Harvesting and post harvest operations

The plant starts flowering in 2-3 months after planting based on the variety. The entire spikes along with two leaves are cut, when the basal flower bud starts opening. Always cut flowers early morning. Nearly 2 lakh flower spikes can be obtained from one hectare.

After harvest of flowers, the plants are left undisturbed in the field. When they start yellowing, the plants are uprooted for harvest of corms and cormels.

Dry the corms in a well ventilated room for no direct sunlight on the corms. After the drying period remove remaining soil and root. Disinfect the corms and pack in gunny bags and place them in plastic crates.

Store the corms for a period of 10 to 12 weeks in a cold storage at +2⁰C. Make sure that there is plenty of ventilation in the cold storage. After twelve weeks the corms are ready for planting again.