Yellow and black watermelons which are of foreign-origin have been cultivated for the first time in Tangail district. A farmer named Samiul Islam of Boro Ichapur village under Kalihati upazila of district has grown the watermelons.
He has benefited by planting these yellow and black watermelons in the village. Experiencing a long jobless period due corona pandemic and the following lockdown in Dhaka, he stopped his mobile servicing business and moved to his own village.
Instead of passing lapse time, he decided to cultivate vegetables in his native village to make himself self-sufficient. So, he planted watermelons along with cucumber, chilli, papaya and capsicum in his village. Among them, foreign varieties of yellow and black watermelons have opened a new horizon before him.
Many people are now coming from far and wide to see his watermelon orchard. There is a lot of demand for this foreign variety of watermelon as it is sweeter by taste. At present yellow watermelons are being sold at Tk 60 per kg while black watermelons are sold at Tk 50 per kg. Yellow watermelon weighs a maximum of 2.5 kg while black watermelon weighs up to 4 kg. As the skin of these varieties of watermelon is thin, the amount of water stored in them is more.
Samiul Islam said, “I started planting vegetables and fruits of foreign varieties by collecting seeds from BADC. Although I have been cultivating different varieties of fruits for a long time, this time I have gain an excellent yield by cultivating watermelon. This time the market price of watermelon is also good so, sales are going well. If many more entrepreneurs are informed about my watermelon planting, there may be more cultivation by others. Besides, I hope I will be able to expand my watermelon cultivation with the help of the government.” Samiul's mother Asma Begum said, “After the death of Samiul's father, it was very difficult for us to run the family. In the midst of much hardship, Samiul used to do mobile servicing along with his study. Due to this corona, businesses are being closed, so he started cultivating fruits and vegetables instead of sitting jobless.
Although I was disappointed at the beginning, this time we have benefited a lot by planting many delicious varieties of watermelon. My family is doing well with not only watermelon but also other vegetables.”
Rafiq, a resident of the area, said that he bought and ate watermelons of different varieties from Samiul. According to him, these new varieties of watermelons are tastier and sweeter than other watermelons. Due to its small size, the price is also lower, he added.
Abul Bashar, Deputy Director of Tangail Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) said, “Samiul informed us that he wished to plant watermelons. So we advised him on cultivating watermelons specially. I went to see the lands where Samuel harvested the watermelons. It can be easily understood that Samiul is getting a great yield.”
The officer estimated 40 to 50 metric tons of watermelon per hectare will be produced there. This time there is a huge hike in demand for watermelon due to Ramadan and hot weather. Farmers are getting better prices for watermelons too, he added.