Indonesia has new spectacular flower garden

Indonesia has new spectacular flower garden

By Rita A. Widiadana

CIPANAS, Bogor, West Java (JP): "Look at Dolly Parton and John
F. Kennedy down there in the rose garden. They are so marvelous!"
yelled a visitor.

They were not talking about the famous American country music
singer and the former American president, but about two varieties
of hybrid tea roses, grown in the newly-developed Taman Bunga
Nusantara, the Nusantara Flower Park.

Thousands of local and foreign flowers are grown in the park.
Begonias, marigolds, chrysanthemums, gladioli and prickly pear
are all there. A large number if ornamental plants, such as salix
babylonica, known locally as janda merana (lonely widow),
alsophila glauca and pakis monyet, as well as numerous palm
trees, also grow wonderfully in Taman Bunga.

Situated in a small and remote village in the Cipanas resort
area, about 80 km south of Jakarta, on a 30-hectare plot of land,
Taman Bunga Nusantara may lay claim to being one of the world's
largest flower gardens. Previously rice fields and plantations,
the area is currently being transformed into a fascinating
colorful flower garden.

Does Indonesia plan to develop a spectacular botanical garden
on the scale of Canada's beautiful Butchardt Gardens or the
remarkable Keukenhof flower park in the Netherlands?

"Indonesia has thousands of varieties of colorful flowers and
garden plants but only a few people recognize the country's rich
floral heritage," said Mrs. Bustanil Arifin, who chairs the Bunga
Nusantara Foundation, an institution which will manage the park
when it has been completed.

She added that the development of the flower park was
primarily aimed at arousing people's interest in the nation's
floral assets and at the same time introducing foreign flowers to
Indonesians.

"Many people still consider flowers a luxury. Flowers are often
thought to have no economic value, which is not true," Mrs.
Arifin said.

Sales of tropical flowers were booming on overseas markets,
she said, turning Indonesia's flowers into a valuable foreign-
exchange earner.

"There is tremendous demand overseas but Indonesia's
infrastructure is still inadequate to cater for it," lamented
Mrs. Arifin, who is known popularly as Ibu Bus. Compared with
neighboring countries, such as Malaysia, the Philippines,
Thailand, India and Sri Lanka, Indonesia's cut-flower industry is
completely undeveloped.

So far, the country's cut-flower industry includes only small-
scale enterprises or local flower growers which utilize
conventional farming technology. Indonesia, she said, still faced
various obstacles in boosting this profitable but delicate
industry. The problems include the procurement of flower seeds,
farming technology and a lack of skilled growers. The
distribution of picked flowers also poses complicated hurdles,
she said.

Promotion

In cooperation with the Indonesian Association of Flower
Producers and village-based flower cooperatives, the Bunga
Nusantara Foundation has been actively promoting the country's
flower industry since 1984.

Apart from their significance as a lucrative business, flowers
may be used as a means of promoting Indonesian tourism worldwide,
Mrs. Arifin said.

Indonesia had, she said, been taking part in various
international flower festivals. Since l990, Indonesia has been
participating in the annual Tournament of Roses in Pasadena, the
United States. Each year, the festival attracts at least 1.5
million visitors. More than 10 million people in the United
States and 300 million worldwide witness the festival on
television.

"It is a very effective promotion of Indonesia's flower and
tourism industries. We can learn from other country's successes
in developing both industries simultaneously," she said.

The Netherlands, for instance, was the world's largest flower
exporter as well as one of the most popular tourist destinations
in Europe, she said.

"Millions of people visit the country every year just to watch
carpets of blooming tulip bulbs during spring and summer. It is
so amazing. Why can't Indonesia develop similar tourist
attractions, given that we have abundant floral plants?," she
said.

It is her dream to develop a botanical garden where people can
enjoy the beauty of various flowers from all over the world. "The
garden should also function as a flower cultivation and research
center," she said.

Dream

Her dream had almost faded away because of financial
constraints. But then donations from several government agencies,
private companies and prominent individuals turned the dream into
a reality.

This almost 'impossible' project started two years ago.
The project is divided into two phases. The first phase,
estimated to cost about Rp 15 billion (US$7 million) will include
the construction of 12 gardens, nursery houses, a greenhouse, an
amphitheater and other supporting facilities. The second phase of
the project involves the construction of a mini city, which will
employ both local and foreign architecture and will include a
large restaurant and convention hall.

The first phase of the project will be completed next
September, when President Soeharto is scheduled to officially
open the park to the public. The Netherlands' Queen Beatrix is
also expected to attend to the grand opening ceremony.

Completion

When the flower park is completed, visitors will be able to
enjoy a dazzling panorama never seen before in Indonesia.

"The garden will bathe the landscape in vibrant colors.
It will have flowering plants from all over the world," American-
born Russel Autrey, General Manager of the park, told The Jakarta
Post.

The park will have 12 specialized gardens, representing local
and international gardens and including the Balinese garden, the
French garden, the British garden, the Australian garden, the
Mediterranean garden. There will also be a rose garden, a palm
garden and an orchid garden, said Autrey, an ornamental
horticulturist from the California Polytechnic University in
California, the United States.

Taman Bunga Nusantara has a spacious parking area able to
accommodate 350 cars. Entering the park's main gate, visitors are
required to pay Rp 5,000 per adult and Rp 3,500 for children
between five and 16 years of age. There is no charge for children
under five years.

The 30-hectare flower garden is a good place to get some
exercise, walking along its many paths to get a glimpse of the
spectacular landscapes and eye-catching flower patterns which are
scattered in every direction. Strolling on the left side of the
park visitors will find a small pond filled with water lilies and
lotus flowers. Water plants always create a special mood in any
garden. The pond contains the most common white and pink variety.

"The lotus is a very important flower to many Asian people,"
Russel said. History teaches that Buddhists and Hindus regarded
the lotus, a type of water lily, as a sacred flower.

In any garden water exercises a magnetic power, and Taman
Bunga Nusantara exploits water as an important element.
Artificial lakes and water falls beautify the park. "Rock and
water are common companions in nature and, with a little skill,
can be made to represent a natural formation -- complete with
waterfall, hills and a stream running down to a pond at the
lowest level," Autrey said.

Continuing the trek, visitors will find a captivating rose
garden, containing a splendid collection of 2,000 rose bushes,
natives of every climate.

The general manager said that the roses' seeds came from
Australia, the United States and Europe.

Walking down the path, we arrive at a small amphitheater, a
miniature of a water theater of the European Renaissance.
Originally used as a setting for social occasions for
aristocratic families, Europe's amphitheaters are now used as
venues for public entertainment programs.

In Taman Bunga Nusantara the small circular amphitheater,
surrounded by an artificial lake, will also be the scene of
various entertainment activities.

"We're not going to hold large-scale music concerts here. Our
plan is to organize entertaining programs, especially cultural
programs, every weekend," said Kim Autrey, the park's public
relations manager.

The theater's seats are in a semi-circle to enable the
audience to a concert from different viewpoints, said Kim, who is
the wife of the general manager.

Apart from its mission as a place for recreation, Taman
Bunga Nusantara also provides educational activities.

Special workshops, training and displays will disseminate
information on gardening, plantations and related subjects,
explained the husband-and-wife team.

The educational programs are aimed at experts and flower
growers, as well as the general public, Kim said.

"We will be working hard to attract as many visitors as
possible to the park," Kim said.

However, to attract large crowds to the park, the management
should also think about infrastructure. The park's narrow lanes
may fail to accommodate the hundreds or thousands of visitors
expected when the park has been completed.