Asia's largest tulip garden in Srinagar is all set to open on March 19

With over 1.5 million tulips of 68 varieties, Asia's largest tulip garden in Srinagar, Kashmir is all set to be open for the public from March 19. Hundreds of gardeners are working tirelessly to make sure the garden is in full bloom at the time of the opening.

With spring on, the tulip garden located below the Zabarwan Hills and overlooking the world-famous Dal Lake, is looking no less than a floral wonderland. The floriculture department is also planning a tulip festival in the first week of April.

"About 16 lacs of tulips would be in bloom this season in the tulip garden. Around 68 varieties of tulips have been put up this year, And along with tulips, there are many other flowers that we are putting up. We also prepare crates from greenhouses which we make sure to bloom in greenhouses so that at the opening the visitors find tulips all around. We decorate the main gate with these crates. Around 3000 pots of flowers are prepared with a lot of hard work for the visitors," said Inam-ul-Rehman, who is in charge of the tulip garden.

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Around 500 gardeners and staff are working day and night to ready the garden for the public. It takes around six months to get the garden ready and huge planning is done much earlier before the opening of the garden.

"We have been working day and night, whether it rains or snows. We are making sure to prepare the garden for the season. As you see right now also, we are working hard as the garden is days away from being thrown open. This time we have around 68 varieties and over 1.6 million tulips. We want people to visit and appreciate our hard work," said Riyaz Pathan, who is a gardener.

The tulip garden has become extremely famous to people across India. A lot of travellers make plans to visit the valley during the tulip bloom. This year, the floriculture department has planted other varieties of flowers like hyacinths, daffodils, muscari and cyclamens to make the garden look more colourful. However, the tourists who are already in the Valley are extremely disappointed that they would not be able to witness the beauty of the garden as it will open next week.

"I really miss that I can't see the garden. We came to see the glimpse but were not allowed. We are leaving on the 17th and the Garden is opening on 19 March. I still peeked in from a gap. Our children are also feeling sad that we won't be able to see it," said Suhas Mehta, who is a tourist.

The garden was opened in 2008 by the then-chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir, Ghulam Nabi Azad. The garden was made to attract more tourists to the Valley during the spring season.

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