Harvesting and Postharvest management of kiwi

Harvesting and Postharvest management

        It takes 4–5 years for a kiwi vine to start bearing worthwhile fruits and 7–8 years for commercial production. The harvesting period varies from area-to-area. The fruits mature earlier at lower altitude and later at higher altitudes because of variation in temperature. Under Solan conditions, the fruits can be harvested from October-end to third week of November depending upon cultivars, whereas under Shimla condition, the fruits are harvested from last week of November to December. Kiwi fruits having 6.2% TSS are ideal for harvesting. But delay in harvesting deteriorates their storability. They are easily harvested by snapping off the fruit at the abscission layer at the base of the stalk. At least 2 pickings are made. Larger-sized berries should be harvested first while smaller ones should be allowed to increase in size and improve in quality. After harvesting, the fruits are rubbed with a coarse cloth to remove stiff hairs found on their surface. Hard fruits are transported to the market. Subsequently, they lose their firmness in 2 weeks at room temperature and become edible. On an average, kiwi yield varies from 50 to 100kg fruits/vine. Vines on trellis produce about 25 tonnes/ha after 7 years.

       Kiwi fruits have an excellent keeping quality. The fruits can be kept in a good condition in a cool place without refrigeration up to 8 weeks. It can be kept for 4–6 months in a cool storage at –0.6° to 0°C.

       In India, there are no package and grading standards for kiwi. However, grading should be done on the basis of weight. In international market, fruit weight of 72g is the minimum for export while 100g is the preferred weight. In India the fruits weighting 70g and above are graded as ‘A’-grade fruits and between 40 and 70g are graded ‘B’-grade fruits.

     Since there is no standard package for kiwi fruits, card-board boxes of 3–4kg capacity are generally used for packing. Polythene liners in storage cases are very effective in maintaining high humidity and can be used to maintain fruits in good condition for a longer period.