In an effort to ex situ conserve the various plant species of the Western Ghats (Sahyadris), the Horticulture Department on Tuesday planted 450 saplings belonging to 132 Western Ghats species at the Lalbagh Botanical Garden. The department aims to create a miniature replica of the ghats at Lalbagh with this planting drive.
The saplings were planted on a stretch of six acres, which had remained vacant for 70 years, behind the rock structure at Lalbagh (near the Siddapura entrance point). “There are around 5,900 plant species in the Western Ghats, which are spread over 596 km across eight districts of the State. Among them, 652 are endemic plant species while 567 are rare/endangered and threatened species. Hence, there is a need to take special measures to protect these species,” a department official said.
Lalbagh is already home to over 2,350 plant species from across the country and even from foreign countries. The department also said that the newly planted species will help Lalbagh become a scientific platform to students, plant experts, botanists, environment lovers and the public to study about the species from Western Ghats. The new plants are also expected to enrich the biodiversity at Lalbagh.
