Let's talk about strawberries and its sweet returns

The production of strawberries in Kenya is steadily on the increase despite huge expenses incurred in terms of initial capital, water and seeds.

Leah Kiptoo, a small scale farmer in Flax, Elgeyo Marakwet County, is one of the few Kenyans who have ventured into this lucrative activity.

Her strawberries are the biggest source of pride and joy.

Having started planting the fruit in a quarter-acre farm, Leah now has a single greenhouse where she started harvesting the fruit within two months of planting.

According to her, it takes 70 days for one to get their first harvest. This will continue for up to three years with two to three harvesting seasons every year.

“At first, I was not optimistic about strawberries because of market challenges. It is also an expensive venture when starting off. The seed is costly with one split going for at least Sh200. The greenhouse cost Sh80,000 but the returns are enormous,”says Leah who plants chandler strawberries--one of the most favoured species.

With more than 1,000 splits, Leah harvests her strawberries after every three days. Each harvest gives her approximately 100 kilogrammes. A kilogramme cost Sh150 but she also sells her produce directly to willing buyers who visit her farm frequently.

This means that she earns at least Sh100,000 every month when the yields are low and Sh200,000 when the yields are high.

Strawberries, she says, are grown from splits and perform best under temperatures of between ten degrees celsius and 30 degrees celsius. Therefore, they can grow in every part of the country. Manure can be used instead of fertiliser further minimising costs.

So what does it take for one to produce healthy strawberries?

“One has to prepare the land well. Mix the topsoil with manure from the edge of the bed. One has to leave a space of 15cm to make a small hole for the plants, 30cm from plant to plant and 30cm from line to line in an isolated triangle to give the plants enough space to flower on all sides,” she says.

She ensures the fruits get enough water since she makes use of drip irrigation system.

But this lucrative venture does not come without challenges.

One big headache is attacks from pests and diseases. Ants are also a big threat to strawberries. The solution is a good pesticide.

“During the rainy season, the strawberry is attacked by fungal diseases, which target the leaves leaving brown spots. When this happens, I spray with a fungicide to fight the diseases,” she says.

Top dressing with CAN as well as deflowering the first and second flowers prevents premature cropping.

Mulching is also done at this stage. Here, dry grass or hay is used to help the soil retain water and to keep the fruits clean and healthy.

The fact that strawberries are harvested for three years continuously is more reason why Leah is optimistic that throughout this production period, she will make more money and expand her business.

Her husband Aron Kiptoo, reiterates that one cannot fail to sell strawberries as they are always in high demand.

“The good thing is that you can propagate the seedling from your plantation as long as the propagules are disease-free. Just like grass, you can expand your plantation size without necessarily going to the seedling supplier again,”Mr Kiptoo says.

Because not many people engage in strawberry farming in Kenya, the crop is scarce, which makes it expensive, thus guaranteeing good returns for farmers.

Not only does the crop draw high value locally, but there also exists a rich export market for well-grown strawberries.