular during the Victorian age and has
once again gained popularity. Dried flower products on the other hand are long lasting and retain their aesthetic value irrespective of the season. Drying of flowers and other ornamental valued plant parts by various methods like air drying, sun drying, oven and microwave oven drying, freeze drying and embedded drying can be used for making decorative floral crafts items like cards, floral segments, wall hangings, landscapes, calendars, potpourris etc. for various purposes with potpourris being the major segment of drying flower industry in India. With
Hands on Training On “Dry flower Crafting”
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Trainees preparing flower crafts
the view of disseminating knowledge about drying techniques and to provide an employment opportunity ideas and entrepreneurial skills, this training programme was organized. Training programme was held on 20.02.2020 at agricultural college, Aswaraopet as a part of SC sub plan project. In this training, ladies, UG and PG college girls (VKDVS Degree College and AWARE polytechnic college) were invited from Adopted Village of Aswaraopet Agricultural College. Programme was started by Associate Dean, Dr. C. Narendra Reddy by highlighting about the importance of value addition and the employment opportunities creating by floriculture industry. Dr. V. Venkanna and Dr. K. Gopala Krishna Murthy spoke high to the trainees regarding the Self employment and Entrepreneurial opportunities available in Floriculture
sector. The programme was organized by Dr. P. Neelima and Dr. I. V. Srinivasa Reddy of Dept of Horticulture. In this programme various lectures were delivered, Economic importance, Status and Scope of Dry flower industry, Methods of Flower preservation and Entrepreneurial avenues of Dry flower industry was delivered by Dr. K. Sireesha and in the afternoon session Hands on training’ was conducted. In this trainees prepared various dry flower products viz., greeting cards, frames, wreaths, hair dress, floral bangles, potpourris etc.
Various crafts (Potpourri, Wall hanging, Frames, Wreath) prepared by Trainees
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Arboriculture
Tree Surgery Greenery in our living environment benefits more than just our health and well-being. It also facilitates water management and promotes biodiversity in built-up areas, and can help reduce the effects of noise pollution. — S. Chellaiah, Director (Horticulture) New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC)
J
hon Davey is the father of Tree surgery and first one to develop the science of arboriculture during 1800s. In India K. C. Sharma Founder Director, eminent Landscapist, passionate personality started the same during late 80s. New Delhi Municipal Council area is maintaining the greenery where all the country’s most important and highest institution are present i.e. seat of the central Government and Capital of Country. It was formed as the new capital while shifting the capital from Calcutta during 1911 by the British. Herbert Baker and Edward Lutyens were two eminent architects who designed. Lutyens Delhi was planned on the most spacious garden city lines with great avenues decorated with classical buildings with lush landscape-
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Lutyens Delhi (LBZ-Lutyens Bungalow Zone). NDMC area is very remarkable for the generous green spaces, lawns, watercourses, flower and fruit-bearing trees and their integration with the parks developed around monuments. It seems the attempt was to integrate natural and historical wonders in the city. New Delhi Municipal council area has heritage and indigenous trees avenues, which are planned during capital formation. It is amazing and surprising to see how the plan was prepared a
century ago to accommodate everything. The wider spacious green avenues with high green canopy giving shade, colour, and vibrant environment are recollecting memorries of all visitors. Trees are the backbone of NDMC; it has about more than 49% green canopy. The beautiful well maintained roundabouts, Parks, and segment and open vista are matter of pride. The trees lined with single species of indigenous. Akbar road and Tilak Road, Teen Murti Marg, Pt Pant Marg with Imli trees (Tamarindus indica), Janpath, R. K. Ashram Old, Park
The most benefits of tree surgery are, its prevents further fungal or termite or other insects attack and infestation, protects the trees from wind by giving the strength, facilitates new shoot, or root growth in the hollow portion, and adding life and strength to trees.
Street, Mahadev Road with Arjun Trees, Mother Teresa Road and Mandir Marg, Panchsheel Marg, Bhaiveer Singh Marg, Bhagat Singh Road and Sardar Patel Marg with Peepal Trees, Ashoka Rd, Raisina Road, Tughlak Road, Feroz shah Road, Man Singh Road, Motilal Nehru Marg, Dr Maulana Azad Rd, B. K. S. Marg, around Connaught Place and Rajpath central Vista, Rajaji Marg, Thiyagaraj Marg and Red Cross Road, Rafi Marg, Suneheri Bagh Road are with Jamun Trees, Shahjahan Road, KG Marg, Privithiraj Road, Safdarjung Road, A.P.J Abdul Kalam Road (Aurangzeb Road), Talkatora Road, Gurudwara Bangla Sahib Road, Shershah Suri Road, Jai Singh Road, Janter Manter Road and Tees January Road, Kamal Attaurk Marg and Lodi Road are with
Arboriculture
Neem (Azadiracta indica) and Pilkhan in Church Road, Dr Zakir Hussain Road, Niti Marg, Dalhosie Road (Dara Sheiko Singh Road) and Satya Marg etc. In NDMC area about more than 2 lakh trees are in public avenues, parks and colony etc. The health of trees is very strong and sound in general. However, due to certain factor, ageing, termite, fungal, physical injury etc damages the health of trees by making hollow, scar, mark etc. In general certain trees are under huge pressure of concretization, road cutting, trenchless work for allowing public utility cables etc keep on damaging and losing heritage trees. Due to concretization the plant roots starts for water hence strength of taproot shifts to survival roots of shallow depth like secondary and tertiary and it become witness of fall in due course of time if its meeting strong wind or storm. The main reason for that is loss of root strength and imbalance between canopy and root area proportion. In certain case, the termite attack making cancer and slow killing of trees from the invisible subsoil and intrude into cambium and xylem making hollow that may look
like healthy trees but invisible danger may fall at any point of time. The main reason is around NCR , its part of aravalli and Raisina Hills, the soil is sandy and semi arid and prevalence of termite is plenty, most of the trees are affected unless otherwise with termite control soil treatment, drenching around the tree basin and keeping soil moisture regularly taken care of. In certain cases trees are severely affected by Fungus like Ganoderma. Its grow in the colour region of trees basin and intrude systemically and it feeds entire tree and lefts it to dry and dead saprophytic nature. Unless otherwise noticed and taking timely control measures may likely to present trees These above three factors are predominantly affecting the trees. Hence NDMC has started Tree surgery since 2010 onwards in a new vigour with team of Plant Protection Wing along with Tree Ambulance regularly to treat such a trees coming to notice through visit or public complaint etc. This was inaugurated by Late Smt. Shiela Dixit, Honble CM of Delhi then. Since 2010 Horticulture Department has covered more than 2000 trees under tree
surgery treatment. Mostly hollow in trunks is observed. Treated trees are Neem, Imli, Mulberry, Kigelia, Cassia sp, Bakain, Jamun and arjun. Among all mostly in highest number was Imli, Neem and Kigelia, Cassia etc. The most benefits of tree surgery are, its prevents further fungal or termite or other insects attack and infestation. It protecs the trees from wind by giving the strength. It facilitates new shoot, or root growth in the hollow portion and add life and strength to trees. The execution of Tree surgery is just like human vascular system; nervous, vessels, affected unwanted dead cells are removed with the help of Chain saw machine and washing of internal portion and treating with mixture of spray solution of systemic fungicide and pesticide to absorb into system. After may be a day or two later all the hollow should be plugged with Styrofoam or thermocol pieces adequately with no space by leaving 2 inch-2 inch plastering depth. On the above chicken wire mesh is wrapped to keep foam intact inside, on the mesh, plaster has to be done in the 70:30 mixture of POP and cement. This mixture helps to reinforce all and cover
all; once completed this will give end-to-end finishing and dry quickly. We might have certain doubt how it could grow if cell expands during growth and development; it’s obvious this allow further new growth and foam inside is very flexible that bear all pressure while moving the growth horizontally and vertically. While growing outwards it will push plaster gradually to out and join outer most come to closer to attach (periphery ring). Recently, department has carried tree surgery at Golf Link area where Mulberry trees more than 25 years old got hollowness due to biotic or abiotic factors. Two year back, we carried tree surgery. New growth plaster protruded out and now while observing new shoot, root growth was found. It expelled little plaster hence all were removed and new treatment was done and tree surgery was carried with standard protocol what we established. All the credit goes to our team, and authority they are very much keen on preserving trees. n Author: S. Chellaiah Director (Hort.) serving in New Delhi Municipal Council since 2004
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Maintenance
Hot Composting ‘How-To’ Guide — Colleen Vanderlinden
T
he term “hot composting” refers to a method in which microbial activity within the compost pile is optimized, resulting in finished compost in a much shorter period of time. It requires some special equipment, as well as time and diligence. But if you are determined to have compost ready in time to start a new garden bed or for top-dressing, hot composting may be worth trying. Hot Composting Basics The size of your compost bin or pile is very important when it comes to hot composting. Too small and the pile won’t heat up sufficiently. A good size for a pile or bin for hot composting is at least four feet wide by four feet high. In general, bigger is better, but four feet by four feet is a manageable size for most gardeners. The pile should be placed in full sun, if possible––shade will cool the pile down a bit and slow the process. You can just heap the materials up, or use a simple wire fence bin. Of course, if you’re construction-minded, you can also build a nice, large hot compost bin out of wood or shipping pallets. Items that can be Hot Composted It’s best to have all of your materials on hand when you build the hot compost pile. Usually, we add organic matter to the pile as we accumulate it, but with hot composting, the whole point is to get the pile to heat up. For this, we need
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a large amount of organic matter, with the right carbon to nitrogen ratio, right from the start. The carbon to nitrogen ratio is essential in getting the microbial activity going in high gear and heating up the pile. Ideally, your pile should be 25 parts carbon to one part nitrogen. Here are some suggestions for carbon-rich and nitrogen-rich compost ingredients: Carbon-Rich Ingredients v Straw v Dry corn stalks v Shredded paper v Small twigs v Dry fall leaves Nitrogen-Rich Ingredients v Grass clippings v Fruit and vegetable scraps v Weeds that haven’t gone to seed v Deadheads/trimmings from garden plants v Coffee grounds and tea bags v Farm animal manures, rabbit manure
No matter what you use, it is essential to chop it finely so it breaks down as quickly as possible. Often, the easiest way to do this is to run a lawnmower over the ingredients a few times. If possible, add a few shovelfuls of finished compost as an “activator.” (Commercial activators are unnecessary. Compost happens.) Mix the ingredients together, water it so the ingredients are evenly moist, and let it sit. Layering is not necessary and often makes the process take longer. Maintaining a Hot Compost Pile The two keys to success with hot composting are monitoring soil temperature and moisture and turning regularly. The optimal temperature for microbial activity is 130 to 140 degrees. You can measure this with a soil/compost thermometer, or by simply sticking your hand into the pile. If it’s uncomfortably hot, it’s at the right temperature. At
130 to 140 degrees, microbes are breaking down organic matter and reproducing at high rates. This temperature is also hot enough to kill most weed seeds and harmful bacteria in the pile. Monitor the temperature regularly, preferably daily. Once the pile starts to cool down below 130 degrees, it’s time to turn the pile. Turning the pile aerates it, which will kickstart microbial activity again. Moisture is also essential. The contents of your compost pile should feel like a sponge that has been wrung out well. Too dry, and microbial activity will be diminished. Too wet, and the microbes that thrive in anaerobic conditions will take over—this often results in bad odours in the pile and an almost complete stoppage of decomposition. If you find that your pile is too dry, give it a watering with the hose, even digging down a bit into the pile to ensure that you’re moistening it all the way through. If it’s too wet, turn it, adding shredded newspaper or another high-carbon material as you do so to help soak up excess moisture. Cover with a tarp if rain is keeping the pile waterlogged. Finished Compost After three weeks or so of this routine (depending on the air temperature and other environmental conditions, such as precipitation), you will have beautiful, dark brown, crumbly compost to add to your gardens or lawn. n Source: the spruce
Floral
Beauty
The Beautiful Story Behind
a Rose That Blooms at Disneyland IN DISNEYLAND RESORT
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hen we think about celebrating Mother’s Day, we can’t forget to praise Mother Nature too. She brings life to so many thoughts and emotions like hope. As Lady Bird Johnson said, “Where flowers bloom, so does hope.” And the word hope has such a connection to Disney. It started with Walt Disney and all the hope he gave us through Mickey Mouse and the opening of Disneyland park. Disneyland Horticulture Since the opening of Disneyland park in 1955, the horticulture team has done an impeccable job at the landscaping, planting, and gardening of all the plants throughout the park. It’s known that Walt Disney had a love for Tivoli Gardens in Copenhagen, Denmark. For that reason, the entrance of Disneyland is always very inviting with a flower garden that showcases a floral Mickey. In fact, each of the six Disney Resorts around the world have one at their entrance. When you take a magic tour around Disneyland, you’ll see these beautiful topiaries, trees, and edible plants. Though, it’s still takes many hands on deck to ensure that each tree, plant, and flower remains beautiful, most of the horticulture aren’t fussy plants. This idea that started
at Disneyland has made it through to each and every Disney Park, but very notably EPCOT in Orlando, Florida. Each year, EPCOT hosts the International Flower and Garden Festival. Disneyland Rose This story is about a particular flower at Disneyland, a rose. It’s not just any rose though, it’s the Disneyland Rose. Disney recently shared with Inside the Magic the story of this rose and why it is the perfect floral representation of Disneyland. This bloom embodies Disney magic and hope. Lisa Greathouse wrote, “Back in 2001, the Disneyland Resort Horticulture team began its search for a rose
unique enough to bear the Disneyland name. The team worked with Jackson and Perkins, a leading rose grower and supplier, visiting rose fields to look at hundreds of shrubs until they found the disease-resistant floribunda rose with huge clusters of flowers. Since 2002, the rose has graced the entrance to Disneyland Park near the Main Gate turnstiles, as well as several other areas in the park.” Judy Stewart-Jones Judy Stewart-Jones is the Senior Manager of Digital Product Operations, which means she and her team are in charge of Disneyland’s website and app. Shortly after she started working at
Disneyland, Stewart-Jones planted a Disneyland rose in her backyard. Stewart-Jones loves to garden and draws inspiration from the flower beds at Disneyland to care for a whole nursery of growing roses along with edible plants. Gardening a flower bed of her own has given her a lot of learning experiences through trial and error. What does she say is a constant reminder for her though? When Lisa Greathouse asked Judy Stewart-Jones, she said that when the backdoor is open, the sight and fragrance of the Disneyland Rose is a constant reminder of the place she loves. “It stands up against the elements and garden pests and problems,” she said. “What better symbol to keep me excited about getting us all back and welcoming our Guests?” What a beautiful story of how not only a place could touch someone’s life as such, but also just a simple reminder of that place. Disneyland means something different to everyone, but it’s always a reminder that Disneyland will forever be an escape for us, and that “there’s a great big beautiful tomorrow.” The next time you’re at Disneyland, don’t forget to stop and smell the roses — the Disneyland Rose grows all year long. n Source: insidethemagic.net
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Floral
Beauty
Blue Daze named Texas Superstar
A
time-tested Lone Star favourite – Blue Daze – has been added to the list of Texas Superstar plants. Brent Pemberton, Ph.D., Texas A&M AgriLife Research ornamental horticulturist, Overton, said Blue Daze has been a long-time ornamental favourite of gardeners and landscapers and deserves the designation. To be designated a Texas Superstar, a plant must be beautiful and perform well for growers throughout the state. Texas Superstars must also be easy to propagate, ensuring the plants are widely available and reasonably priced. Blue Daze is a heat- and sun-loving, low-spreading tropical plant used as a summer annual, Pemberton said. The variety provides gardeners and homeowners summer-long flowers of a beautiful sky-blue hue. “It’s a true-blue flower and a long-established Texas
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gardening staple,” he said. “Blue Daze is very popular because its claim-to-fame blue colour is a coveted colour in the flower world.” Get to know Blue Daze Blue Daze is sometimes referred to by the common names evolvulus or shaggy dwarf morning-glory, or as Hawaiian Blue Eyes. Blue Daze thrives in garden hotspots that threaten less-hardy plants, Pemberton said. It grows and blooms best in full sun, Pemberton said, and produces fewer flowers in areas that are too shady. Blue Daze tolerates salty conditions, which make it a good option for coastal gardens. The plants’ grey-green foliage serves as a backdrop for small but plentiful brilliant blue funnel-shaped flowers. Some cultivars may have foliage that appears downy. Pemberton said newer varieties have been introduced
over the last several years. The improved varieties, such as Beach Bum Blue, display bigger and more numerous flowers because they have a bushier shape. “Blue Daze performs really well in Texas summers, and the newer varieties just improve on the great characteristics that make it a favourite for gardens and landscapes,” he said. Plants grow 9-18 inches tall and spread up to 36 inches wide. They are generally grown as an annual in areas that experience frosts but act as tender subtropical perennials in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 9-13. They can be used as border plants, ground cover, or a spiller in hanging baskets or mixed containers, Pemberton said. Caring for Blue Daze Blue Daze tolerates a wide range of soils, including sandy
soils and soils with poor nutrient levels, Pemberton said. However, the soil must be well-drained, as plants that are too wet can quickly contract fungal diseases that will severely shorten their life span. Regular moisture and a balanced fertilizer will help get the plants established, he said. “If they’re going in the ground, it’s best to plant them as soon as possible so their roots are well established by summer,” he said. “It helps their drought tolerance.” Mulching and a monthly fertilizer program throughout the growing season will help keep the plants blooming, especially in poor soils. “They’re prolific bloomers on a good fertilizing regimen,” he said. “Fertilizing helps produce bigger, better and more numerous flowers.” Pemberton said Blue Daze and other improved varieties should be broadly available at local nurseries, garden centers and retail stores. Retailers tend to sell the plants in 4.5inch or quart-size containers in spring and summer, and in 10-inch hanging baskets later in the season. “The combination of it being a prolific performer and its blue colour are attributes that put Blue Daze over the top for a lot of gardeners and landscapers,” he said. Texas Superstar is a registered trademark owned by AgriLife Research, a state agency that is part of the Texas A&M University System. Plants are designated Texas Superstars by the Texas Superstar executive board, which is made up of nine horticulturalists from AgriLife Research, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service and Texas Tech University. Source: AgrilLife Today (Adam Russell)
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Obituary
Tribute to Mona Pingle
Amjad Ali (25.04.1965 - 26.06.2020) OBITUARY “Pushpan Florist”, located in the heart of city at Deccan Gymkhana, J. M. Road, was run by Mona Pingle’s father in law Sadashiv Pingle. Most of the Pune’s retail florist are trained here free of cost including Pandharinath Mhaske, Secretory, Pune Florist’s Association, while he was a student and used to deliver bouquets for pocket money, for Pushpan Florist. Mona Suresh Pingle (age 78), Ikebana flower arrangement expert, teacher and Director of Monalisa art gallery, recently passed away. She is survived by her husband Suresh Pingle, Honorary Secretary of Agri Horticulture Society and Empress Garden, son Yayati and daughter Lisa. Mona Pingle had a master degree of Ikebana flower arrangement from O’Hara school, Japan. She was also a founder member of “Pushkarini”, a club of old flower arrangers in Pune. She served as the President of Pushkarini. Indutai Tilak and Mona Pingle trained many students in Japanese flower arrangement. Pingle exhibited Ikebana flower arrangements at various places across the country. Her floral displays are identified as the “attraction of flower show” that held in Empress Garden every year. On the occasion of International Women’s day, she was honoured with the “Punyadham Award” recently. Pune’s first Ikebana master Mona Pingle died on 28th June 2020. Mona Pingle was very charming and friendly and she spent a lot of time helping and guiding to the students. She was a role model and inspiration to a lot of women, florists and flower enthusiasts all over India. She will be greatly missed by everybody in Pune’s Floral World. She will be always remembered by her lecture on History of Japanese Flower arrangement in Pune’s very prestigious “Vasant Vyakhyanmala”. On behalf of Pune Florist’s Association, Pandharinath Mhaske, Secretory pays her tribute.
In the loving memory of one of the first mentors and colleagues in the Floriculture Industry, Amjad Ali, Proprietor, Navrang Flowers who left us on 26.06.2020 at the age of 55. Earnest condolences to the families grieving the immeasurable loss they suffered. In such moments words would be superfluous… We knew, appreciated and admired! They will remain forever in our memory! We pray to the Good Lord to caress the soul of him left desolated after the tragic disappearance. Sincere condolences!
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Floriculture Today 43
News
Dr. T. Janakiram Assumes Charge of Vice Chancellor at Dr. YSR Horticultural University
D
r. Tolety Janakiram, been serving as Assistant Director General (Hort. Sci), ICAR has been elected as the new Vice Chancellor at Dr. YSR Horticultural University, Venkatramannagudem, Andhra Pradesh. He had completed B.Sc. (Ag) from APAU and M.Sc. & Ph.D. in Horticulture from Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi. He has exceptionally contributed to Horticulture Research and Development throughout his career spanning 30 years. He started his career as a scientist at the IIHR, Bangalore in 1989 and served as the Head, Division of Floriculture and Landscaping at IARI, New Delhi during 2009-2014. As an accomplished plant breeder at IIHR, Bangalore, Dr. Janakiram was responsible for the development and release of 6 China aster, 10 Chrysanthemum, 10 Gladiolus varieties and 4 hybrids of Tuberose and 5 gladiolus varieties and 5 chrysanthemum varieties at IARI, New Delhi. Other titles He has served as nodal officer DUS testing in ornamental crops at IIHR, Bangalore. He is responsible for the
establishment of exclusive laboratory on Value Addition of Ornamentals at IARI. He is closely associated with the activities of Rose Society of India, Delhi Agri Horticulture Society and Indian Society of Ornamental Horticulture. He is the Registrar of International Registration Authority of Bougainvillea, IARI. He is Vice President of Indian Society of Ornamental Horticulture, Rose Society of India, New Delhi. He is the Chief Editor of Journal of Ornamental Horticulture and member of several professional societies. He is one of the members of Institute Management Committee in many ICAR institutes/directorates. Achievements
He had his advanced training in floriculture in Germany and Israel. Dr. Janakiram is recipient of many awards and fellowships including PNASF Gold medal Award, 2008, HSI Gold Medal 2009, ISOH Lotus Puraskar, 2010, Dr. B. H. Jain Award for excellence, 2013, Distinguished Scientist Award 2012 HiTech Horticultural Society, Best Scientist award 2013 by Young Farmer Association, Punjab and Life Time Achievement award2014 by Hi-Tech Horticultural Society . He is also ISOH Fellow, Indian Society of Ornamental Horticulture, New Delhi. ISHR&D Fellow, Indian Society of Horticultural Research and Development, Uttarakhand, CHAI Fellow. He has widely travelled in India and has visited Germany, The Netherlands, China, Turkey, Israel, Malaysia, Nepal, Bangladesh and Pakistan for advanced training/presentation of research findings. As the Head of the Division of Floriculture and Landscaping, IARI, he has provided dynamic leadership in teaching, research and extension. He has authored 12 books, 15 bulletins and published 70 research papers in national and international journals.
New market for Hydrangea opened in Russia
T
he events market is a market of the future in Russia. For this reason, the sector of events and event agencies has been deliberately providing Sobolj with information about the use of flowers in the decoration of locations for several years now. Sobolj has gone one step further for Hydrangea World. Event organizers generally find difficult to reach: Sobolj organized an exclusive presentation for them on the use of Hydrangea in the decoration of locations for various events. Decisionmakers and executives from leading companies in this sector were invited by Sobolj to the beautiful Marinyo Estate
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near St. Petersburg for inspiration. The following days photojournalists from lifestyle magazines were received and consumers were given the opportunity to come and have a look. For example, ‘feedback’ was organized directly for the benefit of the event agencies. The fact that Hydrangea as a flower is aptly very suitable for decoration in larger spaces was shown on the estate with flower arrangements by young and leading florists. Classic spaces were decorated with Hydrangea at this location, but Hydrangea is also ideally suited for applications in larger, modern locations. With this
presentation, Sobolj has shown to event agencies, and also explained personally, how an event with Hydrangea can be given an extra accent. Source: Bloemenkrant.nl
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News
Flowers at Esplanade at TMC 21/7 gathering
T
rinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee has made amends to the Martyrs’ Day programme on July 21 while adapting to the new normal. The human crowd will be missing from Esplanade this year, not the flowers, in memory of the 13 people killed in police firing more than two decades ago in 1993. Banerjee will speak from somewhere else that she will announce shortly. The CM, at core committee meeting, decentralized the gathering plan and asked workers and supporters to assemble at booths at a particular time and offer tributes to the martyrs.
Banerjee had earlier said at Nabanna she is ready to sacrifice the July 21 gathering like people have sacrificed Rath Yatra or Shraboni Mela. The TMC chief has asked organisers
to reach out to people with an eye on the 2021 assembly polls. She has planned a series of stirs across the state against a host of issues — spiralling of petrol and diesel prices, opening up of coal sector and throwing open select railway services to private hands — from July 7 to July 13. According to Trinamool insiders, the programmes will help them renew contact with people and will help to regain grounds.
Learn about the flowers in Bengaluru by scanning this postcard
F
lippAR Go, the Bengaluru-based startup that has designed Augmented Reality (AR) postcards of city landmarks from KR Market to Koshy’s, has released a new set. Called the Lockdown Series, the AR postcards feature 12 flowers found around Bengaluru, from the ubiquitous Bougainvillea to Gomphrena Globosa, also known as globe amaranth and bachelor’s button. The postcards have been created in collaboration with Namitha BR, a designer with a background in architecture and production design.
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Says FlippAR Go founder Vivek Mahaveer Jain, “We decided to make interactive postcards using the actual photos that Namitha had taken during and post the lockdown. Once scanned (with the FlippAR Go app), you can get details of the flower such as its origin, how it gets its name, and the season during which it flowers. This is a fantastic way for people, especially youngsters to become aware of different varieties of flowers.” Referring to the recent news that the Karnataka Biodiversity Board and the BBMP will be creating a database of the flora and fauna of the city, Vivek says,
“This series sort of fits into that.” He adds, “The next series we want to do is on the trees of Bangalore. There is just an unbelievable amount of beauty with the trees and a lot of interesting things we want to bring out.”
News
Iblur lake bedecked with flowers: Volunteer efforts pay off
I
f you go to Iblur lake today, you will notice phenomenal changes from a year ago. Those teeny-weeny plants that hundreds of volunteers planted since last year now make up a lush green wall around the lake bund. Young, tall teak trees look out majestically even as flowery shrubs show off their splendour. This year has so far been good for the lake. The lockdown meant that it got a breather from pollution, and the absence of people gave unbridled space and time for flora and fauna to make this lake their home. Gardeners, but for a brief one-month lull, worked hard to ensure that the rugged beauty of the lake and its environs are enhanced. In early June, we had a large effort to rid the lake of weeds, and as a result the water looks clean now. Even during the early summer months of March and April, the lake was never dry, thanks to off-seasonal rains. And now, the tunnel boring work across Outer Ring Road (ORR) is generating a steady stream of water which is being let into the lake. The lake’s island looks healthy, though a minor shave to the Singapore Cherry trees there would help the Ficus trees grow rapidly. About seven months ago, a pair of ducks and coots had made the lake their home. Now there is a colony of 30 of them. Add egrets, herons, and some cormorants, and we have a fabulous ecosystem growing. We will soon be working on creating a urban (Miyawaki) forest adjacent to Iblur lake, near DNR Suncity apartment. Around this time next year, we hope to have a long strip of dense jungle right in the midst of this concrete jungle called Bellandur. STP work at the lake has recommenced, and most likely, starting August, it will become one more source of water for the lake. Ahead of that, we hope to make the newly-constructed toilets functional. STP works had destroyed some plumbing lines which we will soon fix. The gardener shed is ready and operational. Homeguards on duty are keeping the park safe, ensuring that visitors comply with COVID-19 rules on
physical distancing and masks. Of course, there are occasional less-than-pleasant conversations that these homeguards have to have with lake users on this issue. We hope to be respectful of government strictures and understand that these homeguards have been asked to ensure compliance.
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News
Flower blooms at Stan State in rare event
A
once-in-a-decade event took place at Stanislaus State when the university’s resident corpse flower bloomed for the first time. The corpse flower, Amorphophallus titanum or titan arum, named for the rotten-meat stench its bloom produces, is native to Sumatra, Indonesia, and blooms every seven or eight years. Its appearance in U.S. botanical gardens and greenhouses is rare with fewer than 200 blooms ever recorded. Stanislaus State’s corpse flower joined the exclusive list. The Stanislaus State greenhouse was able to welcome a corpse flower thanks to a stroke of luck in 2011, when Biological Sciences Professor Stuart Wooley requested and was given one of the plants while working on an unrelated fellowship at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle. The corpse flower corm, similar to a bulb, he received was a gift from the University of Washington. “I’ve been a botany student for years, and I didn’t see one until I was almost 40,” Wooley said. “I was pretty excited. I’d never seen one in real life.” Upon arriving in Turlock, the corm was planted and after several cycles of growth and a dormant phase, Wooley placed the corpse plant in a south-facing window on the second floor of Naraghi Hall. For at least two years, custodian Choy Saeteurn cared for it, watering and feeding the plant as it continued to grow.
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The corpse plant finally was moved to the greenhouse around 2017 where it has grown to between 20 and 40 pounds, cared for collectively by Wooley and faculty colleagues Andrew Gardner and Michael Fleming, who have shared responsibility for watering and caring for the plants in the 30-by-90-foot greenhouse for many years. To celebrate the bloom, Wooley and Fleming hosted a Facebook Live event, answering questions from the curious public and sharing facts about the rare event. According to Wooley, corpse flowers can grow to be up to nine feet tall when they bloom. They’re the largest single unbranched inflorescence, or cluster of flowers on a stem, in the world. The trio of professors had no idea when the corpse flower would bloom, but noticed recently that the spathe was sticking out of the plant and that it was preparing to blossom. Upon blooming, viewers could see the “petal” or spathe, tightly pressed around the spadix, the tall central structure, as the inflorescence continued to grow. The spathe was green for a while, but when it started to turn a reddish colour, that was the signal it would be opening soon. At the base of the spadix are dozens of tiny little flowers, each about the size of a pencil eraser. When the spathe opens, the plant gives
off a rotten-meat smell, which attracts flies and carrion beetles to pollinate the flowers if they bring pollen from another corpse lily. If the plant is pollinated, the corpse lily will produce tiny little fruits that will contain seeds. According to Wooley and Fleming, the scent is similar to rotten cabbage and sulfuric in nature. Once in full bloom, Stanislaus State’s corpse flower measured 59 inches tall and 22 inches wide. In addition to its distinct odour, the plant also can heat up to 90 degrees in order to mimic a rotting corpse on the rainforest floor. “The cool thing about it is it did exactly what we thought it would,” Wooley said during the livestream. “It definitely has a not good smell.” The plant’s scent can be detected even from outside of the greenhouse, Wooley added. The bloom lasted about 24 to 36 hours, with the blossom drying up and falling apart as time wore on. While it was quite the sight to see, Wooley said there was more than meets the eye when it comes to rare events like the corpse flower bloom. “There are a lot of great principles you can teach, botanical principles,” Wooley said. “Teaching about what an aggregation of a bunch of flowers is — an inflorescence — which is a basic botany term that introductory botany students would learn. But you can also talk about conservation of plants and why it matters. For example, academic greenhouses and botanic gardens are working together to preserve these and other plants in the face of habitat loss in developing areas of the world, like Sumatra, where, in trying to develop and improve their economy, they’re chopping down rainforests to make way for coconut palm plantations. Asking students to consider how to balance conservation and preservation with economic development and having them evaluate and grapple with real-world issues can be part of that conversation. There are a lot of questions and issues that can be developed around this for students. It can be interesting to students in many ways, and not just biology students.”
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Date of Publishing 25-26 Every Month Date of Posting 3-4 Every Month
Postal Regn. No. DL (S) - 17/3212/2015-17 R.N.I. Regn. No. 63761/96
