The harvest maturity in Dashehari and Langra cultivars reaches 12 weeks after fruit set, while in Chausa and Mallika it takes about 15 weeks. The best way to observe maturity in mango is the colour of the pulp which turns cream to light yellow on maturity and hardening of the stone. The fruits should not be allowed to fall on the ground as the injured fruits cause spoilage to other healthy fruits during packaging and storage. Fruits harvested with 8-10 mm long stalks appear better on ripening as undesired spots on skin caused by sap burn are prevented. Such fruits are less prone to stem-end rot and other storage diseases .
Traditional methods consume a lot of energy.
To overcome these problems, a simple, low cost and portable mango harvesting device has been designed and developed at CISH, Lucknow. Mango fruits are taken into the pouch and held between the divider and knife and as the device is pulled the blade cuts the pedicel. The fruits are then conveyed through a nylon chute to collecting boxes without bringing down the device every time. This saves time and protects fruits from mechanical damage due to impact. It also protects operator s hand from the sap which oozes out from the point of detachment.