How vanilla is grown and harvested

Every commercial vanilla flower is pollinated by hand, and the discovery was made by a 12-year-old in 1841.

stations: 3
things downstream: 12

The short version

Vanilla is an orchid vine grown on a tree or frame in hot, humid places near the equator. Its flowers open for a single day, so workers pollinate each one by hand within 12 hours. The green pods ripen at different times, and pickers return daily to harvest them one by one.

Train the vine

Vanilla climbs a tree or frame, such as bamboo or coconut, in a hot, humid climate with about 80% humidity. It does best within 10 to 20 degrees of the equator and in loose soil rich in organic matter.
Pollinate each flower by hand

Without pollination a blossom wilts and falls, and wild vanilla has only a 1% chance of it. A worker lifts a flap in the flower with a wood splinter and presses the anther against the stigma. It has to be done within 12 hours of the flower opening.

within 12 hours of opening
Pick pods one by one

Each pod ripens on its own schedule, so harvest happens daily. Dark green pods are left, and pale yellow at the tip is a poor sign of maturity. Flavor compounds build for about 40 weeks after pollination.

End of the lineVanilla pods Next it goes into perfume, vanilla extract.

Worth repeating

In 1841 Edmond Albius, a 12-year-old enslaved boy on the island of Réunion, found how to pollinate the flower by hand.
By weight, vanilla is the second most expensive spice, after saffron.
A pod longer than 15 cm is classed first-quality.