Coastal farmers on the sandy chars of Tentulia river in Char Fasson, Bhola, are achieving remarkable success and restoring financial solvency to their households by cultivating early-season watermelons using mulching technology.
Favourable crop yields and attractive market prices have opened up new avenues of additional income for many impoverished coastal farmers.
In Mujibnagar area, over a hundred farmers have cultivated early watermelons across approximately 160 acres (16,000 decimals) or 64.75 hectares of sandy char land.
Fields stretching to the horizon are covered with green vines bearing various watermelon varieties beneath their leaves, prompting delighted farmers to harvest and sell their produce directly to wholesalers from the fields.
Local farmer Abdus Salam, who cultivated watermelons on nearly 150 decimals of land, spent around Tk3 lakh on cultivation and expects a return of approximately Tk8 lakh in profit.
“With hard work and planning, unemployed youths can also change their fortunes through agriculture,” Salam said.
He added that varieties such as Big Family, Sweet Family, Jupiter, Great King, and Great One were planted towards the end of the monsoon season, receiving a strong market response and securing high prices due to early harvesting.
Detailing the farming technique, farmer Faruk Shikdar explained that land beds are prepared and irrigated through narrow channels, which minimises water wastage and retains soil moisture according to the plants’ exact requirements.
He described mulching as a modern, cost-effective, and highly profitable agricultural technology.
Char Fasson Upazila Agriculture Officer Nazmul Huda said mulching involves covering seedbeds with specialised paper featuring a black underside and a silver top surface.
Placing the black side downwards preserves soil moisture for extended periods, reduces irrigation requirements, and controls weed proliferation, while the reflective silver top suppresses pest infestations.
Agriculture Officer Nazmul Huda (also cited as Nazmul Khan) highlighted three primary advantages of this method – reduced irrigation water usage, controlled pest attacks, and prevention of weed growth, which collectively lower both production costs and manual labour for farmers.
The Agriculture Department has also provided structured training on mulching technology to local farmers.
Watermelons harvested from Mujibnagar coastal char are currently being supplied to Dhaka and various other regions across the country, selling at an average wholesale price of around Tk 200 per piece.
Agricultural experts point out that coastal farming faces growing risks from climate change, including rising salinity, erratic rainfall, and waterlogging.
In this environment, adopting technological innovations and climate adaptation strategies alongside traditional cultivation is essential.
