Cold wave wreaks havoc on Godkhali's flower farming

Flower growers in Jashore's Godkhali are set to incur huge financial losses this year due to the recent bout of freezing weather and unseasonal rainfall adversely affecting the flower gardens in the country's largest floral hub.

Farmers had anticipated a thriving business in February, the peak season for flower demand. However, their expectations were shattered by the recent cold wave sweeping across the country, including Jashore, bringing temperatures below 10 degrees Celsius, accompanied by unseasonal rainfall. 

The flowers are now wilting, with petals taking on a dark hue, and numerous gardens in Godkhali are experiencing plant death or dried leaves due to the thick fog and extremely cold winter. This has given rise to growing concerns among the farmers.

"Four days ago, the roses in my garden were destroyed by the rain, continuous thick fog and the extreme cold. The young leaves of all the plants in the garden are falling off. The rose buds have developed black spots and petals are falling off," Ujjal Biswas, a flower grower in the area, told The Business Standard on 30 January.  

Ujjal said earlier he used to pick up about 1,000 roses a day from his one bigha farm, but now the number has slumped to only 100.

"Not only roses but gladiolus leaves are also fading away. Tuberoses are not blooming properly. The supply of flowers, including roses, has declined sharply. So the prices are high as most gardens are experiencing a similar downturn," Uzzal said, fearing a hefty financial setback this year. 

As a result, flower prices witnessed a big jump in Jashore's wholesale flower market. Rose prices more than doubled to Tk10-11 from Tk5 a piece in December last year, according to the farmers. 

On 22 January, Sohel Hasan, a farmer from Patuapara, brought some 200 pieces of roses to the nearby market. The black spots on the flower petals were visible. 

"The price is high as a result of very low supply. Last year, I sold Tk5 lakh worth of roses from the same garden, whereas this year's sale has not reached even half of that so far," said Sohel.  

Nearly 70% of flowers in his garden have fallen off due to winter and heavy fog, he said, expressing doubts over whether he will be able to earn Tk1 lakh from flower sales during the festivals of February.

Godkhali farmers predict that they may have to suffer a Tk5 crore loss because of the adverse impacts of the inclement weather.    

While speaking about the potential financial loss, another farmer, Hasharat Ali, said his sales will not even reach Tk50,000 this year although he earned Tk2 lakh in 2023. 

He has cultivated roses on one bigha of land, gladiolus on 10 katha and marigolds on one bigha this year. "Because of the weather conditions, the production of roses has seen a big slide," he noted. 

Rahmat Ali, who cultivated roses on one bigha land in Godkhali's Hariya area, told TBS that he was supposed to get around 1,000 roses per day in the peak season, but he managed to get at best 300 pieces a day. 

The farmers said they failed to find any remedy for the weather impacts on the flowers even after using protective chemicals prescribed by the local vendors.  

Asked whether they have received any advice from the agriculture officials, Rahmat Ali said, "Agricultural officials do not go to the field; then how can we get any help or advice?" 

When asked, Jhikargacha Upazila Agriculture Officer Masud Hasan Palash said, "After an inspection of the gardens, we have come to know that the problem has arisen in China roses, especially those less than a year old." 

The significant application of fertilizers, excessive irrigation exceeding five times, along with rain and dense fog, primarily contributed to the fungal infection affecting the flower plants, he said. 

"Apart from arranging hands-on training for farmers, we have advised them to apply dolomite and gypsum powder to get rid of the fungus," Masud Hasan added. 

Some 6,000 farmers are cultivating flowers on nearly 1,500 hectares of agricultural land in Jashore. Nearly 75% of the country's total flower demand is supplied from this district. The demand and sales of Godkhali flowers increase from December every year.

"At the beginning of the season, the flower market in Godkhali was quite good and the prices were as per expectations," Abdur Rahim, president of Jashore Flower Production and Marketing Cooperative Society, told TBS.  

"We had predicted this year's flower sales from Jashore's flower market would exceed Tk100 crore, but now it seems impossible as many roses, gladioli and marigolds have been destroyed," he said. 

On 18 January, intermittent rain persisted throughout the day in Jashore district, with a recorded rainfall of 22 mm. The temperature on that day was 12 degrees Celsius, compared to the previous day's 10.8 degrees. Subsequently, a temperature of 9.8 degrees Celsius was recorded on 29 January.