Popular fruit palmyra grows plentiful in Pabna

PABNA, Sept 14: The sweet smell of ripe palmyra, locally called taal, fills the air in rural areas of the district during the ongoing Bangla month of Bhadra (mid-August to mid-September), the peak time for ripening of the popular fruit.
This year palmyra grows plentiful in the district, making the farmers happy. Palmyra is financially profitable as a tree can bear around 1,500 fruits annually, and one piece of it is sold at between Tk 30 and Tk 70 on an average.
The fruit with its blackish red hue adorns the top of tall palmyra trees. In line with age-old rural culture and tradition, villagers prepare several kinds of tasty cakes and Payesh, mixing palmyra fruit juice with rice powder, honey, milk and other ingredients. Its soft and tasty seeds at tender stage and sweet scented juice at mature stage are delicious as well as nutritious.
Small boats can be made with the stem of the tree with very little labour while the leaves are used for making hand fans, baskets, mats, puppets etc. Senior citizens say the palmyra trees and fruits are part of our culture.
"Both the tender seeds and juice of ripe palmyra fruit have high food value. Tal Michhri, a kind of candy made of palm juice, is traditionally used in rural areas for herbal treatment of fever and intestine problems since ancient period," said Abdul Ali Tipu, an electrician from A Hamid Road area under Pabna sadar upazila. A teacher of economics department of Pabna Government College, suggested planting at least one palmyra tree on every house yard as the tree yields good output.
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