Impact of Biofertilizer Combinations on Quality, Yield, and Economic Returns of Strawberry in Central Region of Punjab, India

Abstract

Strawberry is a globally cherished fruit, celebrated for their sweet flavor, vibrant color, and rich nutritional profile. The use of biofertilizers in strawberry cultivation is gaining importance in India due to their eco-friendly and sustainable nature. Biofertilizers enhance soil fertility by promoting beneficial microbial activity, which improves nutrient availability and uptake by strawberry plants. This leads to healthier crops with better yields and quality by reduced application of inorganic fertilisers. It ultimately benefits both the environment and farmers' long-term productivity. The experimental results revealed that T8 (RDF + Azotobacter @ 2g/plant + PSB @2g/plant + Azospirillum @2g/plant) significantly increased the plant height (16.82 cm), plant spread (32.78 cm), fruit length (45.88 mm), breadth (38.96 mm), weight (12.76 g), TSS (9.42 °Brix), anthocyanin content (26.14 mg/100g) and yield attributes i.e., yield plant-1 (238.88 g) and yield hectare-1 (13.14 t/ha). It also found that the plants treated with T8 (RDF + Azotobacter @2g/plant + PSB @2g/plant + Azospirillum @2g/plant) had maximum leaf nutritional content, namely -  nitrogen (3.09%), phosphorus (1.37%), potassium (3.39%), calcium (2.37%) and magnesium (0.39%) and also gave highest net return i.e., Rs 16,61,790 /ha with highest B:C ratio of 3.77. Hence, it can be concluded that the treatment T8 is most suitable for improving the quality, yield and economic return of strawberry in central region of Punjub.