Ajloun: Grape farming in Ajloun is a mainstay of the local economy, particularly the grape leaf harvest season for culinary use, which sees a boom in sales and marketing and offers seasonal employment opportunities for hundreds of households.
According to Jordan News Agency, grape cultivation is one of the main crops in the governorate due to suitable climatic and natural conditions for producing high-quality grape leaves and fruit, which helped expand farms in recent years, as noted by Sitan Sarhan, Director of Agriculture in the north-western region. An estimated area of 37,000 dunams is planted with grapes in Ajloun with an annual yield of about 14,480 tons.
The directorate regularly monitors grapevines across the region through agricultural extension and field inspections to ensure crop safety and limit the spread of diseases, Sarhan mentioned. The current season promises abundant production and high quality, given local market activity.
Sarhan highlighted that the grape leaf harvest season is a significant economic opportunity for farmers, providing additional income and seasonal employment opportunities in harvesting, sorting, packaging, and marketing, as well as contributing to stimulating commercial activity in the agricultural sector.
Farmer Arabi Freihat noted that this season is favorable compared to previous years in terms of both the quantity and quality of the leaves. He mentioned the growing demand for grape leaves that started earlier in local markets, emphasizing that maintaining the quality of the crop requires daily care of the trellises, including regular irrigation, fertilization, and monitoring for diseases.
Another farmer, Khaled Qudah, stated that the grape leaf harvest season offers daily employment opportunities for people in rural areas, especially women and young people working in preparing, sorting, and packaging the leaves. This, in turn, strengthens the role of small agricultural enterprises in supporting productive families. He emphasized that grape trellises have become an important part of agricultural activity in Ajloun due to their high-quality yield.