Strawberry Farming
Strawberry Farming commercially can be very profitable. However, the time and equipment costs required to start and sustain a successful operation are not insignificant. Understanding the costs involved and the cash flow of a running strawberry farm is just as crucial (if not more) than understanding the strawberry plants themselves. But, we can all use more strawberries, so if you're ready to dive into Strawberry Farming, go for it!
Strawberry farming has huge earning potential and can easily turn you from job seeker to job maker or employee to employer in less than 12 months.
Strawberry (Fragaria spp) is grown for its fruit, which is highly valued for its bright red color, aroma, sweetness and juicy texture. These fruits can be eaten plain or in foods such as empanadas, preserves, among others.
While farmers have been quite reluctant to get involved in strawberry farming and claim that the industry is not very developed, those looking to get into the practice are strongly encouraged as it has huge potential for income.
Ecological Requirements for Strawberry Farming - Strawberry Farming
Altitudes; Strawberries grow well at elevations between 1,250 and 2,200 meters above sea level, east of the Rift Valley.
Rainfall; They require a well-distributed rainfall of 1200 mm. Less than this will require irrigation at the rate of 25mm per week. Strawberries are not drought tolerant. Drip irrigation increases yields, improves berry size and appearance, and extends harvest time.
Temperature; Strawberries can grow in almost any region of our country as long as there is a constant supply of water and a stable temperature in the range of 10-30 degrees Celsius.
Soil; Strawberries grow in a wide variety of well-drained soils, although deep, humus-rich sandy soils are the most ideal. The soil should have a good ability to retain moisture. Soil drainage should be good enough to keep the water level at least 80-100 cm below the soil surface. Poor drainage makes strawberries weak and susceptible to disease.
Soil pH; The soil pH range should be between 5.5 and 6.5. Saline soils should be avoided.
Areas Suitable For Strawberry Farming - Strawberry Farming
Suitable areas for Strawberry Farming in Kenya are Athi River, Kitengela, Sagana, Kinangop, Embu, Molo, Naivasha, Kericho, Kitale, Kirinyanga, Nairobi, Nyeri, Kiambu, etc.
Strawberry Farming: A Step-By-Step Guide
What is The Best Way to Start Strawberry Farming - Strawberry Farming
Step 1: Getting Started
Strawberry Farming: Of course, you need land to plant your strawberry crop. 1/8 of an acre would be fine for a beginner, but if you're in an urban environment you can invest in a few containers (which you can put in your garden) and start Strawberry Farming.
Once you have secured good ground in a location with an adequate water supply, start looking for seedlings. The best variety to choose is "Chandelier Strawberry", which adapts perfectly to the Kenyan environment.
Cost to Start Strawberry Farming- Strawberry Farming
You will need about 3,000 plants for 1/8 of the land. As each seedling costs Ksh10, your minimum start-up investment will cost you around Ksh30, 000.
In addition to the cost of buying the seedlings, you will need to add another Ksh 15,000 for transport, fertilizer and agrochemicals.
Step 2: Prepare the Land
Strawberry Farming = Plow the soil, remove the weeds then soften the soil. Later, add manure (rabbit, sheep, goat or cow manure will work) and ash to ensure a healthy supply of nutrients for your crop.
Strawberry Spacing - Strawberry Farming
Proceed with planting your strawberry plants, leaving a distance of 30 cm between the rows. Also, leave at least 50 cm of space between two sections of the truss.
Step 3 – Find the Market Early Enough
Strawberry Farming: the cultivation takes about 70 days to mature and produce the first fruits. But since the fruits are very perishable (they stay fresh for 4-5 days after harvest), it is advisable to start looking for a market well in advance to avoid losses.
Strawberry Demand - Strawberry Farming
Demand is readily available in major urban markets, especially from green food vendors. You can also access a larger market by marketing to companies such as Brookside, Trufood, KCC and large supermarket chains. In this case, you will need to invest in good packaging and get accreditation from the Kenya Bureau of Standards.
Step 4: Harvest and Sell Your Product
Strawberry Farming: One eighth of the land can produce between 30 kg and 50 kg of strawberries per week and each kilo costs about 200 Ksh at the current market price. Now, assuming your small farm produces 50 kg per week that means you can earn Ksh 40,000 per month using only a very small portion of your land.
It is possible to recoup your initial investment (or break-even point) in just 6 months after starting the farm!
See Also;; Making Ksh 3,000,000 with Apple Farming In Kenya
Strawberry Varieties in Kenya - Strawberry Farming
Strawberry varieties grown in Kenya include-
• Chandler
• Tribute
• Tristar
• Tioga Selva
• Domail
• Rabunda
• Pajaro
• Douglas
How Much Can You Earn By Strawberry Farming - Strawberry Farming
Strawberry Farming: One eighth of the land can produce between 30 kg and 50 kg of strawberries per week and each kilo costs about 200 Ksh at the current market price. Now, assuming your small farm produces 50 kg per week, which means you can earn Ksh 40,000 per month using only a very small portion of your land.
Are Strawberries Farming Profitable- Strawberry Farming
Yes they are! Xaxa Farms believes that every entrepreneur seeks to profit from their agricultural business.
However, there is a caveat: riches do not reach the farmer without a clue. To overcome inexperience and misinformation, Xaxa Farms recommends that farmers invest in four key areas: information research and training, good cultivars (cultivated plant varieties), soil testing and farm management.
Strawberry Farming is currently at the top of this list, especially in Kenya. Farmers sow the seeds and hope to reap great rewards. And for good reason: ripe fruits have a ready-made market in the country and demand is far from being satisfied.
See Also; 11 Reasons Why You Should Go Into Snail Farming
Strawberry Yield per Hectare - Strawberry Farming
Strawberry production per hectare is 25,000 kg in the first year, 18,750 kg in the second year and 12,500 kg in the third year, respectively. Replanting is recommended at the end of the third year.
A plot of ⅛ acre can produce 30 kg to 50 kg per week.
The Best Fertilizer for Strawberries - Strawberry Farming
Do not apply fertilizer when planting so as not to dry out the crevices. This is because they are dormant for 14 days after sowing.
During the first month, remove the first and second flowers to avoid premature fruiting and give the plants time to develop roots.
After 30 days, fix CAN fertilizer, 10 g (1 tablespoon), per hole, between the plants. Fertilizers are used to maintain soil fertility and maximize plant growth and fruit production.
Strawberries are big feeders, so they should be enriched with foliar fertilizers such as Easygrow Vegetative, Flowers and Fruits and calcium to firm up fruit skin and reduce fruit deformities.
Strawberries are self-pollinating, but cross-pollinating will result in better yields.
Problem Facing Strawberry Farming - Strawberry Farming
Pest and Disease Management - Strawberry Farming
PEST - Strawberry Farming
Strawberry Bud Weevil (Clipper): Infestation causes holes in flowers and petals. Stems are chewed or cut
Tarnished Plant Bugs - Puncture plant tissue and suck sap, causing tissue distortion and premature leaf drop. Severely infested leaves become chlorotic. They also secrete honey-dew which promotes soot development and attracts other insects.
Strawberry Thrips - Adults and nymphs feed on leaves and more preferably flowers, sucking sap and causing damage which can lead to flower damage or abortion and therefore reduced fruit production or malformations.
Nematodes: Affected plants are stunted, older leaves die and few runners are produced. The roots can be short and thick, with bumps.
Mites - their infestation reduces plant vigor and plants appear stunted, twisted and deformed. Leaves turn yellow with whitish feeding marks and may eventually die from continued infestation. Silver ribbons can also be seen on the leaves and stems.
Aphids: They feed by piercing and sucking sap from plants, which results in stunted growth. Severe cases of infestation reduce the quality and quality of the product. They excrete molasses which promotes the growth of soot.
Diseases – Strawberry Farming
Leaf Rust - This occurs on older strawberry leaves. Large circular to oval purple-red spots on the leaves. As the infection progresses, they develop brown centers surrounded by purple areas. A black fungal growth can be seen in the center of the spot. Lesions may also develop on the runners of susceptible cultivars.
Leaf Spot: Symptoms begin as round purple spots on the upper leaf surface. As the infection continues, the center of the spot will turn brown or gray, then almost white with a purple border. The disease can attack immature petioles, fruit stems, stolons and caps of susceptible cultivars.
Leak: The symptoms are so distinct that it is difficult to confuse them with those of other fruit rots. The color of the infected ripe berry remains unchanged at first, but turns light brown. The berry becomes soft and watery and collapses and the juice runs out, hence the name fugue. Rotten fruit and especially packaged fruit quickly become covered with a fluffy white cottony fungal growth with black spore-producing structures.
Leaf Blotch: The infection is characterized by purple to brown spots and, in later stages, by large necrotic spots. These spots usually appear at the tip of a leaflet and are wedge-shaped. This fungus can also attack the peduncle, the cap and the fruit.
Grey Mold (Botrytis): is the main fruit rot disease of strawberries. Infection usually begins early in the season as blossom blight, wilting of buds and flowers, and rotting of unripe or overripe berries. It progresses downward, infecting berries, stems and leaves. In wet weather, the affected parts of the plant are covered with masses of gray spores.
Leathery Rot: Occurs on unripe or ripe fruit. The rotten area is light brown in the center and turns purple around the edge. In the final stages of decomposition, the fruit becomes hard and leathery.
Anthracnose Fruit Rot: Symptoms appear as brown to black, soft to firm spots on unripe fruit and dark purple spots on ripe fruit. Spots increase rapidly on ripe fruits until they rot. The surface of the lesion may be covered with masses of pink to orange spores.
Powdery Mildew - Although whitish fungal growth is not as common on strawberry leaves as on many other plants infected with powdery mildew, the infection causes infected leaflets to curl along the edges. The underside of the leaf may redden on heavily infected leaflets. Fruit infection occurs during flowering and appears at harvest as a light brown to rusty pink berry surface that often cracks as the fruit develops.
How Long Do Strawberries Take To Mature - Strawberry Farming
The harvest takes about 70 days to mature. The fruits are usually ready to harvest 4-6 weeks after flowering and only fully ripe (red) fruits should be picked as they do not ripen after harvest.
Harvesting can take up to 3 weeks and should produce plenty of fruit, depending on the variety and management practices used. For instance; well managed, 1/8 of a plot can produce 30 to 50 kg of strawberries per week.
Strawberries are fragile and easily damaged or bruised, so they should be handled with care, for example when picking strawberries.
Strawberries should be picked in the morning, when the berries are cool and dry, because when wet, they mold quickly. Immediately after picking, the berries should be stored unwashed in a cool, dry place, such as a refrigerator, where they can last for 5-7 days.
They can also be dried, frozen, or made into jams or preserves.
How Much Can You Earn By Strawberry Farming - Strawberry Farming
It takes at least 70 days for the crop to mature and begin to produce the first fruits. An eighth of an acre can produce between 30 kg and 50 kg of strawberries per week and each kilo costs about 200 Ksh at the current market price.
If all goes well and assuming up to 50 kg is harvested, a farmer can earn up to Ksh40,000 per week.
Xaxa Farms harvests them and packs them in pots. They harvest up to 100 punnets a day and harvest twice a week. Xaxa Farms sells a punnet of strawberries at the farm gate price of Sh100 and Sh120 a punnet at the market.
Xaxa farms sometimes harvest 50, 80 or even 100 punnets a day. And they deal with orders, but sometimes they get customers online or take them to markets around Machakos and Nairobi.
To earn more money, instead of selling raw fruits, you can make juices and jams. Remember to get certified by relevant bodies such as the Kenya Bureau of Standards.
Strawberry Market in Kenya - Strawberry Farming
You don't need to be an agricultural expert to successfully Strawberry Farming. All you have to do is find good land (eg in Isinya, Machakos, Kiambu, Nakuru, Naivasha, Kilifi...or anywhere near a potential market).
The fruits are sold locally or exported. Its demand is available in major urban markets, supermarkets and marketing companies such as Brookside, Trufood, KCC, among others.
Next you need to find the right seedlings, and this is where you need to contact KARI for help. Alternatively, you can talk to other successful farmers in your area for help in getting the right harvest.
Conclusion – Strawberry farming
Strawberry farming can be a lucrative opportunity for people willing to invest their money, time and sweat. Like most worthwhile endeavors, it takes patience and perseverance to reap the rewards.
You don't need to be an agricultural expert to successfully Strawberry Farming. All you have to do is find good land (eg in Isinya, Machakos, Kiambu, Nakuru, Naivasha, Kilifi...or anywhere near a potential market).
Next you need to find the right seedlings, and this is where you need to contact KARI for help. Alternatively, you can talk to other successful farmers in your area for help in getting the right harvest.
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1 Comments
Strawberry farming. Nice write up. I have learned a lot
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