NEW DELHI: Come winter and Central Park in Connaught Place, Barakhamba Road, Mandi House, the Windsor Place roundabout, Talkatora and some other areas will be sporting a colourful, new look.
New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) has chalked out plans for flowering and decorative foliage at these places.
“These are busy areas and stretches unlike Lutyens’ Delhi and planting flowering plants there will be a challenge due to heavy use of the roads,” admitted S. Chelliah, director, horticulture, NDMC.
NDMC will use round 25cm pots fitted with geotextile fabric and edging sheets on the Barakhamba Road central verge. “We will plant salvia, petunia and marigold in different colours here by the end of November. The verge is barely two metres wide so we have to be cautious about the plants not being damaged by people crossing the stretch,” said Chellaiah.
At Central Park in Connaught Place, at least 17,000 flowering pots with tulips in different colours will be placed by November-end around the amphitheatre to improve the look of this place. “Tulips will be planned along the fountain and will later be replaced with seasonal flowers. Also, to give a rainbow look to the space around the amphitheatre, thousands of pots of flowering antirrhinum, dianthus, pansy, petunia and other plants will be placed there,” said an NDMC official.
The civic body is in the process of awarding the contract for the import of 80,000 tulip bulbs in 10 different colours (mostly dark and single shades). Chellaiah said the tulips to be planted at Central Park would be in addition to the tendered quantity and no light colour or multicolour shades would be accepted this year.
At places like the Windsor Place roundabout opposite Le Meridien hotel, landscaping work has started and heart shaped frames are being installed. “Eight heart-shaped frames have been put up on which red petunia will be planted from November onwards. Later foliage will be planted to cover the frames and give them an aesthetic look,” said the civic official.
At Mandi House roundabout too, the plan is to transplant phoenix palms and improve the appearance of the busy traffic point by planting decorative plants of short height and colourful blooms. “While the preparation is going on at nurseries to grow flowering plants from hybrid imported seeds to meet the huge requirement in peak season, we are also planning to buy seedlings if required,” said the official.
At Talkatora Garden, where the trimmed carpet look consisting of straight columns of hybrid petunia, dahlia and salvia along the fountains is well appreciated by visitors every year, the municipal council this time is changing geometry and opting for a zigzag look for its flowering plants. “To highlight these geometrical patterns, we will make sure that the height of the plants will remain the same,” disclosed the official.
At Tikona Park opposite the residence of the Indian vice-president, a glorious bunching of petunia, antirrhinum, dianthus, pansy and larkspur will be planted with the luxuriantly green grass.
