Mr. Vijay Bhairavnath Dhanawade Satara, Maharashtra. |
Total area: Irrigated land 5 acres |
Vijay Bhairavnath Dhanawade is a graduate farmer from his village, who emphasizes more on cash crops. In the last 2-3 years, to increase productivity in agriculture he started the cultivation of strawberry crops. While cultivating strawberries he had to spend a lot on chemical fertilizers. But, excessive use of chemicals weakened the crops. Due to the low shelf life of these fruits, he was not getting the expected market rate. In the current season, Mr. Dhanawade planted two varieties of strawberries- Winter and R-1 (based on early fruiting and late fruiting) varieties on mulching paper. Biofit products were used from the beginning while cultivating the crop.
Biofit N.P.K. and Biofit Shet 200 ml/100 l each were used with water 5 times at an interval of 15 days. This caused a reduction in the additional cost of chemical fertilizers as well as an improvement in the soil texture. Biofit Steamrich + Bio 99 was sprayed every 15 days for qualitative branch growth and for boosting the flowering and fruiting of the strawberry crop. As a preventive measure against fungal diseases and sucking insects, different sprays of Biofit Rapup and Intact were sprayed at an interval of 15 days. Due to this, the use of chemical drugs was reduced. It helped to enhance the natural immunity of the crop, and also increased the durability of the fruit.
Differences between previous strawberry crop and Biofit strawberry crop
Previous strawberry crop :
- Production cost/10 gunthas: Rs.1,05,000
- Average yield/10 gunthas: 4500 kg.
- Market rate: Rs. 70 kg
- Total income/10 gunthas: Rs.3,15,000
- Net profit/10 gunthas: Rs.2,10,000
Biofit strawberry crop :
- Production cost/10 gunthas: Rs.1,07,000
- Average yield/10 gunthas: 5200 kg
- Market rate: Rs. 90 kg
- Total income/10 gunthas: Rs.4,68,000
- Net profit/10 gunthas: Rs.3,61,000
Considering the natural colour, juiciness, and longer shelf life of strawberry fruits he received a high price in the current season.