Delwar Hossain, a floriculturist of Kewa village in Sreepur upazila of Gazipur, is ecstatic as he has successfully cultivated tulips, the spring-blooming ornamental flowers famous for their dazzling beauty.
After his success in cultivating gerberas, China roses and different other foreign species of flowers over the last 16 years, Delwar has farmed tulips commercially, which has created new potentials in the flower business, according to officials at the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE).
As the news of his tulip cultivation has spread, flower lovers and entrepreneurs from different areas have been flocking to his garden every day, said a caretaker of the garden.
Along with creating employment for 30 people in his garden, Delwar Hossain has been earning more than Tk 4 million every year.
Delwar said he had brought 1,600 tulip bulbs from the Netherlands and planted them in his garden. Though tulips are grown in cold countries, there is a demand for them in Bangladesh.
Mahbubur Rahman, deputy director at the DAE Gazipur office, said it had been heard that many flower lovers grew tulips in tubs but for the first time, Delwar had cultivated it commercially.
“We’re ready to provide all types of assistance to him. There’ll be huge commercial and economic potentials if the flower is cultivated in this country,” he said.
A hundred pieces of tulips brought from abroad are sold here for Tk 700-800, Delwar said, adding that one could make profits by selling per 100 pieces for Tk 400-500 if the flower was cultivated in the country.
Delwar earlier received the "Bangabandhu Krishi Medal" as a successful flower farmer in 2017.
He noted that there was a huge demand for tulips across the globe.
The local demand is currently being met by importing the flower from the Netherlands, China, India and other countries, Delwar said, adding that initiatives could be taken to cultivate the flower in the northern districts considering the low temperature there in the winter season.
Tulip, the national flower of Turkey and the Netherlands, grows from bulbs. Most tulips thrive in colder winters because of the long-chilling requirement for the bulbs.
Tulips come in many colors, such as orange, pink, cherry, magenta, salmon, crimson, purple, apricot, lilac, mauve, blue, yellow, violet, terracotta, red, scarlet, chocolate and brown along with many other shades.
