Curiosity in foreign trees, but buyers pick native fruit saplings

Suddenly, heavy clouds gather in the sky. The sun is shrouded. Torrential rain pours across the horizon. Pitter-patter. Patter-pitter. This is the timeless monsoon season in Bangladesh. It is also the prime time for planting saplings. Yesterday (Friday), the visitors strolling through the National Tree Fair in the capital's Agargaon seemed to share the same sentiment—collecting their favorite saplings in such rainy weather.

The month-long tree fair began on July 9. Thousands of native and foreign species of trees are on display across hundreds of stalls. Some are browsing, some are buying. However, despite the curiosity surrounding foreign species, native fruit saplings are selling the most.

Photo: Agamir Somoy.

One visitor, engineer Abduz Razzak, spoke about the future, saying, "Native trees are easy to graft. I have mostly bought these types of trees. Foreign trees require more effort to take care. Most of them are seasonal, lasting only one or two seasons. You have to do a bit of math."

He was seen buying several varieties of mango saplings, mulberry, and Malta (sweet orange) trees. Many at the fair were choosing native fruit trees. The logic is simple—they are easy to care for, grow quickly in our climate, and are quite suitable for courtyards, rooftops, or village homes. Nursery caretaker Ripon expressed similar views. He commented that native fruit trees are selling more this year. However, due to somewhat favorable weather, Thai, Chinese, and Indian fruit trees are also selling.

Each tree on display at the fair came with a picture and description of its fruit. Buyers could easily make their choice and learn about the variety and characteristics. Thai mango, Japanese fruit, avocado, macadamia, dragon fruit, and rambutan caught the fancy of hobbyist gardeners. However, the bulk of the crowd gathered near saplings of familiar fruits like mango, jackfruit, blackberry (Jam), litchi, guava, olive (Jalpai), jujube (Kul), hog plum (Amra), and pomegranate.

Although this year, many visitors were drawn to the Miracle Berry. Even though it's a foreign fruit, vendors call it by an affectionate nickname. The name itself is quite something—Miracle Berry. Also adding to the display were saplings of apricot, pink jackfruit, cherry, grapes of various colors, longan, durian, apple, musambi (sweet lime), and fruits like 'Teen.'

Housewife Naznin Akhter complained that the prices of trees at the fair are a bit high. Those who cannot bargain are in a tough spot. She said, "The prices of native fruit trees are well-known. I have bought mostly these types of trees. I will keep the fruit trees on my rooftop garden. If they get too big, I'll take them to the village. That is why I am so interested in native fruit trees."

Nursery owner Abdul Akher admitted that foreign fruit trees are more expensive. "Among native fruit trees, mango, guava, jujube (Kul), litchi, Bengal currant (Karomcha), and olive (Jalpai) are in high demand. The prices of these trees are relatively affordable. As a result, they top the list of interest for middle-class buyers. Foreign species are a bit more expensive, mostly purchased by hobbyist gardeners."