Rose Growing in Bangladesh: Simple Methods for More Flowers in Pots and Fields

In 1989 a gardener named Sabed Ali leased 20 decimals of land at Sadullapur in Savar, just outside Dhaka, and began growing roses for sale. According to The Daily Star in February 2021, about 1,500 people in Sadullapur, Shyampur, Mostapara, Birulia, Bhakurta, Bhabanipur and Bonogram were by then growing roses commercially, and the villages had become known as the rose villages of Savar.

In a Savar field or a rooftop pot, the rules for more and better flowers are the same. The Agriculture Information Service (AIS), the government's farm information agency under the Ministry of Agriculture, sets them out in its guide to rose growing on its e-Krishi pages.

This guide, first published on 16 May 2025, follows that AIS advice step by step: climate and soil, varieties, propagation, pots and beds, feeding, pruning, pests and diseases, and cutting the flowers, with background on the rose and the flower trade from Banglapedia and newspaper reports.

AIS describes the rose as a symbol of beauty and grace and calls it the queen of flowers for its colour, scent, charm and beauty. A winter flower by nature, it is now grown all year round in almost every country.

Banglapedia, the national encyclopedia of Bangladesh, explains that roses are usually prickly-stemmed, showy-flowered shrubs of the genus Rosa in the family Rosaceae, a genus of more than 150 species. One species is native to Bangladesh: Rosa involucrata, also named Rosa clinophylla, which grows in the marshland of Mymensingh, Sylhet and Chittagong districts. Modern garden roses descend from species such as Rosa rugosa, R. centifolia, R. canina, R. damascena and R. gallica.

According to Banglapedia, the Mughal emperor Babar brought a rose called Bashra to the subcontinent, a highly scented light pink variety still found in many old gardens. Rose water has been valued in Islamic culture and is used at Milad-Mehfils as a symbol of purity, and the discovery of rose oil, or otto of roses, is credited to Nur Jahan, who named it Attar-e-Jahangir.

Today, AIS notes, the rose is used mostly as a cut flower, for decorating events, gardens and verandas, and in the attar and perfume industry.

Banglapedia's article on floriculture describes how farmers began growing flowers commercially after independence to supply Dhaka and other cities. Rose, tuberose, orchid and gladiolus were the main cut flowers, and limited quantities of rose and tuberose were exported to the Middle East and Europe. The Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute (BARI) opened a Floriculture Research Centre to promote commercial flower growing.

The largest flower belt is in Jhikargacha upazila of Jashore. In December 2024 the United News of Bangladesh (UNB) reported that about 1,200 hectares in the upazila were under flowers, worked by some 6,000 farming families who grew 11 kinds of flower, among them rose, tuberose, gladiolus, gerbera, marigold and chrysanthemum. The Godkhali area, UNB reported, supplied about 70 per cent of the country's flower demand, and growers hoped to sell Tk 100 crore of flowers in the December to April season. Roses were then selling for Tk 6-7 each.

Prices do not always hold. On Valentine's Day, 14 February 2025, The Daily Star found growers at the Godkhali wholesale market selling roses for Tk 7-8 each, nearly half the previous year's rate, with prices ranging from Tk 3.5 to Tk 14 depending on quality. Growers said rose cultivation on 33 decimals cost about Tk 1.5 lakh, with Tk 3,000-4,000 a month for labour, fertiliser and pesticide, and they blamed political instability, bad weather and Shab-e-Barat falling on the same day as Valentine's Day for weak demand.

In Savar, The Daily Star reported in 2021 that growers faced falling demand during the pandemic, competition from plastic flowers and rising costs.

The rose is a flower of cold and temperate zones, AIS says, and does not do well in great heat and humidity. A temperature of 22-30 degrees Celsius, 85 per cent relative humidity and an average annual rainfall of 100-125 cm suit it. The best soil is a well-drained, fertile loam with a pH of 6.0-6.5. Clay soil is not good for roses.

Flower quality depends heavily on sunlight, and morning sun works better than afternoon sun.

Among the roses grown in Bangladesh, AIS lists Mirandi, Papa Meilland, Double Delight, Taj Mahal, Paradise, Blue Moon, Montezuma, Tata Centre and City of Belfast. Banglapedia adds that world-known roses such as Papa Meilland, Double Delight, Dutch Gold, Queen Elizabeth and Montezuma are raised in Bangladesh by budding.

Bangladesh has also produced roses of its own. Banglapedia lists local varieties named 'Fatema Sattar', 'Shibly', 'Rahela Hamid', 'Piyaree', 'Bhasani', 'Sher-e-Bangla', '1952' and 'Jayanti'.

In Bangladesh, AIS says, October to February is the right time to plant rose seedlings in the ground.

Roses are propagated by seed, cuttings, layering (gooti) and budding. Seed is used only in breeding, because roses are cross-pollinated by insects such as ants, bees and butterflies and seedlings vary, as Banglapedia explains. Some varieties, including 'Taj Mahal' and 'Papa Meilland', can be multiplied readily from cuttings.

The main method, and the one used for commercial cut-flower production, is budding. A bud of the wanted variety is set on a suitable rootstock, which gives the plant its roots. AIS notes that the rootstock shapes the plant's vigour, flower quality, lifespan, disease resistance and fit to local soil and weather.

• Pencil-thick rootstock cuttings are made at the end of summer.
• They are planted in nursery rows 25-30 cm apart.
• After about six months the cuttings form stems of the right size for budding.
• Roses are mainly T-budded.

When buying, AIS advises choosing healthy, good-looking seedlings from a trusted, known nursery and checking that the ball of soil around the base is intact. It is better not to take a seedling whose roots stick out of the soil ball, and advice from an experienced grower can help.

For pots, AIS advises an open, airy place that gets the morning sun and at least 6-8 hours of sunlight. Afternoon sun, especially in summer, is better avoided because it fades the flower colour. Turn the pot from time to time so that light falls on the plant from every side; otherwise it grows only towards the light.

• Potting mix: 1 part loam, 3 parts cow dung or compost, 1 part leaf mould and half a part sand (white river sand is best), with a handful of mustard oil cake and a spoonful of lime. Keep it in the pot for a month, watering and turning it over so it mixes well. Some growers also add used tea leaves.
• Drainage: spread broken bricks or pieces of clay pots over the bottom few centimetres so the soil sits on top and excess water drains away.
• Pot size: a 20 cm (8 inch) pot for small varieties and a 30 cm (12 inch) or bigger pot for large ones. Moving the plant to a larger pot in its second year gives more and larger flowers.
• Timing: pots can be planted at any time, but September-October and January-February are best. Plants set then flower for longer, are easier to care for and suffer less from pests and disease.
• Planting: lift the seedling with its whole soil ball, lightly trim old or dead twigs, set it upright in the middle of the pot, add a little compost and firm the soil, keeping the bud joint above the soil.
• Watering: water at least two or three times after planting. Give 3-4 hours of sun at first and raise it gradually to 7-8 hours. Never let water stand at the base, and water morning and evening when new leaves and buds appear.

Feeding starts about a month after the plant takes, every 15 days or once a month. At the end of March or early April, AIS advises removing the top 8-10 cm of soil and refilling with rotted cow dung and fresh loose soil, then covering it with straw or leaves against the summer sun. After winter pruning, give each pot 3 handfuls of powdered cow dung and 1 handful of steamed bone meal, then a handful of bone meal every month through the winter.

AIS also gives a trace-element foliar spray: 20 g magnesium sulphate, 15 g manganese sulphate, 10 g ferrous sulphate and 5 g borax mixed together, with 2 g of the mix dissolved per litre of water. Spray it on sunny winter mornings before 8 am, wetting both sides of the leaves. A weak plant can be refreshed by spraying urea at 2 g per litre of water morning and evening. AIS warns against chemical fertiliser without knowing the dose; an alternative is cow dung and mustard oil cake soaked in water for 4-5 days, given twice a week.

Every three months, give lime water: a spoonful of powdered lime per litre of clean water, strained through cloth, followed by 15 days of plain water only.

For a large garden, AIS advises making the beds in May-June, before the monsoon, so the oil cake and manure rot well by planting time in October; a small garden needs only about three weeks. Dig deeply, remove weeds and brick pieces, and keep drainage around the beds.

Spacing depends on the type of rose:

• Dwarf polyantha: 0.5 metre
• Floribunda and China roses: 0.65 metre
• Hybrid tea: 1 metre
• Hybrid perpetual, moss, damask and tea roses: 1.5 metres
• Noisette: 2 metres
• Climbing roses: 2.5 metres

Pits are round, 1 metre deep and 0.65 metre across. The top 20-22 cm of soil is set aside; the rest is mixed with rotted cow dung equal to a third of its volume and half a kilo of powdered oil cake and returned to the pit, then the topsoil goes back with compost or green manure so the planting spot stands a little higher than the land around it.

Tear off the polythene bag, set the plant at its old depth, firm the soil, water it and shade it from the first sun. On sandy soil water often, on heavy soil every two or three days, but never let the bed waterlog.

Field roses are fed when they are pruned in October and again at the end of winter in March; AIS says feeding 10-12 days after pruning works better than feeding at pruning time. Before pruning it recommends 2-3 kg of dry cow dung, 50 g of TSP and 50 g of potash. Poultry or pigeon droppings make an excellent rose manure. Liquid fertiliser goes on moist soil only.

Old branches stop flowering well; pruning lets new shoots grow, removes dead wood and lets in sunlight. Regular pruning, AIS says, gives more and larger flowers. October-November, after the rains, is the best time, and flowering stems should be cut back as soon as they finish blooming.

• Light pruning: cutting a third off long branches, or removing only dead and sick ones.
• Medium pruning: leaving 30-35 cm of stem above the ground. Flowers are not very large but come in greater numbers.
• Hard pruning: leaving 14-20 cm. Suited to good soil and large exhibition flowers; repeated hard pruning on sandy soil can kill the plant.

For pot roses AIS suggests cutting back to 20-25 cm (8-10 inches). White, yellow, pale yellow and two-coloured varieties take very light pruning, red varieties a hard one. Cut with a sharp knife or secateurs so the stem is not crushed or torn, since crushed cuts let in fungus.

Seal cut ends with pruning paint to keep out insects and the fungus that follows them; for local roses, AIS says, cow dung on the cut is best. Because dieback can follow pruning, apply insecticide and fungicide both before and after.

AIS names red spider mites and dieback as the most serious problems. The controls below are as AIS gives them; for the right product and dose, check with the upazila agriculture officer and follow the label.

• Termites destroy the roots of new cuttings. Treat suspect soil with Pyrifos or another suitable insecticide.
• Red spider mites suck sap from the underside of leaves, leaving pinprick spots and fine webs; leaves pale and curl. Control them while they are few, with a miticide such as Thiovit-80 or Ethion-46.5 EC sprayed under the leaves, or a strong spray of cold water.
• Chafer beetles eat leaves and petals at night in the rains, and their grubs eat roots. Treat the soil with Pyrifos or Pyriban, or pick the beetles off by hand at night.
• Caterpillars eat leaves. Pick off large ones; for many small ones AIS gives Ripcord 10 EC at 1.1 ml per litre of water.
• Digger wasps tunnel into cut stems, opening the way for fungus and dieback. Pruning paint on the cut prevents them.
• Scale insects form brown scales on old bark. Spray in Chaitra and after pruning, or brush them off with methylated spirit.
• Thrips attack buds and young tips in the hot, dry weather of March-April. Cut and burn affected parts and spray Mipcin 75 WP at 2 g per litre, weekly two or three times, then every two weeks.
• Aphids suck sap from leaves, young tips and flowers in January-February. AIS gives malathion at 2 ml per litre of water, sprayed every 7-10 days.

Dieback blackens a branch from the tip downwards and can spread to the root and kill the plant. Cut well below the diseased part, paint the cut, burn the cuttings and wipe the secateurs with spirit before moving to the next plant.

Powdery mildew shows late in winter as a white powder on leaves; in bad cases young leaves and tips are covered and buds fail to open. Remove and burn affected tips and spray hexaconazole 5 EC, Dithane M-45 or Indofil M-45.

For use the same day, cut roses half open; for use a few days later, cut them at the bud stage. Cut long stems with a few leaves using a sharp knife, very early in the morning or late in the afternoon. AIS says vase life can be lengthened by keeping the flowers in water with 3 per cent sugar and 600 ppm 8-HQC.

Yield depends mainly on weather and variety. Under ideal conditions, AIS says, long-stemmed varieties give about 15 to 30 flowers per plant a year.

For seedlings of the right variety, and for advice on pesticide and fertiliser doses for local soil, growers can contact the upazila agriculture office of the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) or the flower division of BARI's Horticulture Research Centre.

Photo: Md Shaifuzzaman Ayon / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Sources: The Agro News (Staff Correspondent), Agriculture Information Service (AIS, e-Krishi rose guide), Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute (Krishi Projukti Hatboi), Banglapedia (Rose; Floriculture), The Daily Star, United News of Bangladesh (UNB)