Date:18/02/2005 URL: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2005/02/18/stories/2005021803101900.htm

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K.K. Mustafah

Orchid cultivation in Kerala will now undergo a facelift with the Tropical Botanical Garden and Research Institute (TBGRI) planning a new scheme called `Gods Own Orchid'. Under the programme, hybrid orchid varieties will be imported from Holland, Singapore and Thailand. Twenty-five per cent of the imported plants will be used for research and the rest distributed to select farmers for cultivation. The flowers will be marketed under a common brand name. At present, archaic varieties of orchid are cultivated in the State.