The Department of Floriculture and Landscaping at Dr. Yashwant Singh Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Nauni, hosted a Tulip and Orchid Festival-cum-Flower Show on Tuesday, attracting scientists, students, farmers, and flower lovers from across the region.
The festival aimed to promote floriculture, showcase ornamental plant diversity, and provide a platform for knowledge exchange between researchers and the farming community. The event was conducted under a DST-funded project titled “Development and Dissemination of Innovative Technologies for Mass Production of Ornamental Flower Bulbs: Towards Self-Sufficiency”, with support from the All India Coordinated Research Project on Floriculture.
Deputy Commissioner Solan, Manmohan Sharma, inaugurated the event and praised the university’s efforts to integrate research, education, and farming practices. He highlighted the role of ornamental landscapes in eco-tourism development and appreciated the faculty and scholars for their work in advancing commercial floriculture and landscape innovation in Himachal Pradesh.
Dr. Devina Vaidya, Director of Research, as Guest of Honour, stressed the importance of scientific innovation in expanding the floriculture sector in the Himalayan region. She noted that tulips and orchids are high-value crops with significant potential to increase farmers’ incomes.
The festival also featured competitions for farmers and students, including flower arrangement and photography contests. Awards and certificates were distributed to winners. During the programme, two key publications were released: a Table Calendar on Native Ornamentals and a booklet titled ‘Beauty of Tulips’, highlighting the university’s work in ornamental floriculture.
The event concluded with a vote of thanks by Dr. B.S. Dilta, Principal Floriculturist, who expressed hope that such initiatives would strengthen Himachal Pradesh’s floriculture industry. Dr. Puja Sharma, Principal Investigator, added that the university has been cultivating tulips for over ten years and recently introduced orchids to promote them as commercial crops. Over 4,000 bulbs of 29 varieties have been planted for demonstrations and farmer training, alongside a hands-on training programme in commercial floriculture for local farmers.
Nurturing Creativity – Keekli Charitable Trust, Shimla
