Harvesting
Harvest the pods when they make a rattling sound when shaken. Delayed harvesting leads to pods shattering and poor seed germination later.
The mature plants may be uprooted or cut at ground level and loosely staked for later threshing.
Farmers are advised never to heap harvested soybeans when they are damp as it affects seed quality. Harvest in dry conditions.
Threshing
The harvested plants should be spread on a platform and sundried to a 14-15% moisture content before threshing.
Threshing can be done manually for small quantities or mechanically. It is important that seeds of different varieties are threshed on different days to avoid mixing the varieties.
Storage
Dry the seeds thoroughly to about 10% moisture content, it should not be possible to dent the beans with your teeth.
Store grains in sacks or bags in a well-ventilated store.
Store seeds for planting in plastic bags. To prevent moisture absorption, keep the seed in a cool dry place on raised benches.
During the planting season, use seeds harvested in the pre-seeding season to avoid poor germination.
