Choosing the right harvest season is very important when harvesting oranges. These citrus fruits are usually best ripe and perfect in the winter months.

Choose the right time to harvest

Winter is often associated with citrus fruits, which provide a sweet, vitamin C-packed snack. If you live in a temperate climate where oranges can grow, you may even be able to pick your oranges from your backyard!

However, before you begin harvesting, the fruit must be ripe. Oranges only ripen on the tree, so picking them too early can result in unripe fruit that won’t continue to ripen once picked.

Farmer picking oranges from an orange tree

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How to pick oranges 

There are simple ways to pick oranges. What you use to pick these oranges depends on the gardener.

  • The best way to pick oranges is to use your garden scissors and snip the orange from the branch.
  • Shake the tree branches to let oranges fall on the floor
  • You can even use the use pull-twist-snap method, when you find a ripe orange, pull lightly on it. 
  • You can use ladders to reach the highest oranges if you are picking from a large tree and it is difficult to reach the fruit at the top. This method helps protect the tree from breaking when you climb on it.
  • You can store your freshly picked oranges. They can last up to a few weeks at room temperature and around 3-4 weeks in the refrigerator.
Senior farmer working in orange tree and picking oranges

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Harvesting these citrus-rich fruits is an easy process. You need to know when and how to harvest to get the best-ripped oranges. 

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