Israel's Bahai gardens are sometimes described as the world's eighth wonder. The meticulously manicured flower beds, exotic trees and lush vegetation belong to followers of the Bahai faith - a religion that originated in modern day Iran less than two centuries ago. CGTN's Stephanie Freid visited the gardens in Haifa as part of our series on horticultural wonders of the world.  

It's not tough to understand why Bahai's nineteen cascading terraces attracted one point three million visitors last year. The gardens sprawl over a patch of land the size of more than a thousand tennis courts. It took 70 years and two hundred and fifty million dollars to build them. The money was donated by Bahai community members. It takes the equivalent of forty Olympic swimming pools to keep the 450 different varieties of plants and flowers hydrated throughout the year. Officials won't talk about how much they pay for water, but they do say one of the biggest maintenance challenges is:

DARLENE ROBINSON CHIEF HORTICULTURIST, BAHAI GARDENS HAIFA "Deadheading. Most gardeners would say that's the most labor intensive between deadheading and weeding. Because there's no machine that can do that."

Deadheading, or twisting off dead flower caps, is one of multiple tasks 160 staff gardeners, irrigation technicians, tree experts & pest management specialists undertake ten hours a day, five days a week.

The Bahai mission is to bring harmony and unity to the world through prayer, meditation and a nineteen-day period of fasting. Gardening is considered an extension of Bahai devotion.

CARMEL IRANDOUST DEPUTY SECRETARY-GENERAL BAHAI INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY, HAIFA "The gardens were designed by mirroring and reflecting the main core of the Bahai faith which is the main principle which is unity and diversity. That we're all the different flowers of one garden. We're all the different leaves of one tree."

There are 1700 steps leading up through the terraces. The Gardens are included on UNESCO's list of World Heritage sites. Stephanie Freid, CGTN, Haifa, Israel.