By Md Aynal Haque
 
RAJSHAHI, Nov 26, 2024 (BSS) - Family nutrition gardening contributes to accelerating the rural economy by meeting protein demands in the region, inspiring people to cultivate vegetables on the fallow land near their abodes.
 
Many people with a hope to change fortunes are cultivating vegetables, spices, and fruits on homesteads and other bare land round the year.
 
"I have set up a vegetable and fruit garden on two decimals of fallen land around my home and get fruits and vegetables all year," said Muhammad Shahabuddin, a resident of Palpur village under Godagari upazila.
 
After meeting the family demands, he has sold vegetables and fruits, including papaya, banana, kulboroi (plum), kamranga (star fruit), dalim (pomegranate), bean, bottle gourd, tomato, radish, red amaranth, spinach, batishak, cabbage, garden pea, bush bean, brinjal, chili, onion, and garlic, and earned around Taka 8,000 during the last year.
 
Shahabuddin said the garden has become the main source of meeting their protein demands with earning.
 
Piarul Islam of Phulbari village has got the way of changing his fortune through a homestead garden.
 
"We are very happy over the encouraging yield of homestead gardening," said Shaheda Begum, a farmer of Ishwaripur village, adding that it is helpful in improving the living and livelihood conditions of the villagers.
 
Belly Begum, 35, has become economically solvent through farming of vegetables on homesteads as its demand has been increasing gradually among people.
 
A resident of Dighipara village under Paba upazila in the district, Begum is earning cash money through selling varieties of vegetables. With full-length support from her husband and children, she is growing the chemical-free, safe vegetables.
 
She has learned about the importance of biofertilizer, seed conservation, and seed exchange, besides getting knowledge about proper and sustainable use of land to protect its productivity.
 
She continued that her vegetables are chemical-free, and most of those are sold from her house regularly. That's why she does not often need to take those vegetables to the market for sale.
 
In an emotional voice, she stated that her previous life was not pleasant as she struggled a lot to enhance her family income. To get rid of poverty, she started growing vegetables in her homestead side by side with rearing poultry, birds, and goats.
 
Currently, she can fulfill the nutrition demand of her family members by consuming the chemical-free vegetables, milk, and meat from domestic animals.
 
Being inspired by Begum's success, many other neighbors have been growing vegetables in their respective homesteads applying organic methods for the last couple of years.
 
Sub Assistant Agriculture Officer Atanu Sarker opined that homestead gardening fosters self-sufficiency of people. "We are working together to make the family gardening profitable and sustainable," he added.
 
On behalf of the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE), the farmers are being imparted training on the farming of vegetables.
 
Various inputs and other logistic supports, including seed, vermin compost, and saplings of fruit trees, are being provided to the trained farmers for encouraging them in farming.
 
The DAE has been promoting homestead gardening under its project titled 'Establishment of Family Nutrition Gardens in Uncultivated Fallen Land and Backyards'.
The ultimate goal of the project is to contribute to the economic recovery and resilience of the villagers, including the marginalized communities.
 
Mahmudul Faruque, Additional Director of DAE, told BSS that successful promotion of vegetable and fruit gardening is very important for lessening the gradually mounting pressure on underground water resources as those are less-water-consuming crops.
 
So, the homestead gardening will contribute a lot towards elevating socio-economic conditions in the region through minimizing its water crisis situation, he added.
 
A total of 32 demonstration gardens of vegetables, fruits, and spices have been set up on the unused land in each of the unions under the project.
 
Each of the farmers brought under cash incentives worth Taka 1,935 in this regard. Apart from this, they were given logistical support with seed, fertilizer, and signboards.
 
Besides, interested people are being educated about the adverse effects of chemical fertilisers in crop fields and also trained to organically grow a wide variety of vegetables, spices, and fruits in small spaces around their houses, Faruque said.