Deviating from the trend of cultivating paddy, farmers in Chhattisgarh’s Kanker district are making good money after embracing rose farming.
An official communication on Thursday said the farmers in the tribal region are producing Dutch variety of roses.
One such farmer is Girja Nishad, who started rose farming by bringing changes to his traditional farming pattern and is now earns a handsome amount, the statement said.
The Dutch roses are not only gaining popularity in Raipur but also in other cities of Chhattisgarh.
There is a huge demand for flowers, including roses, for decoration.
Keeping this in view, the state government is encouraging flower cultivation.
The Department of Horticulture provides technical guidance in addition to building polyhouses and other facilities under the National Horticulture Mission for advanced flower farming.
Farmer Nishad from Chogel village earns around Rs 9,000-10,000 a day by cultivating Dutch rose plants in the one-acre area on his farm.
He gets 45-50 kg of rose flowers a day from just one acre. These are packaged and sold in Raipur at Rs 200 per kg.
Nishad said he has four workers who harvest and maintain the flowers. He said that unlike other crops which require three to four months of hard work, rose grows two to three months after planting and continues to bloom for three consecutive years.
After three years, the rose plants are replanted.