'Fruits Valley Agro' has been set up on an abandoned brick kiln on the bank of the Dakatia river in Shahtali village, Chandpur Sadar. Growing a range of local and foreign fruits on its 3 acres, the farm has had one success after another. This year entrepreneur Helal Uddin has drawn wide attention by growing 51 varieties of foreign mango.

Helal Uddin has been growing chemical-free foreign fruits for four years, and this year his 51 mango varieties have been a success. The orchard has trees of Tommy Atkins, Ataulfo, Bailey Marble, Alphonso, Glenn, Haden, Maya, Surjodim and other varieties, grown experimentally by entirely organic methods. The large, colourful mangoes of different varieties outshine many local varieties, and people from various places crowd in to see the orchard.

Mirza Zakir, a visitor, said: "I have been to this orchard before, but this year I was amazed to see the foreign mangoes. I got to know 51 varieties of mango, and I even got to eat mangoes during the visit. I will take mangoes of my choice from here and will try to plant saplings of these varieties at home."

Munna, Sujon and Bappi look after the orchard. They said they have worked in various places, but working at Fruits Valley Agro is a different experience: they are learning about different foreign fruits, and all of them get good pay and other benefits.

Owner Helal Uddin said: "This year 47 of the 51 world-famous foreign mango varieties in the orchard have fruited successfully. These mangoes are a little different from local ones; they look extraordinary and are very tasty. With regular care, pests cannot do damage. Every tree has borne well, and it is possible to earn Tk 30,000 from a single tree. Altogether, I hope to sell Tk 16-17 lakh worth from the orchard this year."

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