The historic Gangarampur bazaar has grown up along the bank of the Nabaganga in Magura’s Shalikha upazila. With the drizzle of Sraban, this rural market now dazzles the eye with displays of fresh, sweet-pumpkin flowers and pumpkin greens in bright yellow. What was once confined to villagers’ own plates is now selling at a good price in the local market. Tasty and nutritious, this flower has become a top choice on vegetable lovers’ menus.
Talking to buyers and sellers at Gangarampur bazaar, it emerged that each morning farmers from surrounding villages bring fresh pumpkin flowers and greens picked from their fields to the market. The bunches of bright yellow flowers with deep green leaves are as pleasing to look at as their taste in cooking is unmatched. They sell for 50 to 60 taka a kilo. Sellers say that with local demand for pumpkin flowers and greens, plenty of flowers sell here each day.
Nargis, a housewife who came to buy pumpkin flowers, said: “Chops and fritters made from pumpkin flowers are very tasty and nutritious. So I often come here to buy them.”
They are unbeatable served as crisp fritters, curry or a stir-fry. Free of artificial fertiliser and fresh from rural Bengal, buyers snap them up.
According to nutritionists, though the pumpkin flower looks ordinary, its flowers and shoots are a rare store of nutrition with many health benefits. High in vitamin C, it strengthens the body’s immune system and helps prevent colds and coughs. The vitamin A and carotenoids in it keep eyesight healthy and help prevent night blindness. With plenty of calcium and phosphorus, it is very effective in strengthening teeth and bones, and its high dietary fibre eases digestion, relieves constipation and helps control weight.
Alongside the rural economy, demand for these greens and flowers is rising to meet the need for nutritious food. Local farmers say that with the right support and marketing facilities, pumpkin flowers and greens could also be sold commercially for a good income.
Upazila agriculture officer Abul Hasnat said: “The pumpkin flower is undoubtedly a nutritious food. Usually, after pollination, these flowers can be picked from the plant and eaten, and also sold at a good price. We should build an eating habit around it — that way it will meet nutritional needs on one hand and can become a source of the rural economy on the other.”
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report