Sentu Guard and Tuhin Guard, two sons of Mahasin Guard of Nawda Kharara village in Bahalbaria union of Mirpur upazila, Kushtia, have succeeded in growing cabbage, a winter vegetable, in the intense heat of summer. They achieved this by growing the Green Diamond Plus variety of summer cabbage on five bighas of land.
Their cultivation has drawn a good deal of attention in the area. Seeing the two brothers’ success, many farmers are being encouraged to grow cabbage. The agriculture department is working to encourage farmers to take up the crop.
Tuhin Guard said he had hoped that demand for a winter vegetable would be good in the summer market. He also expects to be able to sell the cabbage at Tk 40 to Tk 45 a kilogram. Growing cabbage on the five bighas has cost Tk 2 lakh 50 thousand. If all goes well, he hopes to sell cabbage worth about Tk 5 lakh.
He added that although there were doubts at first about getting a yield from cabbage grown in summer, the yield has been good thanks to every kind of advice and help from the agriculture department. Because it needs little irrigation and fertiliser, cabbage can be grown at a good profit in summer as well as winter. He said he would reduce other crops next year and grow more cabbage.
Sourav Hossain, a young agricultural entrepreneur, said that in the hope of a good price, early varieties of cabbage are on the market before November this year, that is, in October. Many farmers of the Kharara block, among them Sentu Guard and his brother Tuhin Guard, have become self-reliant through this crop.
Moynul Islam Rajib, sub-assistant agriculture officer in Mirpur, said Sentu Guard and his brother Tuhin Guard began growing Green Diamond Plus summer cabbage on five bighas this time. The farmers were given constant advice, and contact was kept up with them, from the planting of seedlings through the care of the crop to production. With a good yield now, interest in growing cabbage is rising among the village’s farmers.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report