Beetroot has succeeded in its first season in Sitakunda, Chattogram, with two farmers in the upazila getting good yields. The upazila agriculture department is hopeful that beetroot cultivation will expand in the upazila.

The upazila agriculture office said two farmers grew beetroot on 70 decimals of land as a first trial. The red, turnip-shaped crop is rich in various nutrients, which makes it a very beneficial crop.

Beetroot grower Kamal Parvez said: "I decided to grow beetroot for the first time at the agriculture officer's suggestion. I grew it as an intercrop on 15 decimals, at a cost of Tk 7,000. I started harvesting two months after planting the seedlings. It gave a good yield without much care. I have sold about Tk 60,000 worth at Tk 80-100 a kg. In future I will grow beetroot on more land."

Shafi Uddin, a grower in the Bhatiary area, said: "When I first heard about growing beetroot I was a little nervous, as I had never grown it in my life and did not know how it would go. I did everything on the agriculture office's advice and got a good yield. I have sold about Tk 1.5 lakh worth of beetroot."

Sitakunda upazila agriculture officer Habibullah said: "We had Kamal Parvez of Baroiyadhala and Shafi Uddin of Bhatiary grow beetroot. They grew it on 70 decimals of land. With the full backing of the agriculture department, harvesting began 70-80 days after month-old seedlings were planted. The yield has been good. We have decided to grow it on more land in future."

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