A rare beauty: Witness the largest water lily species at NBRI Lucknow

Lucknow's distinguished research institute of Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), National Botanical Research Institute (NBRI) has finally seen it's largest ever water lily blooming — the Giant Victoria Amazonica, species of the largest water lily flowering plants.

Now, why is this development important, you ask? Well, the flower is not only rare and magnificent to look at, but also has blossomed after six months of constant efforts put in by scientist KJ Singh under Floriculture Mission. It is also said to be the only kind in North India!

Owing to the beauty and the uniqueness of the flower, the NBRI Lucknow authorities have made the garden publicly available. P.S. This flower will only bloom for 48 hours.

About this short-lived beauty, KJ Singh, the nodal officer behind the creation, explained, "This is the first of its kind in North India and is currently only at AJC Bose Indian Botanical Garden in Howrah and a few gardens in south India. The flower will bloom only for 48 hours."

The aquatic flower, the seed of which was reportedly brought in from Maharashtra's Badlapur, has a fixed journey in which it will change from white to pink colours. It will also supposedly spread a powerful fragrance, something like that of a sweet pineapple.

"It has large floating round leaves that are 3 meters in diameter with a side rim size of 2 inches. These leaves are strong enough to support the weight of a small child," Singh added, describing the giant flower.

The giant aquatic beauty, with enormous leaves and large spongy veins, was finally able to burgeon after some 50 failed attempts. It was closely monitored for half a year and cared for, resulting in a rare and valuable sight and an achievement for NBRI Lucknow.

Singh also stated future plans of the floriculture mission, according to which new and hybrid varieties of lotuses and water lilies will be created and preserved. Efforts will also be made to elevate the nutritional value of lotuses under research. With this, it's safe to say that more such elegant rarities are on the cards!

-With inputs from IANS