With no help from any local laboratory or agriculture office, a small agricultural entrepreneur has invested about Tk 20 lakh in a two-acre mixed orchard of pineapple, orange, date palm and apple. According to Dinajpur TV, pineapple grows on 75 and 49 decimals, and date palms, apples and other trees on the remaining 51 decimals.
He chose a mixed orchard to test for himself which fruits suit the local climate best. With no laboratory in the area and no effective support from the upazila agriculture office, he says, he has stopped contacting them.
A permanent power line was run to the orchard for irrigation. To drain water from the low-lying part, about 190 feet of 6-inch pipe was laid underground, costing about Tk 62,000 for the pipe alone; an open drain would have filled with grass and hindered cultivation.
It is a long-term investment and too early to count profit or loss, he says. Orange, date and apple trees usually start bearing after five years and live 40 to 50 years, date palms up to 150.
Photo: Diego Delso / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Source: Dinajpur TV
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