Lalbhagh Gardens is a favoured destination for nature lovers. It spreads over an area of over 240 acres in the heart of Bangalore and accommodates 1,854 plant species. Lalbhagh is close to the city centre and easily reachable by metro, auto, taxi and car.
The gardens are open daily from 6:00 am to 7:00 pm. Many people turn up in the mornings and evenings for jogging and walking. The area is huge and you will need many hours to see it all. It is advisable to wear good walking shoes.
Hyder Ali, sultan of Mysore, commissioned the garden in 1760. Tipu Sultan, his son, completed the work later. Lalbhagh has a huge floral clock which is one of the most accurate of such clocks in the world. It has a glass house which hosts biannual flower shows, on Republic Day and Independence Day.
Glass House
Glass House of Lalbhagh Botanical Gardens commemorates the visit of Prince of Wales in 1889. Sir John Cameron was the Lalbhagh Superintendent at that time. The Glass House was designed on the lines of Crystal Palace in London and has an area of 17,000 sq. ft.
Formerly Glass House served the function of acclimatising different exotic plant species from other countries.
SausageTree
Lalbhagh has India’s biggest collection of tropical plants. It also houses trees from all over the world. One among them is the Sausage Tree. The sausage tree grows in sub-Saharan tropical Africa and as far south as South Africa. It is a tall tree with beautiful bell-shaped flowers and smooth grey bark. The flowers open only at night. Bats and hawk-moths pollinate them. The tree bears a fruit that grows up to 0.60 m long, weighs about 6.80 kg and resembles a sausage. It is used as an ornamental tree in the USA, parts of South-East Asia and Australia.
Going Round Lalbhagh Gardens
When we visited the gardens, the sky was overcast with a hint of rain. But luckily the rains held back. We did a lot of walking. Electric vehicles ferry weary visitors. The toy train is popular with kids. MTR (Mavalli Tiffin Room), the ever- popular restaurant, is a 14 min walk from the Lalbhagh West Gate.
White Silk Cotton Tree
This White Silk Cotton Tree in Lalbhagh Botanical Gardens is about 200 years old. It has a buttressed trunk and grows to a height of 25 to 30 m. The tree blooms in spring and has huge orange scarlet flowers with five petals.
Pillows and beds make use of the white silk cotton from the fruits. Wood of the tree is very light and often employed in the making of packing boxes.
Getting There
Lalbhagh Gardens is 36.2 km (58 min) from Kempegowda International airport (BLR) via Bellary Road. The nearest metro station is Lalbagh Botanical Garden on the Green Line. From the metro station, the garden is a short walk of 210 m via Rashtriya Vidyalaya road. The busy Brigade Road is a drive of 3.1 km (11 min). Bangalore City Jn (SBC) is the closest railway station, 4.58 km.