Soil is selling alongside plants at the tree fair under way in Agargaon in the capital. Nurseries and environmental organisations taking part are selling not only saplings but also various kinds of organic and mineral soil needed for planting.

This was the scene at the tree fair in Agargaon on Friday (11 July).

Stalls at the fair were offering cocopeat, vermicompost, gardening soil, potting mix, earthworm compost and other kinds of soil suited to gardening, along with plants. People who keep plants on rooftops or balconies are buying the soil they need.

Sellers said a 40-kg bag of soil costs Tk 200, 5 kg of ready-mix soil Tk 125 and 25 kg of ready-mix soil Tk 450. A kilogram of powdered neem cake sells for Tk 170, a kilogram of cactus soil for Tk 70, aglaonema soil for Tk 70, and 50 kg of soil mixed with fertiliser and cow dung for Tk 150.

Rana Hossain, owner of Jannat Nursery, told Jago News: "We sell all kinds of soil. There are some foreign plant varieties in particular, and each needs a different soil. Aglaonema needs its own soil, for example, and a neem tree needs a different fertiliser. People with rooftop gardens buy more soil. Those who keep indoor plants mostly buy ready-mix soil."

Afroza Khanam, who came to the fair to buy plants, told Jago News that using the right soil is essential for good results. "I have 20 kinds of plants on my roof. I bought soil according to the plant, and most of it is mixed with fertiliser. But the prices are a bit high. You need thousands of taka worth of soil to make a garden."

According to botanists, building sustainable urban farming and gardening in a time of climate change requires understanding the importance of suitable soil, not just saplings. Soil quality, water-holding capacity and the presence of micro-organisms all play a big part in a plant's growth, so the right soil and fertiliser must be used for each plant.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.