If you are a nature lover then I have just the perfect getaway for you and it is not very far away from the city of Kolkata. While exploring Kolkata you can make it a point to visit the magnificent Botanical Garden here. It is located on the west bank of Ganga River at just eight kilometres from the city in the Shibpur area of Howrah district. Spread over a sprawling 273 acres of land this beautiful garden was established in the year 1786-87 and the credit goes to Colonel Alexander Kyd from the East India Company. The vast garden has a circumference of 330 metres. You may be surprised to know that this garden is the oldest and the largest Botanical Gardens in entire country. Now you must be interested to check it out as it is not any ordinary garden. This beautiful expanse of botanical garden was initially known as Company Bagan or Calcutta Bagan then it was named by British Government the Royal Botanic Garden. But only after independence of India it got its current name, Indian Botanic Garden in the year 1950. From January 1st, 1963 it came under the management of The Botanical Survey of India.Let me brief you how it started. At the time of its inception it had about 12000 living perennial plants and over two and half millions of dried plants specimen in the herbarium brought in from all over the globe and several new plants species are added to the collection. I should not forget to mention that this botanical garden houses the second largest canopy of great giant Banyan tree in the entire world. It is said to be two hundred and fifty years old. It is an amazing experience to explore this god of trees as it seems like a mini forest in itself because it has 2800 prop roots that cover an area of 1.5 hectares.Apart from this you should also explore the aquatic plants that are a rare sight in city. One should appreciate the rich spread of spectacular orchids and vibrant flowers here. You will find some of the rarest species of trees here in the garden. The tea currently grown in Darjeeling and Assam was first developed in this garden. The various rare species of trees and plants here are brought in from Nepal, Brazil, Penang, Java, Sumatra, Cuba, etc. The exceptionally beautiful heighted Indian Mahogany trees are gifts for eyesight. There is a separate boulevard for Cuban Palms to explore along with the rich orchid house, Branched Palms, Bread Fruit Tree, Double Coconut, Giant Water Lilies, Mad Tree, Krishnabot, Shivalinga tree, etc. the Double coconut tree produces the largest seeds in the world plant kingdom. Apart from these there are Mango trees and Tamarind trees that give plenty of shade to the grass lawns. Thousands of herbaceous plants are cultivated here in glass houses, green houses and conservatories.There is a twisting lake in the botanical garden. Boating can be done here to enjoy the nature at its fullest. It is a perfect natural getaway for meditation, entertainment and learning. There is a library in the premises having rich collection of books on Botany. This garden is a place where lots of research on plants production, multiplication, Horticulture aspects and conservation is done.Timings of the Botanic GardenOne can visit the Botanical Garden of Kolkata throughout the day as it is open from sunrise to sunset.RUCHI MAHAJAN займ на карту без отказов круглосуточновзять кредит онлайн