Saddam Hossain of Bhairab upazila in Kishoreganj district has succeeded in growing yellow and purple cauliflower. His colourful cauliflowers have caused quite a stir in the area, with buyers crowding in every day to see and buy them. Larger in size and higher in price, they have also brought him a profit.

Farmer Saddam Hossain lives in the Manikdi Parikharpar area of Gazaria union in the upazila. Last year he received agricultural training in Mymensingh through the upazila agriculture department. During the training he visited a coloured cauliflower plot at the Jamalpur Horticulture Centre. Inspired by it, he brought back 1,700 plants and planted them in his field for the first time.

Saddam Hossain told Jago News: "When I planted the cauliflower, my father asked whether we would be able to sell it. But I did not lose heart. I was confident I could sell it in the market. With that hope I grew it, got a good response and succeeded financially. I grew two kinds of cauliflower on 15 decimals of land and spent about Tk 10,000. Because it takes little work, I grew it myself, which kept costs down. So far I have sold about Tk 50,000 worth."

He said: "At current market prices, the cauliflower still in the field will sell for another Tk 50,000. For Tk 10,000 spent, I will be able to sell Tk 1 lakh worth of coloured cauliflower. Seeing it in my field, local farmers have become very interested, and many are showing interest in growing it next year."

According to the upazila agriculture department, coloured cauliflower is eaten as a salad in China. It is more nutritious than white cauliflower and in greater demand in the market. The attractive vegetable can be eaten half-boiled, and it can be grown profitably at low cost and with little labour. It was grown in Bhairab on the advice of the local agriculture office using high-value crop technology under the Department of Agricultural Extension's project to increase cropping intensity in the greater Mymensingh region. Organic fertiliser was used instead of chemical fertiliser and pesticide. The heads can be sold within 70 to 80 days of transplanting, and each weighs about one and a half kg.

Md Ziaur Rahman, an official at the Kuliarchar Palli Bidyut office, came to the Parikharpar area of Manikdi village to see and buy the cauliflower. He told Jago News: "I learned about it on social media and came to see it. This is the first time I have seen such colourful cauliflower. I bought two, a yellow one and a purple one, from the farmer. They really look very nice."

Md Baitul Haque, sub-assistant agriculture officer for the Gazaria union agriculture block of Bhairab upazila, said: "This vegetable was shown as an experimental demonstration. As it has succeeded, it will be grown widely in the area in future. The coloured cauliflower was grown through farmer Saddam Hossain. It is a new addition to Bhairab's agriculture."

Upazila agriculture officer Aklima Begum said: "Saddam Hossain has succeeded in growing coloured cauliflower for the first time, and it has created a lot of interest among other farmers in the area. Coloured cauliflower contains vitamins A, C and K, folic acid, magnesium, manganese, antioxidants and other elements beneficial to the human body. Where ordinary cauliflower sells for Tk 20 to 30, this is selling for Tk 80 to 90. We expect coloured cauliflower cultivation to increase considerably in future."

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