Onion seeds are often referred to as "black gold" by farmers in the Rajshahi region due to their dark shade and high market value. This stands true for the fact that when planting ran from October to early December last year, the seeds were sold at an average of Tk 5,000 per maund in the district, some 250 kilometres west of the capital. On top of this, weather conditions were unfavourable this year, for which local agriculturalists and farmers apprehend that yields will be low this year, causing prices to further surge. The life cycle of this crop begins with the planting of the seeds in seedbeds, followed by their transplantation to larger fields in around 30 days. Onions can be harvested after around two months but to avail the seeds, farmers have to wait a little longer, around two more months, for the flowers to bloom. This year farmers in Rajshahi cultivated onion seeds on 271 hectares of land, up 12 hectares from that last year, when around 124 tonnes of seeds were har...