SUNSARI: Arjun Bista, a farmer from Barahakshetra Municipality-6 in Sunsari, has cultivated marigolds commercially on five katthas of land this year, targeting the Tihar festival.
Bista, who has been growing marigolds for the past five years to meet the increased demand during Tihar, has planted the ‘Table Tennis’ variety this year.
He said the plants brought from Kathmandu were taller and produced fewer flowers than expected. However, he noted that overall production had improved this year after he changed the flower variety and cultivation techniques.
Last year, Bista cultivated marigolds on more than 10 katthas of land but suffered significant losses due to rainfall. Despite much of the crop being damaged, he managed to sell flowers worth more than Rs 200,000 during Tihar, as the surviving flowers fetched good prices in the market.
“Flower production has been better this year compared to last year. However, as Tihar approaches, changing weather conditions have raised concerns that rainfall and strong winds could damage the crops again,” he said.
Bista also expects the relatively late timing of Tihar this year to affect flower demand and sales. Currently, marigolds are selling at Rs 400 to Rs 500 per kilogram.
He sells flowers directly to consumers from his farm, attracting customers from Barahakshetra Municipality’s wards 6, 7 and 8. Buyers can purchase flowers at prices up to Rs 20 per kilogram lower than those in the market. Customers from Dharan and Itahari also visit his farm to buy flowers.
Bista has called for timely quarantine inspections and stricter quality testing of flowers imported from India. He said imported flowers are transported to cold storage facilities in places such as Damak, Dharan and Biratnagar around 15 days before Tihar, stored there and later supplied to the Nepali market.
According to him, the entry of imported flowers into the domestic market makes it difficult for local farmers to secure fair prices for their produce.
Bista believes that effective regulation of imported flowers would help ensure a fair market for domestic producers. He added that promoting the use of locally grown flowers would encourage Nepali farmers, generate employment and income opportunities within the country, and attract unemployed youths to commercial floriculture.
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