Harvesting mangoes is a delicate process. Kenya Agricultural Research Institute estimated that close to half of mangoes harvested in Kenya are lost to pests, diseases, and improper harvesting and handling techniques. What measures should you take when harvesting mangoes, to ensure they reach the market in good quality? Read on to learn the best practices for harvesting mangoes.
When to Harvest Mangoes
Harvesting of mangoes occurs when the fruit matures, which is usually 3 to 5 months after flowering. A good tip would be to harvest the mangoes before they ripen since they will continue ripening after detachment from the tree.
The maturity indicators to use when harvesting mangoes are:
Peel Colour Change
After maturity, mangoes begin to ripen, during which their skin colour changes from green to yellow, or green to red/purple, depending on the variety. You will know that the mangoes are ready for harvest when you see yellow spots or pink blushes on the mango skin.
The Downside
Peel colour, especially in mango varieties that ripen to red or purple is not a dependable harvesting indicator.
Flesh Colour Change
Checking the mango’s flesh colour, as an indicator for maturity will require you to sample and cut. The flesh colour changes from green to yellow.
The Downside
Flesh colour change is rarely accurate because it bunks on the assumption that the sampled mangoes accurately represent the whole lot.
Shoulder Development
A mature mango has outgrown shoulders that form a depression where the stalk had attached.
Fruit Firmness
You can measure firmness with either a penetrometer or by pressing with your thumb. This maturity index shows that the mango is at the ripening stage hence is ready for harvest.
Hard Mango Stone
A hard mango stone indicates that the fruit is mature.
The Downside
This maturity index requires you to sample and assume that the selected mangoes accurately represent the others in the lot.
Brix value
The Brix value measures the total number of soluble sugars in fruit. In other words, it indicates that the mango is sweetening. Brix is measured with a refractometer, and the value is denoted as a percentage. If the Brix value is between 8% and 10%, the mangoes are mature and ready to harvest. For a fully ripe mango, it ranges between 12% and 15%.
The Downside
Brix is also a destructive test that calls for sampling.
Specific Gravity
Fully mature mangoes have a specific gravity that is higher than 1. Since water has a specific gravity of 1, you can use a float test to assess maturity. If the mangoes sink slowly, they are mature, but if they float, they are immature. If they sink quickly, they are ripe.
These maturity indicators are not 100% accurate, but when combined, they are reliable. You do not have to do all the maturity tests, just the ones you know.
Mango Harvesting Month is Kenya
The seasons for harvesting mangoes vary with region and variety. The mango varieties commonly grown in Kenya are
- Apple
- Haden
- Kent
- Sensation
- Tommy
- Atkins
- Van Dyke
- Kensington
- Keitt
Selina Wamucii has a detailed description of the physical attributes of these varieties.
| Mango Harvesting Season | Region in Kenya | Varieties in the Market |
| Dec-March | Eastern and Central Kenya | Unknown |
| Nov – Feb | Coastal Region | Ngowe
Apple |
| May – Aug | Coastal Regions | Kensington |
| Jan – Feb | Eastern and Coastal Regions | Van Dyke
Haden Sabine |
| Feb – March | Eastern and Central Regions | Kent
Parvin |
How to Harvest Mangoes
Mangoes can be harvested in one of these four ways;
By hand
Harvesting mangoes by hand is ideal when the fruit is low hanging and easily reachable.
Using pruning shears or a picking stick
Harvesting mangoes with shears or a picking stick is more convenient since you won’t have to keep tugging the mangoes with your hand. You just cut the stem with the shear and pull.
With a Machine Harvester
Harvesting mangoes with a machine is more convenient if your product is for commercial purposes. The machine harvester helps pick, wash and package the mangoes. Research suggests that it can harvest approximately 500 to 700 mangoes per hour.
Using a Hydraulic Ladder
A hydraulic ladder is an alternative to the mango machine harvester. It plays the same roles of picking, washing and packing only that one person rides it. The hydraulic ladder can rotate up to 360 degrees, both clockwise and anti-clockwise, enabling you to cover four mango trees per stop.
Mango harvesting Tips
- When harvesting, leave at approximately 4 inches of the stem attached to the mango. If shorter, a sticky stem sap might ooze and cause damage to the mango skin.
- Before packing the mangoes, reduce the 4 inches to a quarter-inch, then wash the mango in a mango wash to remove the stem sap.
- The stem sap should not stay in contact with the mango skin, your skin or that of other pickers. If it touches the mango, it will burn the skin, and reduce the mango’s visual qualities.
- The sap might as well cause a rash or irritate your skin or that of other pickers. Wash off immediately with soap and rinse with water.
- Wash off the stem sap by dipping the mango in a mango wash or, by running mango wash from a tap for at least one minute before packing.
- Mangoes are usually harvested when the climate is hot. Drink enough water during breaks to refresh and reenergize.
Do’s When Harvesting Mangoes
- Pick mature mangoes only
- Wear protective clothing
- Be gentle when handling the mangoes
- Wash off the stem sap from the mango skin
- Ensure the sap doesn’t touch your skin or that of others
What Clothing Should You Wear when Harvesting Mangoes?
- Wide hat – To protect from sunburn.
- Safety boots or shoes
- Long sleeve shirt and long trousers – to prevent sap from reaching your skin
- Safety Gloves – To prevent sap from touching your skin.
- Sunglasses – to protect your eyes from the sap.
Post-harvest Handling
The quality of mangoes is a measure of both the visual and the eating quality. The first thing that consumers find appealing is the colour. They associate the mango’s appearance to its taste. How should you handle the mangoes to ensure they reach the market in the best state? Well, below are a few post-harvest practices to tackle.
Grading
After harvesting, sort the mangoes by removing the immature, damaged and overripe ones, then grade the good batch according to colour, weight and size. Grading the mangoes will enable them to ripen uniformly during storage or transportation.
Packaging
Mangoes are packaged in wooden boxes, cartons or crates. The most preferred packaging, especially for export, is CFB boxes. These boxes are corrugated to suit the ripening needs of mangoes.
Storage
The storage conditions you choose will depend on whether you want to hasten the ripening process or extend shelf life. For the former, store the mangoes at room temperature in an enclosed but slightly ventilated packaging material. Ventilation will allow oxygen to enter, and carbon (IV) oxide, emitted during ripening, to exit.
If you intend to increase shelf life and reduce ripening, store the mangoes at 10 to 13 degrees Celsius. Storing at temperatures below 10 degrees might cause chilling injury, which bruises the mangoes and reduces their visual quality.
Which Injuries Can Occur on Harvesting Mangoes?
- Cuts and scratches – when hit by the secateurs or picking stick during harvest
- Abrasion – when rubbed against other surfaces especially during transportation
- Stem puncture – when a mango stem that wasn’t detached completely bruises other mangoes
Closing Remarks
During harvesting is when most mangoes are lost. Practising proper harvesting and handling techniques will ensure that you have more good quality products to sell, which translates to more profits. If you are looking for a market, you can register as a vendor, on Kilimogram. We will connect you to buyers and other stakeholders in agriculture. We hope you have found this article informative. If you have any questions or comments, don’t hesitate to tell us below. Until then, Happy Harvesting!
