Commercial cultivation of strawberry promises hefty gains for farmers
Commercial cultivation of strawberry promises hefty gains for farmers
Quamruzzaman's (inset) strawberry field at Harishpur in Natore left,and Dr. Manjur Hossain with plucked fruits in Rajshahi city. Photo: STARFarmers will soon get a new highly value added fruit for commercial cultivation, thanks to years of tireless efforts by two persons.
Rajshahi University Botany teacher Dr Manjur Hossain evolved a variety of strawberry suitable for cultivation in Bangladesh's climate. Horticulturist Quamruzzaman of Natore commercially cultivated the variety on 1.5 bighas of land this year.
The red juicy and nutritious fruit produced by them was supplied to posh markets in Dhaka recently.
With farmer-level price of around Tk 300 per kg, the commercially viable fruit has great export potential and will benefit farmers enormously, the pioneers said while talking to this correspondent at their fields recently.
It can be harvested within two and a half months of plantation and a farmer can earn around Tk 6 lakh from one bigha of land by spending only Tk 20,000, they said.
Besides being taken as a fruit, it is used in preparing ice-cream, jam, jelly, pickle, chocolate, biscuit, cake or milk shake.
Dr Manjur did his PhD in Japan. While returning home, he brought saplings of eight varieties of strawberry in 1996.
Quamruzaaman collected six varieties from Japan and America but none of the varieties sustained in Bangladesh climate.
Manjur evolved some new varieties through tissue culture at the Plant Breeding and Gene Engineering Laboratory at his Botany department. Manjur started filed experiments at Bhadra in Rajshahi city and Quamruzzaman at his Modern Horticulture Center at Harishpur in Natore.
In 2003, three varieties yielded encouraging results and were found suitable in local climate. Out of the three, RU-3 and Modern-3 varieties were found very impressive in size, taste and flavour.
"We found the best results this year in hilly areas at Matiranga Army Zone where 26 Cavalry Division produced quality strawberries from 200 saplings", said Dr Manjur.
Strawberry cultivation is as easy as growing potatoes or brinjals. Saplings can be sown in rows in November and December. The plant starts flowering within one month of plantation and fruits can be collected till March.
Saplings can be collected from nurseries of Dr Manjur and Quamruzzaman in Natore.
Each plant bears around 250 to 300 grams of fruits and some 6000 plants can be grown on one bigha of land, they said.
Now, traders import strawberry from Thailand and Australia at Tk 900 to Tk 1200 per kg. Strawberry flavour is also imported.
A farmer can get 2000 kg fruit from one bigha of land by spending Tk 20,000.
Rajshahi University Botany teacher Dr Manjur Hossain evolved a variety of strawberry suitable for cultivation in Bangladesh's climate. Horticulturist Quamruzzaman of Natore commercially cultivated the variety on 1.5 bighas of land this year.
The red juicy and nutritious fruit produced by them was supplied to posh markets in Dhaka recently.
With farmer-level price of around Tk 300 per kg, the commercially viable fruit has great export potential and will benefit farmers enormously, the pioneers said while talking to this correspondent at their fields recently.
It can be harvested within two and a half months of plantation and a farmer can earn around Tk 6 lakh from one bigha of land by spending only Tk 20,000, they said.
Besides being taken as a fruit, it is used in preparing ice-cream, jam, jelly, pickle, chocolate, biscuit, cake or milk shake.
Dr Manjur did his PhD in Japan. While returning home, he brought saplings of eight varieties of strawberry in 1996.
Quamruzaaman collected six varieties from Japan and America but none of the varieties sustained in Bangladesh climate.
Manjur evolved some new varieties through tissue culture at the Plant Breeding and Gene Engineering Laboratory at his Botany department. Manjur started filed experiments at Bhadra in Rajshahi city and Quamruzzaman at his Modern Horticulture Center at Harishpur in Natore.
In 2003, three varieties yielded encouraging results and were found suitable in local climate. Out of the three, RU-3 and Modern-3 varieties were found very impressive in size, taste and flavour.
"We found the best results this year in hilly areas at Matiranga Army Zone where 26 Cavalry Division produced quality strawberries from 200 saplings", said Dr Manjur.
Strawberry cultivation is as easy as growing potatoes or brinjals. Saplings can be sown in rows in November and December. The plant starts flowering within one month of plantation and fruits can be collected till March.
Saplings can be collected from nurseries of Dr Manjur and Quamruzzaman in Natore.
Each plant bears around 250 to 300 grams of fruits and some 6000 plants can be grown on one bigha of land, they said.
Now, traders import strawberry from Thailand and Australia at Tk 900 to Tk 1200 per kg. Strawberry flavour is also imported.
A farmer can get 2000 kg fruit from one bigha of land by spending Tk 20,000.
i am very much interested in strawberry cultivation, kindly provide the the contact details of Dr. Manjur Hossain
ReplyDeletethank your very much for your interest. you can contact Dr manjur at his mobile phone : 01716288356 and hoticulturist Quamruzzaman : 01711313964
ReplyDeleteDear Sir,I live in Tongi,Gazipur.I wnat to do one strawberry garden.Would you pls advise me,where i can get seed & how to do for that?
ReplyDeleteplease give me the number or email address to contract with you.
ReplyDeleteI am interested to make a strawberry garden.
Hi, I am Moin Ahmed. I have a 8.5 bigha of land where I have started growing Bau Kul and Apple Kul in a 7.5 area. And I want to grow strawberry in this left 1 bigha land and in between the other plants and i want to know whether it is possible or not to grow them in between the other plants. Do you want to help me? And can u please suggest and give me advice in details? My email address is shuddho_1993@yahoo.com. I will waiting for your kind response.
ReplyDeletedear visitors, i've already posted addresses of relevant persons... look for them in comments on posts under the label of 'strawberry' in this blog
ReplyDeleteHi guys, this is very interesting and helpful article from you. Can you please tell us what is the distance required between 2 saplings plant? What is the life time of a strawberry tree? If life time is more than a year then what is the strawberry production rate in the subsequent years? Looking forward for your reply.
ReplyDeleteHi guys, Please let us know who are the buyer in local market? How can we contact them? Looking forward for your reply.
ReplyDeleteI am very much interested in strawberry cultivation, kindly provide me the process of cultivation
ReplyDeletemy email account is: akmzaki@yahoo.com
Sir please can you provide me all the relevant details of strawberry farming and the process of cultivation.This will be a great help.Awaiting for your reply.My E-mail account is navilamona@yahoo.com
ReplyDeleteSir, I work in a NGO in Dinajpur.I want to cultivate strawberry. please can you provide me all the relevant details of strawberry farming and the process of cultivation.This will be a great help.Awaiting for your reply.My E-mail account is djoy.ag@gmail.com. Pls
ReplyDeleteHi, I am mosharaf. I am very interested in strawberry cultivation. please can you provide me all the relevant details of strawberry farming and the procedure of cultivation.
ReplyDeleteMy E-mail address is "mosharof_1982@yahoo.com".I will waiting for your kind reply.
Sir, I am mosharaf. I am interested about the cultivation of strawberry. please can you provide me all the relevant procedure to cultivation of strawberry.My E-mail address is " mosharof_1982@yahoo.com" I will waiting for your kind reply.
ReplyDelete