Farmers expect bumper lychee yield in Dinajpur

A superb flowering in lychee trees continues amid favourable climatic conditions, making farmers happy with the prospect of a bumper production of the juicy fruit in Dinajpur this season.

The lychee growers in the district are passing busy days tending to their orchards to ensure maximum output of the mouth-watering tropical fruit lychee, said agriculturalist Ashraful Islam of the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) of the district.

Lychee is grown all over Bangladesh but the favourable climate and soil conditions in some northern districts, such as Dinajpur, are much more conducive. As the lychee produced in the district is delicious. This lychee is very demandable all over the country as it is tasty and sweet. So this lychee is supplied to different parts of the country, DAE officials said.

The growers of the district have been cultivating high-yielding varieties including China-3, Bedana, Bombay and Madrazi and Kathali lychee in their orchards following repeated bumper productions and high prices.

DAE Deputy Director Nuruzzaman Miah said the target of lychee cultivation has been set up on 4,480 hectares of land in the district this year.

He said the massive spouting predicts bumper lychee production this season in the district if the climatic condition remains favourable till the last week of May next. A 15-year-old tree can produce around 10,000 to 15,000 pieces of lychee s yearly.

He said that the government has decided to export the delicious lychee of Dinajpur to western countries. Lychee cultivation in the district has increased every year as lychee production is profitable. If the weather is favourable and there is no natural disaster, there will be a record amount of lychee yield in the district.

DAE official sources said Dinajpur Sadar, Biral, Chirirbandar, Birganj, Khansama, Phulbari, Birampur, Nababanj and Ghoraghat upazilas are famous for lychee cultivation.

After visiting some of the lychee-producing areas recently, lychee trees in every orchard and homestead of the district have started budding. The area has started to flourish with the buzz of bees blooming with the buds. The orchard owners are expecting a bumper yield of these types of lychee due to favourable weather conditions.

“We take care of the tree year-round but they need special care as soon as they start flowering. The budding period after flowering is most important,” said Golam Mostafa, the owner of lychee orchards in Masimpur village under Sadar upazila of the district.

Irrigation should be done 15 days before the flowering and 15 days after the flowering. Accordingly, as soon as the buds appear on the trees, lychee farmers and traders are spraying to sustain the buds. Also, water and fertiliser are being given regularly at the base of the tree so that the buds do not fall off, he said.

Another lychee grower Matiur Rahman of Biral upazila said that care should be started as soon as lychee flowers start to appear. Regular spraying and irrigation have been started. Lychee traders from various areas like Rajshahi, Rangpur, Chattogram and Dhaka have started coming since the last few days when lychee trees started blooming and they are buying lychee plantations in advance.

Suitable soil, favourable climate and optimum prices are the reasons behind the massive cultivation of the fruit. Lychee grower Matiur Rahman said they are earning excellent profits every year through farming lychee in their orchards.

Agriculturalist Ashraful Islam, assistant director of the DAE said last year China-3 lychee yield was not very good due to bad weather and due to natural calamities. For this, with the advance advice of the lychee growers, in China-3 lychee orchards, sufficient food has been provided to these lychee trees by applying dung fertiliser and water irrigation at the base of the trees. A bumper production of the juiciest fleshy fruit is expected this season.

Training Officer of Dinajpur DAE Safayet Hossain said the agriculture officers have been giving regular advice to the growers and the agriculture department is supporting lychee orchards owners to achieve bumper lychee yield.