Rownaf Jahan, 65, farms near Moslemer Mor in Parila union of Paba upazila, Rajshahi. He has two bighas of cultivable land next to his house, where he grew bananas last year. This year he has planted a high-yielding local papaya on 15 katha of it. Because the variety yields as well as Red Lady, he hopes to sell Tk 1.5 lakh worth of papaya from just 15 katha.

He told Jagonews that he bought the seedlings from his wife's sister's husband at Tk 10 a packet, with two or three plants in each. "Last year he sold nearly Tk 3 lakh worth of papaya from one bigha. I watched everything, from sowing to harvest and marketing. So I thought I would plant papaya on a few katha instead of banana, to get a good yield and a good price."

"It is not a hybrid. The variety is local, but it yields as much as Red Lady," he said. "The fruit is red and green, with a thick skin, and large. Each papaya weighs about two to two and a half kilograms. It is sweet and fragrant, so there is good demand in the market."

"Last year I brought three seedlings from my brother-in-law and planted them on my pond bank as a trial. After eating from them at home, I still sold about Tk 2,000 worth at the market. The variety name doesn't matter. This papaya yields more and sells better," he said.

He said he had grown bananas on two bighas last year, then uprooted them and planted the local papaya on 15 katha. Within barely four and a half months the plants began flowering. The land was filled with soil dug from under a pond, which is rich, so there is almost no disease. He hopes to sell papaya at Tk 450-500 a maund in markets across Rajshahi, and plans to keep seedlings for next year.

Like Rownaf Jahan, more than 50 farmers in Paba have done well growing Red Lady, local and hybrid papaya. They previously grew banana, potato and other vegetables on the land. The text says Red Lady papaya yields for two years, making it several times more profitable than potato, so most farmers in Paba are turning to it.

Some local papaya varieties are also widely grown in Paba, and their taste and smell keep demand high. Some of these local varieties are high-yielding, and farmers are keeping seedlings of them through their own observation. Farmers in the area say they do not need help from the agriculture department for this.

Babul Islam, another papaya grower from Silindar in Rajshahi, said: "I brought seedlings from Chapainawabganj early last year. The plants start fruiting at seven to eight months. I now have papaya on two bighas. After each picking I have to apply DAP, urea, potash and sulphur, and irrigate every 15-20 days if there is no rain. Ripe papaya sells at an average of Tk 500 a maund. I am making a good profit per bigha."

According to the district agriculture office, Red Lady and high-yielding local papaya seedlings must be planted within the first two weeks of the Bengali month of Chaitra. The plants fruit continuously for 24-25 months. The fruit is thick, deep red, sweet and fragrant. Fruiting starts when plants are 60-80 centimetres tall, and each plant bears more than 40 fruits. Ripe fruit can be sent to distant markets, and the local varieties have much greater disease tolerance.

Md Abdullah Hil Kafi, additional deputy director (agriculture information) at the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) in Rajshahi, said some local papayas yield as much as the hybrid Red Lady, while their taste, smell and disease resistance are much better than other varieties. Vegetable prices are high this year, so farmers are keen, and papaya cultivation is expected to grow further next year.

He said both Red Lady and local papaya are very sweet and nutritious, papaya is part of health-conscious people's diets, and local varieties fruit within a short time. Everyone growing this papaya is getting necessary help and advice from the local agriculture office, he said, and if such an exceptional variety is found, the DAE will encourage local farmers to grow high-yielding local papaya.

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