Although there are a couple of weeks more to optimum time for setting flowers, some of the mango trees have started sprouting early in the Rajshahi region in the last few weeks.
Mango trees are sprouting early at various places like Vatapara, Raipara, Kasiadanga, Police line, Malopara, Meherchandi and Bhadra in the city. But the extent of flowering is comparatively less than that of the normal time.
Golam Mourtoza, 55, a mango trader of Baneswar village under Puthiya upazila, said that the farmers are seen very busy nursing mango trees at present to protect the flower from dropping.
Usually, he added, mango flowers are not seen to sprout so early amid the cold temperature; rather the blooming of mango in some early varieties is seen to occur during the last week of January and continues till middle of March.
Motaleb Hossain, a mango grower of Charghat upazila, said he has over 200 mango trees in his orchard. He has cultivated a large variety of mangoes this season. He expects a handsome profit for the early blooming of mango trees this year.
Abdul Washeque, a resident of Rajabari village, said mango flowers are not seen to sprout at this time. He said the impact of global climate change might be a cause of such early budding of mango trees.
Prof Bidhan Chandra Das, a retired teacher in the Department of Zoology at Rajshahi University, told BSS that the length of winter has been reduced due to the adverse impact of climate change and that might be the reason behind the unusual mango flowering.
He pointed out that the existing agricultural system has started facing a serious threat because of climate change that also leads to various natural disasters.
Prof Bidhan Das said this is the time to change the system, not climate besides showing red-cards to the big carbon emitters.
He referred to the enormous contribution of farmers to the region's agricultural development and said the farmers deserve the rights of getting all requisite privileges. There is no alternative to protect their interests as a whole.
Meanwhile, mango growers are now busy taking care of their orchards. A number of early varieties of mango trees have already bloomed. However, Lengra, Gopalbhog, Fazlee, Amrapali, Khirsapati and Mohanbhog varieties will bloom in phases.
Mozdar Hossain, deputy director of Department of Agricultural Extension, saidmango flower sprouts early every year. The flower has started appearing this year also. If the current sprouting process was not affected by any dense fog, the farmers can carry out early harvest.
There are around 3.5 million mango trees of different ages over some 23 thousand hectares of land in the region.
Dr Shafiqul Islam, principal scientific officer of Fruit Research Station, said BARI-11 variety of mango is seen budding at an early time.
He said for the last one decade it has been noticed from some places of the country that mangoes are budding early.
Dr Islam said mangoes grown through such early blossoms are usually tasty and sweet but those contain more fiber.
The weather of the region seems suitable for the smooth sprouting of mango so far and due to the non-emergence of many new leaves on the trees, there is a possibility of huge flowering of mango trees this year.
If the weather remains favourable, there would be abundant production of mango in Rajshahi and Chapainawabganj districts, famous for mango production.
The number of mango trees has been increasing in the region for the last couple of years following greater interest among the people. Mango, the leading seasonal cash crop of the northwestern region, vitalizes the overall economy of the two districts.
