Floriculture booms
Cultivation of different varieties of flower appears to be a booming business for many in Swarupkathi of Pirojpur's Nesarabad upazila nowadays.
While going through different villages in the upazila one can see vast tracts of land are covered with flowers of many local and foreign varieties.
Hundreds of labourers in at least 32 villages, including Alankarkathi, Krishnakathi, Rahutkathi, Aramkathi, Aklom, Kuriana, Panaullapur, Adabor, Jalabari, Mahamudkathi, Edilkathi, and Kamarkathi, are now passing busy time in trending flower plants.
Local growers said the area of flower cultivation is increasing every year.
Deputy Assistant Agriculture Officer at Nesarabad Department of Agriculture Extension (DAE) Rathin Chandra Gharami said around 21 hectares of land in the upazila have been brought under flower cultivation this year.
Flowers like gladioli, tuberose, red rose, marigold, gerbera, lily and many other varieties are being cultivated in at least 170 nurseries in the upazila.
Nursery owners' said around four thousand agriculture labourers are currently working at different nurseries in the area.
“I have been cultivating different varieties of flower in my garden for the last 10 years and increasing the farm area every year,” Owner of Kohinoor Nursery Zahangir Alam said.
Kuriana Union Parishad Chairman Shekhar Sikder said flower farming has helped many unemployed youths of his union to be self-reliant.
Day labourer Joyanti Rani of Farzana Nursery said she earns Tk 350 to Tk 400 daily.
“We need training and proper support from the government so that we can go for flower farming three times in a year,” labourer Sajadulla of Shanta Nursery said.
As the growers are getting a good profit from flower production, the area of cultivation is increasing every year, Nesarabad DAE Deputy Assistant Agriculture Officer Gole Noor said, adding that a large number of women labourers are now engaged in this sector.
Flower growers in the region are greatly benefited with the high demand and good prices of their produce, Nesarabad Upazila Agriculture Officer Rifat Shikder said, adding that the government has a plan to train up the growers in near future.
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