Md Abdul Khalek, who has succeeded with a poultry farm and fruit orchards, now hopes for success with 'Red Lady' papaya. Four years ago he set up an agricultural farm called SB Farm on 20 acres in Rasulpur village of Matiranga. Starting with a poultry farm, SB Farm has already become a farming enterprise.

On the advice of the agriculture department, Abdul Khalek began growing Red Lady papaya on a trial basis two years ago, planting 500 seedlings on his unused hillocks. He later planted another 2,000 Red Lady seedlings raised from seed bought from BRAC and Dhaka Beejghar. More than 2,000 trees in his orchard are now bearing fruit, and papaya worth Tk 4,000 to 5,000 is sold every day.

Md Abdul Khalek believes Red Lady papaya could change the hill economy if it is marketed properly. Following his example, several farmers, including Sarwar Alam and Md Nasir Uddin, have started growing Red Lady papaya on hillocks.

Saying that Red Lady papaya is very sweet and in high demand, Md Abdul Khalek said: "Papaya marketing in the hills should be made stronger. In particular, if it can be sold in the plains, local farmers will become interested in growing papaya. We will expand cultivation of this variety in future."

A visit to SB Farm found a green papaya orchard on the unused hillock right beside the poultry farm, with papayas of different sizes hanging from rows of trees. Farm supervisor Md Rashedul Islam said a small amount of chemical fertiliser was used when the seedlings were planted, but now only organic fertiliser is used. Besides four regular workers, an average of ten labourers work in the orchard on daily wages.

This high-yielding dwarf papaya from Taiwan flowers within five to six months of planting and gives its first fruit within seven to nine months. Each red-green fruit weighs one and a half to two kg. It is sweet and fragrant, and can be sold both green and ripe. Ripe fruit does not spoil easily, which makes marketing easier. The variety can tolerate ring spot virus, and a Red Lady papaya tree lives for more than two years.

Saying the variety suits cultivation on hill slopes, Matiranga upazila agriculture officer Md Shah Alam Mia said: "The fertility of hill soil and the favourable weather help Red Lady papaya cultivation. Apart from fungal attack, it suffers no other disease."

He added: "If orchards are planned and cared for properly, this variety could change the fortunes of farmers in the hills."

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