Farmers Busy with Early Winter Vegetable Cultivation in Tangail

Mustafa Kamal Nannu, Tangail :

Farmers in Tangail are currently busy cultivating and nurturing early winter vegetables. By marketing the produce early in the season, they expect to earn higher profits. Typically, winter vegetables flood the market between November and January, often resulting in lower prices due to oversupply. Aware of this, many farmers began preparing elevated lands for vegetable cultivation from early September.

On-site visits to Madhupur, Ghatail, Sakhipur, Gopalpur, Bhuapur, Kalihati, and Sadar upazilas revealed that early varieties of vegetables like beans, radish, cauliflower, cabbage, eggplant, bitter gourd, bottle gourd, red spinach, and regular spinach are being cultivated and cared for by farmers.

In Majid Chala village of Madhupur upazila, local farmer Billal Hossain was seen receiving cauliflower plantation advice from Sub-Assistant Agriculture Officer Shahidul Islam.

According to agricultural sources, to cultivate winter cauliflower successfully, seeds need to be sown between mid-August and mid-October. Saplings aged 30–35 days should be transplanted between mid-November and December. Fertile, sunny, and well-drained land is essential for a good harvest.

For planting, a spacing of 60 cm between rows and 40 cm between plants is recommended. In addition to 250–300 kg of urea per hectare, TSP, MOP, gypsum, and boron fertilizers should also be applied. Regular irrigation is crucial if moisture is low, and the field must be kept weed-free. With proper care, cauliflowers become harvest-ready within 60–70 days.

Billal Hossain from Brahmanbari village in Madhupur said he has planted 9,000 hybrid cauliflower saplings on two bighas of land. He expects good profits if the weather remains favorable.

In Zordighi village under Sagardighi union of Ghatail upazila, farmer Abdur Jabbar Mia said he has planted 16,000 cauliflower saplings and some bean seeds on four bighas of land. He is also hopeful for a good yield, weather permitting.

Ashik Parvez, Deputy Director of the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) in Tangail, said that this season, the target has been set to cultivate winter vegetables on 1,145 hectares of land in the district. He expects a production of around 27,480 metric tons of vegetables. “Driven by higher profitability, more farmers are showing interest in early winter vegetable farming,” he added.