From the Field: Huma® Improves Soil Health and Strawberries in Guatemala

In the highlands of Guatemala, near the capital, is a small stronghold for berries. Strawberry production in Guatemala covers about 3,000 hectares in total, yet it yields nearly 14,000 tons of fresh strawberries annually, with 7,000 tons exported to neighboring countries. During my previous visits to Guatemala, I often passed by local strawberry farms, which are either contracted with larger producers or sold in local markets. I was curious to learn how our Huma products were being applied on one of these local strawberry farms.

Our importer, Jorge Castillo of BioExports SA, shared his experience of using Huma® products on a local strawberry farm with 4,000 plants. Our liquid solutions were used to provide nutrition and improve soil health by eliminating pathogens and creating a healthy root zone.

Soil Preparation
Before new strawberry beds were planted, the soil was sterilized with 6L/ha of Promax®, a fungicide and nematicide that uses thyme oil to kill soil pathogens. After 20 days, Zap® was applied at a rate of 6L/ha to restore the beneficial soil microbes and help prepare the strawberry beds for transplanting. This combination of products helped to create a healthy, disease-free in preparation for transplanting.

Soil Health Maintenance
After planting, a blend of Huma®’s carbon-based soil products, Fertil Soil® (Soil Max), Fertil Humus® (Lase), X-Tend®, and Zap® was applied to the soil via drip at a rate of 300mL to every 200 L of water. Each product creates a unique effect in the soil, from feeding soil microbes to stimulating root hair production, and interacting with soil particles to make nutrients more available. This combination produced a nutrient-rich soil and kept the strawberry beds disease-free.

Microbial Synergy

In addition to Huma® soil products and Huma® nutrition, a microbial inoculant of 10 different microbes was applied. In some cases, microbial inoculants have difficulty growing after being applied to the soil. Huma®’s combination of soil products provides a food source for these inoculants, stimulating an explosion of growth and enhancing the benefits of applied microbes.

Huma®’s liquid products have been proven in strawberries throughout the world improving ROI significantly. Please contact your Huma® sales representative to obtain additional research reports and learn more about how we can improve your production.