In a field in Navaran Kathshekra village, Sharsha upazila, Jashore, bitter gourd, cucumber, ridge gourd and pointed gourd hang from trellises among the green leaves. Grown with mulching, these hybrid vegetables give a higher yield at lower cost, and they have brought success to Mominur Rahman, 65, son of the late Samchher Rahman of the village.

On the advice of the agriculture department, Mominur grows various vegetables every year, drawn by strong demand and high prices in the market. On 2 bighas 66 decimals of land in the field beside his house, he has grown bitter gourd, cucumber, brinjal, pointed gourd and ridge gourd using mulch.

Growing by the mulching method cost him Tk 80,000. He has already sold more than Tk 1 lakh worth of cucumber and pointed gourd, and the ridge gourd and pointed gourd still in the field will fetch another Tk 1 lakh. The work currently employs five to six people.

Mominur said that after training from the Sharsha agriculture office he collected Moynamoti cucumber seed of Iyar Malik Seed Company from Bogura and sowed it. Beds were prepared, chemical and organic fertilisers were applied together, and the land was covered with polythene mulch sheets. This keeps the soil from being damaged even in heavy rain and lowers production costs. Cucumber and ridge gourd flower within 25 days of planting, are fully grown within 45 days, and give good yields for up to 70 days.

He said demand for cucumber, pointed gourd and ridge gourd is strong all year round and prices are good; this season they are selling wholesale at about Tk 40 to Tk 50. He believes more success is possible in farming with support from the Department of Agricultural Extension.

Sharsha upazila agriculture officer Pratap Mondal said vegetables have been grown on 1,650 hectares in the upazila this season, including 50 hectares of cucumber. Growing cucumber with mulch is a modern method that needs less fertiliser and irrigation than other methods and has far fewer diseases, he said. It is also the best method for weed control.

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