Vegetable farming brings smiles to Sunamganj farmers

Vegetable cultivation is creating new income opportunities for farmers in Sunamganj, generating rural employment and diversifying agriculture in a district traditionally dependent on rice farming and fisheries.

Farmers in the haor- and river-surrounded district are increasingly growing vegetables alongside Boro and Aman paddy and engaging in fisheries, helping broaden their sources of income. The Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) has set a target of cultivating early winter vegetables on 12,771 hectares in the district this year, 11 hectares more than the previous year.

Cultivation is concentrated in the relatively elevated areas of Sunamganj Sadar, Bishwambharpur, Dowarabazar and Jamalganj upazilas. Farmers in Jahangirnagar, Surma and Rangarchar unions of Sadar upazila have already started growing winter vegetables.

Farmers are also bringing previously uncultivated and fallow land, often covered with bushes and shrubs, under cultivation. In the Jharjharia area of Jahangirnagar Union, some farmers grow crops three to four times a year and receive training to improve production. Every morning, farmers tend their fields, remove weeds and harvest vegetables for local markets. As vegetable cultivation requires less time than paddy farming, it has become an important supplementary source of income.

Mustafa Mia, a farmer from Hurarkandi village, is growing cabbage and cauliflower. He said production costs, transportation, irrigation problems, pest attacks and marketing were major challenges.

Monir Hossain, a farmer from Surma Union, said he had leased land, as he does every year, to grow chilli, tomato and coriander. He hopes to achieve a good yield. The arrival of locally grown early-season vegetables has improved supply in Sunamganj markets. During a visit to local markets, a variety of fresh vegetables was seen on display. Traders said supplies had increased following the arrival of produce from local farms. Early winter vegetable cultivation in Sunamganj generally begins in September and October. Farmers grow bottle gourd, beans, cauliflower, cabbage, radish, tomato, red amaranth, spinach, green chilli and other vegetables during the season.

Agricultural experts say regular field monitoring, weed removal, timely irrigation, balanced fertiliser application and proper pest and disease management are essential for good yields. DAE officials said upazila agriculture officers and sub-assistant agriculture officers at the union level were providing technical advice and support on seed selection, fertiliser use, pest control and weather-related risks. The department also advises farmers to follow recommended doses and safety guidelines when using pesticides and observe the prescribed waiting periods on product labels before harvesting. Sadar Upazila Agriculture Officer Md Shahadat Hossain said early winter vegetable harvesting had started in three unions of the upazila.

Farmers had begun selling vegetables in parts of Jahangirnagar, Surma and Gourarang unions, with around 900 hectares of land under vegetable cultivation in the three unions, he added. DAE Deputy Director Mohammad Omar Faruk said early winter vegetable production in the district would increase if favourable weather continued and farmers followed proper crop management practices. Higher production would not only raise farmers' incomes but also help meet local demand and create opportunities to supply vegetables to other areas, he added.