POST HARVEST MANAGEMENT OF CUT FLOWERS

PRESENTED BY: SHILPA.Y.A MK 833 III B.Sc (Ag.Maco)

Cut Flower may be defined as flower or an inflorescence containing more than one floral unit in the opened or unopened state which is harvested and marketed for ornamental. Cut flowers in general are highly perishable commodities and highly vulnerable to huge post harvest losses. Most of the cut flowers complete their life cycle in two distinct phases. The first stage is of flower bud growth and development of the flower to full opening. The second stage is maturation, senescence and wilting.

 Most

of the cut flowers complete their life cycle in two distinct phases. The first stage is of flower bud growth and development of the flower to full opening. The second stage is maturation, senescence and wilting. Some of the cut flowers are, Anthurium, Orchid (tropical), Carnation, Chrysanthemum, Gerbera, Roses, Tuberose, Gladiolus, Tulips, Marigold, Aster, Cymbidiums and Lillies.

Post Harvest Handling Chain Of Cut Flowers

HARVESTING CONDITIONING PRE-COOLING PULSING GRADING BUNCHING WRAPPING PACKING(WET OR DRY) STORAGE/TRANSIT TRANSPORT SALES

HARVESTING Harvesting is the process of detaching flowers from the plant in a scientific way using sterilized equipments. Harvesting techniques Stage of maturity at harvest affects flower quality and longevity. Flowers can be harvested at; Bud stage When petals are fully open.

CONDITIONING Conditioning or hardening is a simple process where the flowers are kept or made to stand loosely in a big container of water so the air circulates around the stems. The main purpose of this treatment is to restore turgidity of cut flowers after they have suffered from water stress during handling in the field, greenhouse or during storage and transport.

PRE-COOLING Packed or unpacked flowers have to pre-cooled before storage or shipment, Time between harvest and pre-cooling should be as short as possible. PULSING The absorption of chemical solution containing sugar and germicides trough the lower cut portion of flower stems is known as pulsing. This treatment should be performed under temperature of 20-250 c at light intensity of 2000 lux.

GRADING Damaged or diseased blooms have to be discarded. Diseased flowers will contaminate others. Hence only good quality flowers should be stored. Grading is also done based on size, flower quality and also based on the standards recommended for various cut flowers. BUNCHING Flowers should be bunched before storage and tying should be firm but not too tight.

WRAPPING o Just before packing the flowers in cartons, flowers are wrapped individually in thin polythene sleeves. PACKING o Packing is done to protect flowers from physical damage, waterloss and external conditions during trans port. o Packing can take many forms from flower cups up to sleeves, boxes, bulk bins, sea and air containers.

STORAGE There are two types of storage methods, namely Wet storage, where flowers are kept during storage with their bases in water for short period. Dry storage, fresh flowers are harvested in the morning, graded and sealed in plastic bags or boxes for longer periods. SALES The packed and safely transported flowers ultimately reach the sales centers from where the customers purchase them.