Retired insurance officer Abul Azhar Kamruzzaman loved greenery from childhood but had no time for it in his busy working life. After retiring, he built the six-storey house 44B on Road 116, Gulshan-1, in 2003.

While building the house, he dreamed of living with greenery, and planting two roses on the roof revived his love of farming. He said the attraction of those two rose plants brought him to this garden, and he now gets about 2 kg of flowers and fruit from it every day.

The 2,400 square foot roof, on two levels, now holds about a hundred species of plants and vegetables, from Egyptian fig to local banana, pomegranate, moringa, bottle gourd, lemon, mustard, spinach, year-round hog plum, dragon fruit, aubergine, neem, lettuce and pineapple. Each season it produces toxin-free fruit and vegetables that meet the family's needs.

Kamruzzaman lives with his family on the floor just below, and says the garden keeps his flat much cooler and gives him more oxygen.

He can no longer do all the work, so two workers, who have learned many techniques, help under his supervision. Rooftop farming needs precise soil, water and inputs in a limited space, and scientific understanding. Golam Haider, general secretary of Bangladesh Green Roof Movement, who helped him, said their first task is to inspire people not to leave roofs empty, encouraging vegetable and fruit gardens and advising on pots and suitable roofs.

As more people buy seedlings and pots from nurseries, nursery owners and input sellers must ensure healthy seedlings and share accurate information on varieties and care, since poor information can make small rooftop projects fail.

Source: Shykh Seraj, Chhad Krishi. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.