Impact of Soil-Applied Biopesticides on Yield and the Postharvest Quality of Strawberry Fruits in Southeast Texas

Production of organic strawberries in Texas is becoming more popular because consum-ers prefer locally grown berries and are willing to pay premium prices. However, local climatic conditions pose a high risk of insect problems and fungal diseases, and hence ef-fective pest and disease management strategies are needed. Developing effective and safe methods of producing organic strawberries is necessary for meeting local consumer demand. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impacts of selected commercially available soil-applied biopesticides on yield and the quality of Camino Real strawberries established using bare roots on plastic mulch covered-beds with drip irrigation. The ten biopesticide treatments were replicated three times in a completely randomized design. The berries used for this study were subsampled from harvests made in mid-April, late-April, and mid-May 2019. Yield, weight loss, biometrical characteristics, and physicochemical analyses such as pH, acidity, total soluble solids, sugars and organic acid contents, firmness, and instrumental color were determined after each harvest period of the fresh strawberries. Experimental data were analyzed using the PROC Mixed model procedure of SAS. The biopesticides showed no negative effects on yield and fruit quality and thus they could serve as alternatives to conventional products used.