The Hindu : Front Page : Efforts on to enhance Ooty's beauty

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Wednesday, Sep 27, 2006
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Efforts on to enhance Ooty's beauty

D. Radhakrishnan

FOR TOURISTS: Different forms of value addition are considered to make the Government Botanical Gardens in Udhagamandalam more attractive. - Photo: D. Radhakrishnan

Udhagamandalam: With the inflow of visitors to the Government Botanical Gardens (GBG), the most popular tourist attraction in this vacation destination, steadily increasing, authorities are now exploring the possibility of enhancing its beauty without altering its original features.

Pointing out that many of those visiting the GBG now had already seen it earlier, the assistant director of horticulture, M. Murugan, told The Hindu that different forms of value addition were being considered.

GBG manager N. Mani said it extended over about 55 acres on a slope, the gradient of which ranged between 2,400 and 2,500 metres.

For long it had been noticed that many of the visitors did not go beyond the Italian section, which was in the middle of the garden. It was also felt that adequate attention had not been paid to the upper half of the GBG. To make the tourists see the upper half where the Fountain Terrace, Picnic Ground, Sunken Garden and Bog Garden are located, improvements like turfing were in the process of being carried out.

Even in the Italian section, vacant areas were being made attractive by laying carpet beds in easily identifiable shapes like hearts and diamonds.

Plants like Alternanthra, Ajuga and Echireria were being used. Plants like Cinraria, which were hitherto grown only in glasshouses, were now adding to the beauty of the Italian section.

Stating that all the value addition measures were expected to become visible by the summer of 2007, Mr. Mani hoped that they would go down well with the tourists.

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