A field experiment was carried out during the 2024/2025 season at Baraka Farm in the Lanet area of Nakuru County, Kenya, approximately 10 kilometers northeast of Nakuru city center. The study aimed to evaluate the effects of different fertilizers, BSF frass (black soldier fly excreta), KUZA, and NPK 17:17:17 on the growth, yield, and postharvest quality of the Chandler strawberry variety under field conditions. A randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replicates was used. Data were collected on the number of leaves and flowers, plant height, yield, total soluble solids (TSS), firmness and titrable acidity. Results indicated that the number of leaves and flowers per plant, plant height was significantly (p ≤ 0.05) influenced by both season and fertilizer treatment. NPK (17:17:17) consistently produced the highest leaves counts at all growth. High fruit firmness values were obtained in the strawberries subjected to NPK 17:17:17 followed by BSF frass. BSF frass also resulted in relatively high acidity suggesting it can maintain acidity close to that of NPK. Application of frass, particularly from BSF frass substrates, led to improved strawberry vegetative growth, higher yields, and enhanced postharvest fruit quality. The study offers important insights into the potential of BSF frass as a suitable organic fertilizer, its role in reducing synthetic inputs and its contribution to improving both productivity and quality of strawberry.
| Published in | International Journal of Applied Agricultural Sciences (Volume 12, Issue 1) |
| DOI | 10.11648/j.ijaas.20261201.11 |
| Page(s) | 1-11 |
| Creative Commons |
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited. |
| Copyright |
Copyright © The Author(s), 2026. Published by Science Publishing Group |
Strawberry, BSF Frass, Growth, Yield, Quality
| [1] | Akter, S., Haque, M. A., Islam, M. S. (2020). Effect of organic and inorganic fertilizers on the growth and yield of strawberry. Asian Journal of Agricultural and Horticultural Research, 6(2), 12–20. |
| [2] | Beesigamukama D., Mochoge B., Korir N. K., Fiaboe K. K. M., Nakimbugwe D., Khamis F. M., Subramanian S., Dubois T., Musyoka M. W., Ekesi S (2020). Exploring black soldier fly frass as novel fertilizer for improved growth, yield, and nitrogen use efficiency of maize under field conditions. Frontier in Plant Science 11: 574592. |
| [3] | Britannica, T. (2020). Editors of Encyclopaedia. In Argon. Edinburgh: Encyclopedia Britannica. |
| [4] | Capocasa, F.; Balducci, F.; Di Vittori, L.; Mazzoni, L.; Stewart, D.; Williams, S.; Hargreaves, R.; Bernardini, D.; Danesi, L.; Zhong, C.-F.. Romina and Cristina (2016): Two new strawberry cultivars with high sensorial and nutritional values. International Journal of Fruit Science, 16:(1) 207–219. |
| [5] | El-Shazly, S. M., Abd El-Migeed, M. M. M., & Khalil, A. A. (2021). Effect of NPK fertilization on growth and fruiting of strawberry under Egyptian conditions. Middle East Journal of Agriculture Research, 10(3), 1012–1020. |
| [6] | Giampieri, F.; Tulipani, S.; Alvarez-Suarez, J. M.; Quiles, J. L.; Mezzetti, B.; Battino, M. (2012). The strawberry: Composition, nutritional quality, and impact on human health. Nutrition, 28, 9–19. |
| [7] | Gold M., Von Allmen F., Zurbrügg C., Zhang J., Mathys A (2020). Identification of bacteria in two food waste black soldier fly larvae rearing residues. Front. Microbiology. 11: 582-867. |
| [8] | Horticultural Crop Directorate (2018). Annual crop production Report. HCD. |
| [9] | Islam, M. T., Mele, M. A., Bahar, M. M., & Sabatino, L. (2020). Influence of nutrient management on strawberry yield and fruit quality: A review. Agronomy, 10(11), 1724. |
| [10] | Kumar R. Chandini, R. Kumar, O. Prakash (2019). The impact of chemical fertilizers on our environment and ecosystem thesis work view project natural products view project Chief Education, 35 (2019), pp. 69-89. |
| [11] | Lalander C., Diener S., Zurbrügg C., Vinnerås B. (2019). Effects of feedstock on larval development and process efficiency in waste treatment with black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens) Journal of Cleaner Production; 208: 211–219. |
| [12] | Moustafa, Y. M., Fawzi, M. M., & Abo Sedera, F. A. (2022). Influence of potassium fertilization on yield and quality of strawberry. Scientia Horticulturae, 291, 110-597. |
| [13] | Mulyono, S., Rachmawati, R., & Kristanto, A. W. (2022). Utilization of black soldier fly frass as a sustainable organic fertilizer: Impacts on soil fertility and crop yield. International Journal of Recycling of Organic Waste in Agriculture, 11, 347–356. |
| [14] | John, A. (1994). Fruit size and general characteristics of strawberry varieties. Infos-Paris, 117, 19-23. |
| [15] | Sabbadini, S.; Capocasa, F.; Battino, M.; Mazzoni, L.; Mezzetti, B (2021). Improved nutritional quality in fruit tree species through traditional and biotechnological approaches. Trends Food Science and Technology. 117, 125–138. |
| [16] | Zhang, J., Liu, J., & Zhou, H. (2022). Effect of seasonal climate variation on sugar accumulation in strawberries. Agronomy, 12(2), 365. |
| [17] | Zhang, Y., Dong, Y., & Wang, H. (2018). Climate variability and strawberry productivity: A case study. Field Crops Research, 225, 30–38. |
| [18] | Chowhan, S., Uddin, M. Z., Kakon, S. M., & Zaman, M. M. (2016). Evaluation of nutritive value and shelf life of strawberry genotypes. Asian Journal of Medical and Biological Research, 2(1), 19–26. |
| [19] | Chowhan, S., Uddin, M. Z., Kakon, S. M., & Zaman, M. M. (2016). Yield performance of strawberry genotypes. Bangladesh Journal of Agricultural Research, 41(3), 481–489. |
APA Style
Nyamoita, G. S., Arnold, W., Morwani, G. R. (2026). Effects of Organic Fertilizers on Growth, Yield and Quality of Strawberry (Fragaria × ananassa) VAR. Chandler in Nakuru, Kenya. International Journal of Applied Agricultural Sciences, 12(1), 1-11. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijaas.20261201.11
ACS Style
Nyamoita, G. S.; Arnold, W.; Morwani, G. R. Effects of Organic Fertilizers on Growth, Yield and Quality of Strawberry (Fragaria × ananassa) VAR. Chandler in Nakuru, Kenya. Int. J. Appl. Agric. Sci. 2026, 12(1), 1-11. doi: 10.11648/j.ijaas.20261201.11
Share This Article
Twitter
Linked In
Facebook
Copy
Download@article{10.11648/j.ijaas.20261201.11,
author = {Gichaba Sarah Nyamoita and Watako Arnold and Gesimba Robert Morwani},
title = {Effects of Organic Fertilizers on Growth, Yield and Quality of Strawberry (Fragaria × ananassa) VAR. Chandler in Nakuru, Kenya},
journal = {International Journal of Applied Agricultural Sciences},
volume = {12},
number = {1},
pages = {1-11},
doi = {10.11648/j.ijaas.20261201.11},
url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijaas.20261201.11},
eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijaas.20261201.11},
abstract = {A field experiment was carried out during the 2024/2025 season at Baraka Farm in the Lanet area of Nakuru County, Kenya, approximately 10 kilometers northeast of Nakuru city center. The study aimed to evaluate the effects of different fertilizers, BSF frass (black soldier fly excreta), KUZA, and NPK 17:17:17 on the growth, yield, and postharvest quality of the Chandler strawberry variety under field conditions. A randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replicates was used. Data were collected on the number of leaves and flowers, plant height, yield, total soluble solids (TSS), firmness and titrable acidity. Results indicated that the number of leaves and flowers per plant, plant height was significantly (p ≤ 0.05) influenced by both season and fertilizer treatment. NPK (17:17:17) consistently produced the highest leaves counts at all growth. High fruit firmness values were obtained in the strawberries subjected to NPK 17:17:17 followed by BSF frass. BSF frass also resulted in relatively high acidity suggesting it can maintain acidity close to that of NPK. Application of frass, particularly from BSF frass substrates, led to improved strawberry vegetative growth, higher yields, and enhanced postharvest fruit quality. The study offers important insights into the potential of BSF frass as a suitable organic fertilizer, its role in reducing synthetic inputs and its contribution to improving both productivity and quality of strawberry.},
year = {2026}
}
TY - JOUR T1 - Effects of Organic Fertilizers on Growth, Yield and Quality of Strawberry (Fragaria × ananassa) VAR. Chandler in Nakuru, Kenya AU - Gichaba Sarah Nyamoita AU - Watako Arnold AU - Gesimba Robert Morwani Y1 - 2026/01/30 PY - 2026 N1 - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijaas.20261201.11 DO - 10.11648/j.ijaas.20261201.11 T2 - International Journal of Applied Agricultural Sciences JF - International Journal of Applied Agricultural Sciences JO - International Journal of Applied Agricultural Sciences SP - 1 EP - 11 PB - Science Publishing Group SN - 2469-7885 UR - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijaas.20261201.11 AB - A field experiment was carried out during the 2024/2025 season at Baraka Farm in the Lanet area of Nakuru County, Kenya, approximately 10 kilometers northeast of Nakuru city center. The study aimed to evaluate the effects of different fertilizers, BSF frass (black soldier fly excreta), KUZA, and NPK 17:17:17 on the growth, yield, and postharvest quality of the Chandler strawberry variety under field conditions. A randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replicates was used. Data were collected on the number of leaves and flowers, plant height, yield, total soluble solids (TSS), firmness and titrable acidity. Results indicated that the number of leaves and flowers per plant, plant height was significantly (p ≤ 0.05) influenced by both season and fertilizer treatment. NPK (17:17:17) consistently produced the highest leaves counts at all growth. High fruit firmness values were obtained in the strawberries subjected to NPK 17:17:17 followed by BSF frass. BSF frass also resulted in relatively high acidity suggesting it can maintain acidity close to that of NPK. Application of frass, particularly from BSF frass substrates, led to improved strawberry vegetative growth, higher yields, and enhanced postharvest fruit quality. The study offers important insights into the potential of BSF frass as a suitable organic fertilizer, its role in reducing synthetic inputs and its contribution to improving both productivity and quality of strawberry. VL - 12 IS - 1 ER -
Department of Plant, Animal and Food Sciences, Jaramogi Oginga Odinga University of Science and Technology, Bondo, Kenya
Department of Plant, Animal and Food Sciences, Jaramogi Oginga Odinga University of Science and Technology, Bondo, Kenya
Department of Crops, Horticulture and Soils, Egerton University, Nakuru, Kenya
Information