ZCZC
BSS-06
WHEAT-BED-PLANTING (with picture)
Wheat farming in bed planting method gains popularity in Rajshahi
RAJSHAHI, Jan 26, 2021 (BSS) – Wheat farming in bed planting method has been gaining popularity as the farmers are getting benefits from the modern system everywhere in the region including its vast Barind tract.
Concerned sources said wheat farmers are adopting the bed planting method as part of their efforts to promote farm mechanization in the region.
Dr Ilias Hossain, Principal Scientific Officer of Bangladesh Wheat and Maize Research Institute, said wheat growers are getting benefits from the modern method in many ways for the last couple of years.
Illustrating the salient feature of the method, he said it is suitable in the areas where ground water level is receding and herbicide-resistant weeds are creating problems.
By dint of much interest among the farmers, acreage of wheat farming in bed-planting method has been gaining momentum.
Dr Hossain said the wheat farmers are expecting better yield like the previous year after adopting the bed plantation system in the current season.
Bed planting improves water distribution and irrigation efficiency, gives better results in using fertilizers and pesticides.
The method also reduces weed infestation and crop lodging. It saves crops from disturbance by rats. It helps farmers save 30 percent irrigation water and 30 to 40 percent of seeds and fertilisers.
To maintain sound soil health, it could be advisable to grow rice using a different system in order to improve compatibility between monsoon rice and upland winter crops, Dr Hossain said.
He expected that the wheat farming after the best uses of the modern system will increase in the next season.
Anwar Hossain of Nandigram village under Durgapur upazila said he had purchased two bed-planter machines and cultivated wheat on around 250 bighas of land last year.
He harvested 5/7 mounds more yield from per bigha of land than the conventional system.
The machine inspired him to purchase two more machines, by which, he brought around 450 bighas under wheat farming this year.
Meanwhile, the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) has set a target of producing around 5.26 lakh tonnes of wheat from around 1.44 lakh hectares of land during the current season in all eight districts under Rajshahi division.
The DAE has disbursed seeds and fertilizers free of cost among 36,500 flood-affected farmers for wheat farming under the government’s agricultural incentive programme so that they can recoup their losses caused by the flood in the division, said Sirajul Islam, Additional Director of DAE.
Besides, the department has been disbursing seeds and fertilizers free of cost among 23,000 other poor and marginal farmers for wheat farming under the government’s agricultural incentive programme in the division.
Various other government and non-government entities have adopted diversified steps to make farming a total success in the region for its water-saving and drought tolerant features.
More than 12.58 lakh community people of 2.66 lakh households are being motivated and encouraged towards promoting wheat like water-saving crops under the ‘Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM)’ project.
The project is being implemented in around 1,280 drought-hit villages under 39 Union Parishads and three municipalities of eight upazilas in Rajshahi, Naogaon and Chapainawabganj districts since 2014, said Jahangir Alam Khan, Coordinator of the project.
He also said successful promotion of less-water consuming crops in the Barind area would play a vital role to lessen the gradually mounting pressure on its underground water.
BSS/SPL/AH/GMR/1305 hrs