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Botanical breakthrough: Lucknow NBRI grows 1,000-petal lotus!
According to the research institute, this is the first time a lotus with so many petals has been grown, not only at NBRI but also in the entire state of Uttar Pradesh.
The CSIR-National Botanical Research Institute (NBRI) which made headlines for cultivating a 108-petal lotus called ‘Namoh-108,’ has now successfully grown a lotus with around 1,000 petals at its Lucknow campus.
According to the research institute, this is the first time a lotus with so many petals has been grown, not only at NBRI but also in the entire state of Uttar Pradesh.
“There are about 1,000 petals in this lotus, which makes it unique,” said Ajit Kumar Shasany, Director of CSIR-NBRI. “Sometimes the number of petals can vary, ranging from 800 to 1,100,” he added. This lotus is known as “Sahasrara Padma,” the lotus of a thousand petals, which is a symbol of supreme consciousness and spiritual enlightenment.
This lotus variety is a new addition to the over 50 types of lotus grown at the botanical garden campus. The flower’s blooming is the result of four to five years of hard work by senior scientist KJ Singh. “We have been trying for the past four to five years but were unsuccessful due to various climatic conditions, with the flowers often dying within four to five days. However, over time, we refined our methods,” said Singh.
“This time, it took us 15 to 20 days to achieve full bloom. The process was manual, with petals carefully opened by hand,” he explained adding that the petals of this lotus are usually smaller, allowing up to 1,000 petals to fit in a single flower.
According to scientists, unlike other flowers, extreme heat and intense sunlight create ideal conditions for the Sahasrara Padma to bloom. “The more sunlight, the better it blooms,” Singh noted.
Origin
The history of lotus also known as ‘ZhinZun Qianban,’ dates back to ancient times. It was rediscovered in 2009 by Chinese horticulturist Diake Tian, a professor at the Shanghai Institute of Botanical Science. The lotus has a pink color and emits a fragrance. The first 1,000-petal lotus was brought to India by Ganesh Anand Krishna, a lotus hybridizer from Kochi, Kerala. He received it from a friend in China.
