The Melon Festival, as many of its participants note, is perceived by the population as a symbol of the cotton monopoly liquidated over the past 25 years, and for tourists it has become an excellent opportunity to get acquainted with the traditions and customs of the Uzbek people.
To date, along with grain growing, vegetable growing and horticulture, special attention is also paid to the development of melon growing. The regional administration and other partner organizations place much emphasis on the restoration of the forgotten varieties of melons. As a result of such work in the years of independence more than 20 varieties of melon recovered.
Beautiful pavilions, located near the fountain of the Abu Ali ibn Sino Recreation Park in the regional center, attract everyone’s attention not only by their appearance, but also by aroma of melons. About 60 varieties of sweet melon grown in Bukhara were put on display here. During the Festival, over 200 farms offered customers more than 2 thousand tons of products.
“In 2005, we started growing melons on 2 hectares,” says Dustmurod Boymurodov, head of the farm ‘Elmurod Dustmurod Shahriyor’ from Jondor district. “Now we have 7 hectares of land. Conscientious work gives its fruits. Annually we get over 100 tons of 8 varieties of melon. In the future, we want to adjust the processing of some of the grown products.”
A lot of tourists traveling around Uzbekistan visited the Festival.
