When and how should I harvest damask rose petals for the best oil and gulkand quality?

Damask rose petals are harvested early in the morning, soon after the flowers open and before the sun gets strong, because the fragrance and oil content are highest in the cool early hours and drop as the day heats up. Pick fully opened fresh flowers, collect gently into baskets without crushing, and get them to processing quickly since petals deteriorate fast once picked. For oil distillation and rose water, freshness within a few hours matters a lot, while for gulkand and dried petals you also want clean undamaged petals. Daily picking through the flowering flush is normal. Confirm the exact harvest stage and how fast your local distillation or gulkand unit needs the petals delivered, because the timing from field to processing strongly affects quality and the rate you get.