Commercial Floriculture

Time of harvesting

• The flowers should be cut before sunrise i.e. early morning or late in the afternoon when the sun is about to set so as to avoid damage of buds due to high temperature during the day.
• Late harvest result in short vase life of cut flower and low oil content.
• In greenhouses for every two hours flowers can be harvested. The stem cut should always be given above a healthy outward pointing bud with clean and sharp secateurs.
• It has to be cut above two five leaflet leaves. The cutting of the stem just above the ‘Knuckle’ (i.e., the point at which the shoot originate is called ‘Knuckle’) significantly reduces the flower yield per plant compared to the cutting made above the 1st or 2nd five leaflet leaf stage.