Dr Saif Ali al-Hajari

The 17th edition of 'A Flower Each Spring' program will kick off tomorrow (Saturday) in Al Khor and will introduce another Qatari natural plant under the name: Thanoun 'the Cistanche phelypaea'.
Dr Saif Ali Al Hajari, Chairman of the Friends of the Environment Centre (FEC) and head of 'A Flower Each Spring' program, praised the support extended by HH Sheikha Moza bint Nasser to the program, which was launched in 1999. The 'A Flower Each Spring' program aims at introducing the flora of Qatar in their natural habitats to the local community in order to be protected and grown well.
He said that the program will organize several activities including field trips and festivals focusing on this plant, adding that new activities on water and electricity conservation will be added to this year program in order to promote the rational consumption of water and electricity.
Al Hajari said that some 300 people and a number of schools will attend the inauguration ceremony tomorrow, adding that the program which its activities will continue until next May.
Cistanche is a genus of holoparasitic desert plants in the family Orobanchaceae. The genus Cistanche includes 16 species. They form an attractive group of phanerogamic root parasites.