Early winter vegetables bring hope to Tangail farmers

TANGAIL, Sept 21: Fields across Tangail are turning green with early varieties of winter vegetables, even though winter is still weeks away.

Farmers in the district are now busy cultivating vegetables ahead of the usual season, hoping for bumper yields and better prices. The vegetable-growing areas of Madhupur, Ghatail, Dhanbari and Sakhipur, as well as the fertile chars along the Jamuna and Dhaleshwari river basins, are seeing extensive cultivation of early winter vegetables.

A recent visit to different upazilas found rows of vegetables stretching across large tracts of farmland. Farmers have started growing radish, cauliflower, cabbage, bean, bottle gourd, tomato, red amaranth and Malabar spinach, among others.

In some areas, early varieties of red amaranth, radish and bottle gourd have already reached local markets. As the first vegetables of the season usually command high demand, farmers are getting good prices.

From dawn to dusk, farmers are working in the fields to ensure good yields. Some are preparing land for planting, others are putting soil around the base of seedlings, while many are busy weeding and spraying pesticides to control pests and diseases.

Women in rural areas are also playing an active role in producing seedlings and tending vegetable crops.

Local farmers said cultivating vegetables early can bring two to three times more profit than growing them during the regular season. Encouraged by the prospect of higher returns, farmers in Tangail have expanded commercial early vegetable cultivation over the past several years.

The fertile soil in the char and hilly areas is particularly suitable for early vegetable farming, they said. Vegetables produced in the district are not only meeting local demand but are also being transported by truck to Dhaka and other divisional and district towns across the country.

In Madhupur's Darihashil Village, farmer Raihan Kazi has been busy tending his cauliflower field. His 70-decimal plot is now covered with rows of Captain and Winner varieties of cauliflower.

Sub-assistant agriculture officer Md Shahidul Islam has been visiting the field and advising him on pest and disease control.

Raihan said he planted around 16,000 cauliflower seedlings on 70 decimals of land 15 to 20 days ago.

“So far, I have spent a little over Tk 1 lakh. I expect to harvest the cauliflower in about two months,” he said.

If the yield is good and he gets fair prices, he expects to make a profit of Tk 2�"3 lakh after recovering his costs.

Rafiqul Islam of Fulmalir Chala Village in Saghardighi union of Ghatail Upazila said he planted beans and bottle gourd on 40 decimals of land about a month ago.

“The plants are growing well, and some have already started bearing fruit. I hope to get a good yield this year. If I can sell the produce at fair prices, I will make a profit,” he said.

Dulal Hossain, training officer at the Department of Agricultural Extension in Tangail, said farmers were being encouraged to cultivate early vegetables through regular field-level advice, modern technologies and technical support for using quality seeds.

“Considering the current field situation, the area under winter vegetable cultivation is expected to reach a record level in the district this year,” he said.

He hoped farmers would get fair prices for their produce if there was no natural disaster.

According to Soaib Mahmud, additional deputy director of the Department of Agricultural Extension in Tangail, the district has set a target of cultivating winter vegetables on 11,450 hectares this year.
The production target has been set at 294,220 tonnes, he said.

Farmers in some areas have already started early winter vegetable cultivation in the hope of making higher profits. However, most farmers are expected to become fully engaged in winter vegetable cultivation from October, he added.

“If the weather remains favourable, the cultivation target will be achieved and farmers will also benefit,” Soaib said.