Bunches of Akelo, Dixon, Black Magic, Bainuka, Isabella, Parlet, Green Long, Anab-e-Shahi and other grapes, 50 varieties in red, black and green, hang in clusters in Meghadal, a hill village in Sreebardi upazila of Sherpur. Agricultural entrepreneur Mizanur Rahman grows them on 30 decimals of land in his home yard. The good yield is drawing crowds of local people, and the agriculture department is giving him regular advice.

Mizanur said his father, A. Jalil Mia, brought home 10 saplings of two varieties on a whim during a trip to India in 2022 and planted them on his land. Ten months after planting, sweet fruit began to come. He then started growing grapes experimentally on 30 decimals, planting 50 varieties.

A visit to the orchard found 150 plants, 50 of which have fruited. Twenty plants carry 10 to 12 kg of fruit each; the rest are younger and have borne one and a half to two kg each. He recently sold a small quantity of green grapes at Tk 250-300 a kg to local buyers.

Asked about costs, Mizan said: "Our village is basically in a hilly area, so labour is comparatively cheap. Mizanur spent two and a half lakh taka on planting and care." He is hopeful about the yield and plans to grow grapes commercially. Mizanur and his father are also producing grape saplings. His dream is to build the orchard on a larger scale, and he is already preparing one and a half acres for grapes in Meghadal village along the nearby Indian border.

"I collected Akelo, Dixon, Black Magic, Bainuka, Isabella, Parlet, Anab-e-Shahi and the other varieties online from about eight countries, including Russia, Ukraine, Pakistan and China," Mizan said.

Seeing his success, many in the area are becoming interested in grape growing. People come every day from different places to see the orchard, and some seek his advice.

Dalbat Marak of neighbouring Babelakona village said: "I have eaten grapes from Mizanur's orchard, they are wonderfully sweet, much sweeter than the grapes we get in the market. For now I will take ten saplings for my family's needs."

Monir Hossain, who came from Sherpur town, said: "I came after seeing photos on Facebook. I was amazed; these grapes are much better quality than market grapes. I bought 1 kg for my family and I will take five saplings from Mizan bhai too."

Mizanur's father A. Jalil Mia said: "I brought the grape saplings from India as a hobby, and later brought some more in two stages. I thought they would not survive, but slowly they grew and bore fruit."

Md Sakhawat Hossain, deputy director of the district Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE), told Jagonews: "We have visited the grape orchard. Mizanur Rahman has been growing grapes experimentally for two years and plans to grow them on a larger scale. The agriculture office is giving him regular advice. If any new entrepreneur wants to start, we will help them with advice too."

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