Vegetables on water

A farmer tends his vegetables from a boat as the plants are growing on a floating seedbed made from water hyacinth.

Growing vegetables on floating beds made of water hyacinth has turned out to be a boon for farmers at Nazirpur upazila in Pirojpur.
Under the model, local residents have brought the unused marshland under cultivation. They are now cultivating different kinds of vegetables, including beans, brinjals, beet, pumpkins, tomatoes, and pepper on the specially made beds that float on the marshland.
The age-old, yet not-so-popular, model is locally known as “dhap”, which is used to grow crops on marshland that remains submerged for around eight months of the year, and therefore, remains unutilised.
Water hyacinth and other organic materials are usually piled up to create a “dhap” which takes shape over a few days, floating on the water like a boat.

Farmers of Mugarjhor of Nazirpur in Pirojpur relocate a floating seedbed. Photo: Star

The floating beds can be around 180-foot-long with around a two-foot thickness and a four-foot width.
Farmers say they are making profits by selling the seedlings and vegetables grown on the floating beds.
On the other hand, the marshland owners are also earning money by leasing their land to these seasonal farmers.
“We earn Tk 5,000 by leasing a bigha of marshland to the farmers,” said Abdul Mojid, a landowner of Dobra village in the upazila.
Meanwhile, the people involved in making these floating beds for farmers are also earning a handsome amount, boosting the local economy as a result.
“To make a 90-foot-long “dhap”, Tk 500 is paid for water hyacinth, and around Tk 900 is paid to the labourers,” said Shusanto, a “dhap” maker.
Once prepared, the “dhap” hits a market price of around Tk 2,500, he added.
The seasonal floating beds have other uses as well. When the water of the marshland recedes, the “dhap” is no longer useful for cultivation. It is then sold as compost.
Five thousand acres of marshland in the upazila are cultivated in this way every year, according to the district agriculture office.
More farmers are being trained under a government project on disaster and climate risk management in agriculture to encourage the farmers to try the “dhap” cultivation model, said Humayra Siddiqua, an agriculture extension officer in the upazila.