The cement man with a big hand for strawberries

Portland Managing Director Kephar Tande in his strawberry farm in Kajiado County. PHOTO | NATION

What you need to know:

  • It is a modest amount for a CEO, but for Tande, the motivation is not the money. He loves seeing his strawberries blossom and turn red when they ripe.
  • Generally, strawberries do well in areas with temperatures of between 10 and 30 degrees Celsius. This means they can grow in most parts of the country.

Once in a while, East African Portland Cement Company managing director Kephar Tande gathers a group of eager farmers at his strawberry farm in Lower Matasia, Kajiado to dispense lessons on how to grow the fruit.

Tande, who confesses his love for strawberry juice and pudding, is just one of the few farmers who are reaping the benefits of growing an often overlooked fruit that nutritionists say has immense value.  He started to grow strawberries a few years ago after an encounter with some farmers who were cultivating the fruit in Naivasha.

Today, Tande who has taken to growing strawberry as a hobby on his one-acre farm, which he calls a ‘kitchen garden’ says the farm produces more than enough for domestic consumption.

“We sell the extra produce to shops in Nairobi. We harvest three times in a year and each harvest produces 200 kilogrammes. This is what is packaged and sold,” says Tande.

The wholesale price for 250 grams of the packaged fruit is Sh100. This means the 600 kilogrammes harvested from Tande’s farm fetches Sh240,000 annually.

It is a modest amount for a CEO, but for Tande, the motivation is not the money. He loves seeing his strawberries blossom and turn red when they ripe.

Satisfaction also comes when he helps farmers, who regularly flock to his farm to learn how to grow the fruit, cultivate interest in it. “We teach them how to prepare the beds, make the crop weed-free to promote healthier growth and crop rotation. We rotate with onions or capsicum after three years to keep the soil in good quality and keep away diseases. It’s important for potential farmers to learn all these,” says Tande.

In Kenya, strawberry seeds can be acquired from commercial enterprises. All an aspiring farmer needs to do is to place an order with a grower like Strawberry Seedlings, which is based in Karatina. The seedlings are usually delivered in three days.

Prices vary from between Sh10 to Sh20 per stem. Despite the high initial investment cost, returns are high.

According to Tande, in favourable conditions, strawberry beds can grow for 10 years, but the yield always declines each year. Pests and diseases become more problematic in older beds.

This makes it important to rotate crops. The key to growing strawberries begins with good soil drainage. Traditionally, strawberries are grown on a raised mound to ensure enough drainage. “This ensures enough supply of water to feed the drip irrigation. I have created a water pan where all the rainwater harvested from the homestead drains. It is then channelled to the farm by gravity.”

But the flow of water is just a tip of what is required. All the processes are detailed such that even the placement of new strawberry plants requires great attention.

“This is because a plant buried too deep will suffocate and rot, whereas placing it too shallow will leave the crown of the plant exposed. There has to be balance for the plant to survive,” explains Tande.

Strawberry farmers provide raw material for a diverse value chain that includes fruit salads, jam, milkshakes and smoothies.

Generally, strawberries do well in areas with temperatures of between 10 and 30 degrees Celsius. This means they can grow in most parts of the country.

But despite the crops’ good resistance to fungi and disease, to start, one will still require a piece of fertile land. In the first month, the first and second flowers should be deflowered to prevent premature cropping, and the crops top-dressed with fertiliser.

Mulching also needs to be done. Tande advises that dry grass or hay can be used to help prevent the soil from losing essential water and to provide a soft bed to cushion the emerging fruits, keeping them clean and enhancing their aesthetic value. Harvesting is done after every three months and can be done continuously with the plant being able to flower and fruit for three years.

It all sounds rosy, but Tande says growing strawberries also has a downside because it attracts a lot of birds.

“If you have a problem with birds wanting to nibble on your strawberries, you should consider putting up a fence, netting the garden or erecting a scarecrow,” he advises.