The farming of a China-origin edible oil seed, SAU Perilla-1, has primarily yielded a remarkable success in Khulna district.
Two farmers Mehedi Hasan Bablu and Sheikh Monjur, hailing from Chugnagar village under Dumuria upazila, have achieved success by cultivating perilla for the first time.
After receiving training from the Upazila (sub-district) Agriculture Office, Bablu and Monjur have started perilla farming on two bighas of land.
They hope to get a good yield. As it is one of the unique crops in the country's south-western region, many are showing interest to cultivate it.
Dumuria Upazila Agriculture Officer Md Mosaddek Hossen says they first experimentally found success in farming perilla on fallow saline land.
Being new, the cultivation of the China-origin crop, whose scientific name is Perilla Frutescence, in Bangladesh is still at the experimental stage, he adds.
Perilla leaf is consumed as a vegetable, and its oil is extracted from its seed. Its leaf is used in different restaurants. Farmed locally, it may help grow the local economy, according to observers.
According to the Department of Agricultural Extension, Khulna, each perilla flower contains 150 to 200 seeds. It gives higher amount of oil than other oil plants.
Each perilla seed contains 65 per cent omega and fatty acid. Being unsaturated, its fatty acid is very useful for human health, especially for heart, brain, skin and diabetes.
Since perilla plant's longevity is only 95 to 105 days, it can be grown on the same land four times in a year.
The Department of Agricultural Extension, Khulna encourages farmers to cultivate the China-origin oil crop in the district.
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