Along the canals of Nesarabad upazila in Pirojpur, a large trade in fruit, timber and ornamental seedlings has grown up. Nurseries cover about 500 hectares across some 38 villages, and twice a week the traditional floating nursery market gathers by boat on the Shitla canal at Mahmudkathi, Dinajpur TV reports.
On Mondays and Fridays, trading runs from dawn to about 8 or 9am. Each market sells an estimated 500,000 to 700,000 seedlings, worth more than Tk 1 crore. Growers come by boat from Mahmudkathi, Alankarkathi, Swarupkathi, Atghar, Kuriana, Aramkathi and nearby areas; after bargaining, seedlings pass from boat to boat and deals are settled in cash.
Seedlings from the market go to Bhola, Patuakhali, Barguna, Jhalokati, Faridpur, Bagerhat, Sylhet, Rajshahi and beyond. The nurseries prepare a special loam soil; besides seed-raised plants, improved fruit seedlings are made by cleft, bud and air-layer grafting. Grafted mango, malta and lemon varieties are most in demand, grown in small clay pots and plastic bags.
About 3,000 people work in the trade directly or indirectly, with women playing a large part in raising seedlings, filling pots with soil and tending plants. Water is piped from the canals and connecting channels to keep the nurseries green.
Begun on a small scale in homestead yards and fallow land, seedling growing now plays an important part in the southern coastal economy, and locals say this century-old trade is the main livelihood of thousands of families.
Photo: a floating market on the Kuriana canal, Pirojpur (file), Muktar Hossain / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Source: Dinajpur TV
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