A Stroll In The Hyderabad Botanical Garden

Me and  my  husband  were  thinking  for quite a while to visit the Botanical Garden in Hyderabad. Heard it was not completely developed,but we thought we could give it a try.So last sunday we reached the garden in Kondapur around 11am.The entry fees was Rs10 for adults ,Rs5 for children, Rs10 for still camera and Rs50 for video camera.

This garden officially know as "Kotla VijayBhaskar Reddy Botanical Garden" was established in the year 2000 and the foundation stone was laid by the then chief minister Mr.N.Chandra Babu Naidu.

Once you enter the garden and have a quick glance and then you come to know that this is a very under developed garden,forget about botanical garden it seemed like a abandoned park.

Because of the heavy monsoon rains this season,the garden view was pretty with green lush plants and pastures.

There is board indicating that the garden is categorically divided into 17 vanas.Right now only only two of them were open to the public and the rest are under development.

There was also a board indicating the state plant and flowers of each state in India.The state plant of Andhra Pradesh is Neem,but the state flower is yet to be declared(as written on the board).But according to info in the http://www.flowersofindia.net/misc/state_flora.html website the state flower is water lily.
I know it is quite recurring experience to many of us who go to parks or gardens, c'mon guys you all know about whom i'm refering to -the lovers.Here also,there were many or shall i say,it was majority of them and few(i would saw very scanty) families here and there.

Though the garden is under developed it is a quite,calm,serene place away from the hustle bustle of the city.You can hear the chirping of birds,see beautiful ,colouful butterflies and plenty of dragonflies.

There were boards hung up here and there indicating that the garden offers some weekend activities(water walking,Burma bridge etc)

There is a small area allocated for children where there are some playground equipment(swings etc)

As i told you before only two vanas are open,so first we went to the cacti plant garden(jemudu mokkala vanam)

There were quite a no.of cactii there,but most of them weathered may be due to the heavy excessive rains we are having this season.Here are a few pics

                                         

I felt the cacti plant garden at the NTR gardens was very well maintained when compared to this one.

Then we saw a few water bodies here and there and again very badly maintained ones,how ever we managed to capture few beautiful picture of a water lily in full bloom in the waters.Here it is

How many of you have seen the flowers of sorrel leaves, i guess very few among us especially those who are

brought up in the cities.Here i got to see the blossoms of red sorrel leaves(Erra Gongura).Quite a treat to see these awsome flowers,here is a pic



Then we went to the ornamental plants vanam. Here there were the regular country roses,button roses
which were some how not in pink of health(quite a neglected lot).

But the hibiscus plant area is something which should not be missed.We can see many colourful shoeflowers. A picture is worth a thousand words,so have a look at these pictures as i feel i feel short of words to describe the simple beauty of these splendid flowers.

                                                                

Then we saw the passion flower and champak(sampangi) plants grown as creepers in the garden.None of them had flowers,but the champak plant had bunches of green fruits.

One thing which is missing from the garden is the name plates on the plants.Very few plants had name plates on them.

Got to see these beautiful violet flowers,

Here is tree which belongs to the bamboo species

That's it with garden.All i would say is don't go by it's name(Botanical graden),no guys it can't be compared with the other botanical gardens in the country.It would take years,before it develops into a fledged one.

When compared to the other parks in the city(NTR,Lumbini,Krishnakant) which are always brimming with people over the weekend,this place offers you an off beat experience.

If you want to take a quick escapade from the city,the pollution and the crowd,i would say this is a nice one.

Brahma Kamal- The Divine Earthly Blossom

The Brahma Kamal is popularly known as “The Lotus Of The Gods”.

Below is the breathing taking image of the flower:

Photo courtesy:

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/travelogues/82466-photolog-valley-flowers-hemkund-sahib-2.html

The Brahma Kamal is the state flower of Uttarakhand. Botanical name is Saussurea obvallata. Belongs to the flowering species of Sunflower family(Asteraceae).

It grows among the rocks and slopes, meadows at an altitude as high as 3000-4600meters. Does not grow in plains.

The flower is named after Brahma the creator. (ref:Wikipedia)

The flower head is purple and is enclosed by layers of greenish yellow papery boat shaped tracts.

Here have a close look at the flower:

                                          

Photo courtesy:

Mantrana @ http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel/Asia/India/State_of_Uttar_Pradesh/Things_To_Do-State_of_Uttar_Pradesh-BR-2.html

These tracts create a warm space due to which this plant blossoms even in the icy cold weather. They aid in thermoregulation and minimize damage caused due to frost. Also prevent damage due to the high intensity ultra-violet rays emanating from the high altitude sunlight.

It is native to Himalayas, North Burma, South west China. In the Himalayan mountain ranges it is found in Panchkedar, Sahstratal, Nandikund, Kedarnath, Satopant and the magnificient valley of flowers(Bhyundar Valley).

These rare flowers found only on the higher altitudes is also refered to as
“The King Of Himalayan Flowers.”

The Brahma kamal plant blossoms during monsoons(July-August).It blooms at mid-night and shrinks at dawn. Here is a picture of how it looks:

                                                

Religious importance:

Because these flowers are available at higher altitudes(generally the snow capped mountain peaks of Himalayas are believed to be the abode of Gods)and blossom even in the cold frost weather, the tracts are like petal of Lotus(Lotus symbolizes purity and enlightenment amid ignorance) these are considered to be sacred and are offered to the deities in and around areas where these are available.

During the “Nanda Ashtami” festival the flowers are offered in shrines and dispersed as Prasad.

Fragrance:

Contrary to the popular belief, these flowers smell awful. Though it is smelly there is a firm which manufactures incense sticks from these flowers. It claims the fragrance of the incense sticks induces Yogic Nidra in a short time. Wonder how they smell.

Here is the hyperlink: www.fragona.com/incense.html

Medicinal Importance:

The people of the Bhotiya community use the flowers for treating boils, cuts and wounds.

The medicine is prepared in the following manner:

100ml of decoction of dried leaves is mixed with half table spoon of salt and applied to the infected areas(3X 20ml)

Ref:

http://www.ethnobotanyjournal.org/vol8/i1547-3465-08-233.pdf

The herb is also used in Tibetan medicine locally known as “Sah-du Goh-Ghoo”. Used for treatment of paralysis of limbs and cerebral ischemia(condition where there is insufficient blood supply to the brain to meet metabolic demand).

                                               

Brahma Kamal on the verge of extinction: Facts

This rare plant is on the verge of extinction. The foremost reason is the well known fact of climatic changes due to global warming.. According to eminent biologist and environmentalist Dr.Uday Gaur a biology lecturer at Gorakhori Govt College near Nainbagh in district Tehri Garhwal, that due to global warming the plant is shifting to higher altitudes and within few years it will have no place to go as it nears the snowline which is covered with snow all year round.

Excessive trekking activities due to which the trekkers pull the plant for preserving it for recreational and research purposes.

The various religious beliefs rampant in the area also add to the woes of this vanishing  rare breed. People who pluck these flowers often uproot the entire bunch leaving no seeds behind for propagation.

Postal Stamp in honor of  Bramha Kamal:
A postal stamp was issued in the year 1982 by the Indian Postal Department to  commemorate this flower.
Here is the image of the stamp:

           

                                                 
Wide spread mis-interpretation of Brahma kamal:

People often misinterpret Brahma kamal with the cactus species flowering plant “Queen of The Night ” whose botanical name is “Epiphyllum oxypetalum”.

Also known as Gul-e-Bakawali ,Duthchman’s pipe.

Here is the pic : This is the Night blooming Cereus.