This crop keeps gaining ground in a system that saves fertilizer and water. Up to 45% more production vs. soil.
Mexican strawberry production has established itself as one of the strongest crops, placing our country third worldwide, with average production of 639,000 tons over the last five years, worth US$784 million.
Michoacán is the leading producer of this fruit, with 431,000 tons, and in recent years it has been paving the way for technology adoption by growing it successfully in hydroponics.
One such success story is Jorge Narváez, a strawberry grower in Indaparapeo, Michoacán, who a couple of years ago chose to use hydroponics on some of his hectares, with the help of coconut fiber.
CHARACTERISTICS OF HIS PRODUCTION:
- 3.3 ha of hydroponic strawberry production
- 5 plants per linear meter
- 6 liters of substrate minimum per plant.
- 20 cm between plants
- 14 macrotunnels = 1 ha = 14,000 substrate grow bags.
- 200 substrate grow bags per row (two 100-meter lines per row)
- 1,000 grow bags per 5 rows = 1 macrotunnel
- 10,000 boxes per ha
- 84,000 plants per ha = density
Using the Cabrillo variety, which he brings in directly from Chile, Narváez is achieving a density of 84,000 plants per hectare, compared with 45,000 in soil.
“My experience with hydroponics is that crop management becomes more practical and simpler. At first, irrigation and nutrition were a challenge, but once we understood them, everything became easier. As for pests and diseases, the plant gets sick much less, and it really does give you more export boxes because the product is of higher quality,” he says.
He adds that hydroponics has opened doors for him in the market: in soil he gets up to 6,500 boxes per hectare, compared with over 10,000 in coconut substrate, and he aims to reach 14,000 next year.
ADVANTAGES OF GROWING HYDROPONIC STRAWBERRIES:
- Up to 45% more production vs. soil.
- Lower labor costs.
- Plant longevity (it can last up to a cycle and a half).
- Savings on fertilizer and water.
GUTTER SYSTEM:
Jorge is currently implementing another model for planting hydroponic strawberries: instead of using bags, he places the substrate directly in gutters, with the two plant lines on top.
This way, irrigation is simpler and more uniform. For now he has 3.3 ha in bags and will add 7 new hectares in gutters to test this adaptation.
