Once wild, orchids now a household word

Orchids produced in Phulbaria is gaining name and fame to become a new sources of foreign exchange.

Deepta Orchid, a private enterprise at Dulma Enayetpur in the upazila, is a front runner in introducing the non-traditional item in the country.

The farm was set up on 11 acres of land in 2002 with 80,000 orchid plants collected from Thailand. It now produces around 70,000 orchid sticks amonth.

Now, the farm has over three lakh plants with 25 varieties of orchids including some rare ones. These have good market at home and abroad round the year.

Some of the varieties produced there include Dendrobium Pink, Dendrobium Sonia, Dendrobium Sato, Dendrobium Earsa Kul, Dendrobium White, Red Bull, Miss Singapore and White Faiben. Orchid flowers produced at Deepta Orchid are classified into three grades according to their quality.

"Demand for our orchids from local and foreign clients is high but we are yet to have that scope", said farm in-charge horticulturist Kazi Sharif Mahmud.

"Our orchids are better than those produced in other Asian countries. Bangladesh's climate is better suited for orchid cultivation", he said.

Orchids are exported to many countries inlcuding USA, Nepal, India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Saudi Arabia, Denmark and Italy.

"We sell 80 per cent of our products in local markets in Dhaka and Chittaging. We sold orchids worth Tk 46 lakh last year", Sharif said.

The farm purchased another five acres land this year at Sagardighi in Ghatail in Tangail district for expansion of the project.

Sharif said the business was good last year and all the products were sold. It is dull this year due to political turmoil. Sales decline drastically during Ramadan, he said.

Prof Dr Md Azizul Haque of the Department of Horticulture at Bangladesh Agricultural University (BAU) told the Daily Star that orchid cultivation can grow as an industry in the country because of the moderate climate. The rainy season is condusive for orchid cultivation.

Many attractive varieties of orchids grow naturally in Madhupur forests and Chittagong Hill Tracts. These can be grown commercially for export.