The minimum temperature in Udhagamandalam fell to 1.7 degree Celsius on Saturday, registering this winter’s lowest temperature in the popular hill station.
The ground temperature was below the freezing point at several places in Udhagamandalam. A reading taken from Finger Post at 7 a.m. on Saturday showed that the ground temperature was minus 6.3 degree Celsius.
D. Balasankar, Assistant Director of Horticulture, said various measures were being taken to protect lawns and flowering plants from the frost.
At the Government Botanical Garden, water was sprayed on the lawn using sprinklers to remove the frost in the morning. Flowering plants in various gardens at the hill station, which are being raised for the mega flower show scheduled for May, are being covered by cuttings of a bushy plant, locally known as ‘Kotagiri Milar’ (Cytisus Caneriensis), for protection from the frost.
The footfall of visitors at seven horticulture gardens managed by the Horticulture Department stood at 15,439 on Saturday. Of these, 10,945 persons had visited the Government Botanical Garden.
The maximum temperature stood at 24.3 degree Celsius as per the reading taken from the Government Botanical Garden.
