Staff Correspondent:
Farmers of the Burichang upazila of the district have produced huge vegetable seedlings between the Bengali months of Bhadra and Agrahayan and earned foreign currency by exporting abroad.
Sameshpur village is in the middle of the area where one side is the Gomati River and other side is the Rani Mainamati. Farmers of the area become busy from Bengali months of Bhadra to Agrahayan to produce vegetable seedlings.
While visiting the village it was found that some people were preparing the land and some were splashing water and some people were picking up seedlings.
The wholesalers were buying vegetable seedlings from the farmers and loading into the vehicles.
The vegetable seedlings are exported to the neighboring country of India and farmers earned over Taka four crore in the period.
Thousands of seedlings were swaying in small plots. Bamboo polythene shade was arranged over the saplings to protect them from the sun.
Farmers were cleaning the weeds. Some were trying to refresh the plants by sprinkling water. Various types of plants such as pepper, tomato, brinjal, palm brinjal, leeks are grown in the plots. After a few days, these plants will fill the different fields with flowers.
According to Upazila Agriculture Office sources, farmers have planted saplings on about 30 acres of land of the upazila including Sameshpur village. A total of 94 farmers are involved in vegetable seedlings production in four blocks of the area.
Md. Alamgir Hossain, a seedling grower in Sameshpur area, told BSS that he has grown saplings on 100 decimal of land this year. His garden has various varieties of plants including tomatoes.
He has spent about Taka 20 lakh for the production of saplings. If the weather is fine, his profit will be at least Taka five lakh excluding expenses.
Another seedling grower, Md. Kibria, said that he sells 100 pepper seedlings from Taka 50 to Taka 150 depending on the size and variety.
The average price of these seeding of different vegetables is almost like this. The seedlings of area going to different parts of the country including Sylhet, Sunamganj, Chhatak, Noakhali, Laxmipur, Chandpur, Chattogram Mirsharai, and Sitakunda. But for the past few years, wholesalers from India have also come and taken the seedling of the area.
Aminur Rashid, a wholesaler who came to buy saplings from Chhatak in Sunamganj district, said that he has been buying saplings from the Burichang upazila for the last ten years. The seedlings here are affordable as well as the tendency of seedlings to die is less and yield is also good.
Additional Agriculture Officer of Burichang upazila agriculturist Banin Roy said Deputy Assistant Agriculture Officers gave necessary advice to prevent disease and insects during the production of seedlings on behalf of agriculture office.
Besides, farmers have been given trainings under the programmes of Robi incentive, Boro hybrid incentive, vermicompost fertilizer and vegetable nutrition garden, he added.

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