The surroundings are wrapped in fog, and the winter air carries the scent of flowers and foliage. Amid it all, Tahsin Ahmed is busy. Sun, rain and cold are now his daily companions. "I find peace in hard work among the greenery," he says. His nursery is a mass of flowering plants: rose, marigold, dahlia, chrysanthemum, snowball, Dunning Touch, Kotalika, lantana, periwinkle and more, in red, blue, yellow, purple, white and pink, like a fair of colours. There are eye-catching cacti too.

After years of hard work he has become self-reliant by building a commercial nursery, and has created jobs for others. His nursery has drawn attention by selling high-yielding local and foreign flower, fruit, vegetable and medicinal plants commercially. It stands on the north side of Zahura Square Market next to Banglamotor.

Tahsin Ahmed said he came to Dhaka in 2015 to seek his fortune after sitting his SSC exams in Mymensingh. He worked in the capital for a few months, and decided then that he would start a nursery. He saved money according to plan and, after a few months, set up "Ruma Nursery" in his elder sister's name with only Tk 12,000.

It began small, but Tahsin now has two nurseries: one at Banglamotor and the other in front of the Matador company at Hazaribagh. Decorated with colourful flowering plants alongside other plants, the nursery catches everyone's eye. He has not, however, set up any online service.

Explaining the difficulties, the young businessman said: "Whatever variety I upload a picture of online, the buyer wants exactly that plant. But plants of the same variety don't look or grow the same. We can supply whatever variety is asked for, but it isn't always possible to deliver exactly the plant uploaded on the Facebook page, because we have to keep selling. So that buyers are not misled, it is better that they come in person, see and buy. If someone buys a large quantity and has trouble taking it, we deliver to their home."

With customer satisfaction in mind, he stocks almost every kind of plant. "I have to keep almost every kind of plant here, because customer satisfaction is my first goal. Besides indoor and outdoor plants, people will find creepers and foliage plants at my nursery. Prices vary with size, species and quality," Tahsin Ahmed said.

Asked where he gets the different varieties, he said: "I go to the trouble of collecting them to satisfy customers, because a happy customer will come back. I usually collect plants from Savar, Kapasia and Jashore. You can't get every plant in one place."

Anik, a customer buying flower seedlings at Ruma Nursery, said: "I have been coming to this nursery for a long time to buy indoor and outdoor plants, flower and fruit seedlings, and vegetable seeds and plants. Every seedling and seed I have bought so far has done well; not one has been bad. The nursery also tells you how to care for the plants. All in all, this nursery is now a place I trust."

Asked what he uses to care for his plants, Tahsin said: "I use 70 per cent organic fertiliser and 30 per cent chemical fertiliser. People may ask why, if organic fertiliser is so good, I still use 30 per cent chemical fertiliser. The reason is that without a small amount of chemical fertiliser the flowers won't mature and the plants won't grow."

On his plans, he said: "I want to take the nursery business to a larger scale. I have two nurseries and plan to open another. And I would urge everyone: if you have even a little space on your roof or balcony, make a garden. It is badly needed to keep the environment in balance."

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