Waste management and a riot of colours at Noida Flower Show

It was a riot of colours at the 33rd Noida Flower Show which opened in the city on Friday afternoon and concluded on Sunday. The theme of this year’s event was the flower Antirrhinum, and visitors were greeted by the same as soon as they entered the show. According to Noida Authority officials, the show has been a platform for many firsts. “For the first time, the Noida Flower Show is being promoted on social media. For the first time, a photography competition has also been organised here. Again, for the first time, the flower show will have drone surveillance as well,” said Rajiv Tyagi, General Manager, Noida Authority.
Centerpieces become selfie points
The first flower display in the middle of the show was an homage to martyred CRPF soldiers. Other displays included colourful flowers arranged in the form of a waterfall, peacock, elephant and other animals, and drew many children and selfie-clicking youngsters. “It is a bright, sunny day and colourful flowers make for a perfect picture. We read about the show in the newspaper today and decided to spend the evening here,” said Vishwendra Singh, a visitor at the flower show.
Paths made with stones led to the entrance of several small parks – that were scattered around the venue – adorned with colourful flowers and wooden decorative items like a little hut, dwarfs, gnomes and even swings! “The miniature parks are made to attract curiosity among people and to show how parks are supposed to be, provided we maintain them. Planting bright and colourful flowers and taking care of them should be a community effort and that is what we want to teach people here,” said Manish Kumar, from the Floriculture Department of Noida Authority.
Flower entries from around 20 different participants like Northern Railway, Hans Raj College, South and North Delhi Municipal Corporation and many others were also
displayed at the show.

The Noida Authority displayed how waste – including old water bottles, tyres and jeans – can be used to make decorative planters

Waste-to-decor section floors visitors
Taking a cue from the under-construction Shilp Haat in Sector 33, the Noida Authority displayed how waste – including old water bottles, tyres and jeans – can be used in the form of decorative planters and as solar huts too. The section also featured small fountains and a number of showpieces of aquatic animals and insects. “The wood used here is the waste wood which is acquired from factories like LG and Samsung where it is used for packaging and then discarded. We have created a solar hut that has a solar panel on one side and a vertical garden on the other. All this will be displayed at the Shilp Haat once the flower show is over,” said Tyagi.
“Everywhere we look, there is some everyday item which has been used in a unique way. This has inspired me to follow suit. Old clothes have also been used here, which I’ve not seen before,” said Sarika Rawat, a visitor and resident of Sector 55.

The stall selling bonsai plants was a crowd-pleaser, and also had a penjing display at the back

Bonsai-making and Pejing at the show
The stall selling bonsai plants was a crowd-pleaser, and also had a penjing display at the back. “Penjing is a form of scenery display through the use of stones and plants, which give the effect of mountains and trees in your own home,” said Saumik Das, the stall owner.


The average height of the bonsai plants ranged between one and three feet, and the oldest one was a 57-year-old bonsai of a Banyan tree. “I am very fascinated by these plants and have bought two of these for my home. I also enquired about how to make these and found that I can sign up for bonsai-making classes as well,” said Ruchika Mehra, a resident of Sector 25.



Compost-making
Apart from stalls selling plants, planters and gardening equipment, one exhibit which garnered people’s attention was that of the compost-making setup for apartments. Compost generation through the use of permeable trays was being demonstrated to promote waste management.
“Earlier, our grandmothers used to make compost in the backyard. However, flats don’t allow for this. so we’ve created a system through which the kitchen waste from the apartment of a family of four can be converted into compost within one month, which can be further used for gardening,” said Brig Amrit Kapur, from Citizens Environment Improvement Society.



The demonstration generated interest among people as awareness regarding waste management has become paramount in the recent times. “I always thought that in order to make compost without a proper backyard, we need those machines which are available in the market. However, this system of using simple trays with some red worms is not just easy but cost-effective as well,” said Rita Mahajan, a resident of Sector 70.

Air purifying, herbal plants
Almost every stall at the flower show was banking on the popularity of air purifying plants which are in high demand considering the low air quality of the city. “Air purifying plants have always been in demand and will continue to be so because they can be put indoors and don’t require much care,” said Simmi, another stall owner.
Herbal plants – especially basil, thyme and rosemary – were also selling like hot cakes at the flower show. “I watch a lot of European cooking shows and keep experimenting with my own food as well. We cannot always rely on the dried herbs which are available in the supermarket because the flavours that the fresh herbs emit is unmatchable. I had been looking for these type of potted herbs for a while now but ultimately found them at the flower show,” said Ranjana Kakkar, a resident of Indirapuram.
Visitors clicked selfies with the flower displays that resembled animals

Street Play, photography contest
Apart from plant lovers at the event, some photography enthusiasts were also seen clicking pictures of the various kinds of flowers and plants on display at the show. “I love clicking nature and what better place to click bright, colourful flowers than the Noida Flower Show? I will also send some entries to the photography contest, hoping I may win!,” said Shivam Sethi, a resident of Kalindi Kunj.
A street play performance was also held at the flower show which talked about environment sustainability and saving the girl child. Cultural performances by children also enthralled the audience during the evening.