Yellow mustard flowers have covered the field in Ishwardi. Bees make useful honey from flower sap. And the bee-farmers of Ishwardi in Pabna are spending their time in production and collection of this honey.
Talking to beekeepers, it is learned that they have specially made boxes with wood and iron for collecting honey. The top of the box is covered with black polythene and sackcloth. Inside the box are six to seven beehive frames made of wax with a wooden frame. The bees come in boxes after collecting honey from the mustard flowers that’s why boxes are lined up next to the field.
Thousands of bees collecting honey from mustard flowers store it on the wheels inside the bee box. And bee-farmers collect honey from this wheel every day.
Beekeeper and businessman Asikur Rahman has come to Ishwardi from Satkhira to collect honey like every year. He said 150 boxes have been set up at Patirajpur village in Muladuli union of the upazila to collect honey. About 300 kg of honey is collected from these boxes every week.
He further informed that the market price of 300 kg of honey is Tk 1.30 lakh to Tk 1.50 lakh. Collecting honey through this way is quite profitable.
According to the Ishwardi Upazila Agriculture Officer’s Office, the target of mustard cultivation has been set at 720 hectares of land in Saara, Pakshi, Salimpur, Dashuria, Muladuli, Sahapur and Laxmikunda seven unions of the upazila. Among the unions, mustard cultivation is more in Muladuli, Sahapur and Dashuria unions.
The farmers here usually cultivate five varieties of mustard. These are high yielding mustard varieties BARI-9, BARI-14, BARI-15, BINA-9 and TORI-6. Mustard planting will be better in Ishwardi this time as the weather is favorable.
Upazila Agriculture Officer Mita Sarkar said, “If bees are cultivated in the mustard field, the yield of mustard increases by 10 percent to 20 percent. Mustard growers cooperate with honey growers for better yields.” She said collecting honey from mustard fields at no cost is a lucrative business. On the one hand beekeepers are making profit by selling honey collection, on the other hand mustard yield is also increasing.
Photo caption: Honey is collected and produced in specially made boxes. The picture was recently taken from a mustard field in Patirajpur village of Muladuli union.
