During the collection period garden harvest The apple picker with a telescopic handle is in greatest demand.
Although many gardeners prefer an apple fruit collector with a regular wooden holder. In this article we will look at the characteristics of fruit pickers. What they are and how to use them.
The fruit collector is very convenient and necessary thing on the farm. Such garden tools in any case, it is necessary if there is a fruit-bearing garden on the territory of the dacha. Usually, fruit trees grow tall and branchy. And the most large fruits ripen at the top or ends of the crown. It is unlikely that you will be able to cut such pears and apples without using a fruit picker with a telescopic handle.
Garden fruit collector - classification
There are enough tools designed for fruit harvesting on the market today to do a good choice. All of them simplify the removal of fruits from trees, and also protect them as much as possible from damage. These two points are very important. Since with large harvests or areas, a lot of time is spent on harvesting. And damage, even completely invisible, will not allow an apple or plum to withstand the most the right conditions storage
It’s rare for any gardener to do without auxiliary tools. Most of them operate for more than one or two seasons. Therefore, some summer residents have been using this purchase for a very long time. Of course, this is not a mechanical harvester and you also need to know how to use these devices. But simplest design allows you to quickly adapt and figure out what to press and where or in which direction to turn. Of course there are more or less complex designs, but all of them do not complicate, but on the contrary help in harvesting the garden harvest.
The material from which fruit pickers are made today is lightweight and durable. First of all this:
- plastic,
- metal.
In addition to the main structures, such garden tools have additional auxiliary parts.
Additional details of fruit collectors
How additional detail use various types fabric materials for making bags, or as they are also called pouches, for storing fruits. They are needed so as not to remove a peach or any other fruit one piece at a time. Such additional bags are very successfully adapted for these cases to some fruit pickers.
Telescopic handles are made of durable plastic. They are usually made in the form of a pipe. That is, their middle is hollow. In which a wire or other material cord is located to operate the gripping mechanism.
The simplest time-tested designs of food collectors are available for sale. And brand new ones - light, comfortable, with a long service life.
Plastic tulip for fruit picking
Let's first consider the simplest ones, known to everyone:
The appearance of such garden tools corresponds to their common name - tulip. And the telescopic fruit collector for cherries is absolutely impossible to confuse with it. Because these are completely different designs.
Working with tulips is easy and simple. You just need to grab the fruit so that it falls into the glass. And place its tail, that is, the twig that connects it to the tree, between the petals. Next, you need to turn the holder handle in the direction that is most convenient for you until the apricot or nut is completely disconnected from the tree. As soon as this happens, the fruit will be in the glass. With such devices you can harvest from a wide variety of fruit trees.
Different types of collet fruit pickers
The manufacturing material and design of such garden tools allows them to be divided into three groups:
- made of durable wire material,
- the main mechanism of which consists of exciting elements,
- having a bag in addition to the main design.
All collet structures have a place in their lower part for attaching rods. They can be wooden or telescopic. You just need to provide the diameter of the rod. So that it fits the size of the mount.
Wire fruit pickers for apricots and other fruits
The material of manufacture speaks of appearance such a fruit collector. The principle of its operation is to capture the fetus and close wire frame. What is done with the help of a thick string or a small diameter strong wire threaded into loops located at the ends of the wire arches of the device. Next, turn right or left again with force. After tearing, you can put the crop in baskets.
Fruit picker with gripper for small fruits
The principle of operation of such fruit collectors is, of course, adapted not only for cherries. They can also remove large apples. The main part of the mechanism is made of plastic parts. Often this is a telescopic fruit collector with a gripper. Since adjusting the length of the handle is quite an advantageous device. Having placed the fruit between the gripping parts, you need to press the lever or pull the rope to close the cavities or parts. Such details may look like a three-fingered hand. When the mechanism is triggered, they are connected in the upper plane. And the fruit is captured, as it were. Now it needs to be torn off from the branch. The method is the same - using a rotating movement.
Collet fruit pickers with bag
Devices of this type consist of the bag itself and the main part to which it is attached. The mount is quite reliable. Since it can withstand the weight of more than one heavy fruit. And how did you understand this design Designed for picking several fruits at the same time. The part to which the bag is attached round shape. With tin petals in a circle. Which act as knives. If the petals are made of plastic material, then an additional metal knife can be attached to the rim. It makes the structure heavier, but can be adapted for grapes. By holding the tail of the bunch between the knife and the petal of the rim, the strong stalk can be cut. A handle holder is also attached to such devices. Which is purchased additionally. And can be set as fixed length, and telescopic.
Fruit picker with telescopic handle for collecting fruits
This type of device for harvesting in the garden must be highlighted separately. Telescopic fruit picker for apples, this is one of the latest developments garden tools. In addition to the convenient main part, a basket for placing fruits, this tool has a telescopic rod. This is a kind of handle extension, the length of which is adjustable. It can be adjusted to a certain height. And change every time when the fruits need to be removed lower or higher from the previously recorded value.
The apple picker with a telescopic handle can be used to harvest the garden from the following trees:
- apple trees,
- pears,
- plums,
- apricots,
- hazel,
- peach,
- and others.
Before you start harvesting with such a fruit collector, you need to determine the distance to the plum or other fruits. Set the length of the handle and if it is determined correctly, then you can start working. If you are slightly wrong with the distance, you can always correct it. One of the most convenient ways- using it there is definitely no need to stand on a stool or climb a stepladder.
Harvesting is the most enjoyable time for a gardener. However, it is very important to collect the fruits without deforming them or damaging the skin, since otherwise they will lose their presentation and will have less shelf life. To prevent this from happening, you should use a convenient fruit picker, the main function of which is to collect fruits. You can buy such a device ready-made or make it yourself from scrap materials.
Types of fruit pickers
A high-quality fruit picker will make your work easier and help keep apples in marketable condition. Exist different types such devices. They can be divided into 3 main groups:
- Fruit pickers equipped cutting elements, which are attached to the end of a long handle. They are needed in order to cut the fruit, which then falls into a container located directly next to these elements. In order for the cutting parts to be driven, special rods are needed. The collet fruit picker belongs to this category (but only that variety that is equipped with a special knife). For all their practicality, such models have drawbacks. Firstly, holding a long handle suspended for a long time is quite difficult. Secondly, to carefully cut an apricot or apple and then catch it in a fruit collector, you need skill and patience.
- Fruit pickers resembling mechanical arm made from wire. Most often, it implements some kind of solution that allows you to squeeze the metal “fingers”. For example, it could be a fishing line or a fairly long twine. Such a wire fruit picker can be found in any mall. It is easy to use and convenient. However, it also has its drawbacks. In particular, when picking fruits, such a wire structure can easily snag and break a tree branch, which only adds trouble to the gardener.
- Fruit pickers without cutting elements, made in the form of a bowl. Most often they are made of soft plastic or fairly elastic textiles. This group includes, for example, “tulip”-type fruit collectors, which actually resemble an opening flower. The bowl has “petals” cut into it, and the bowl itself is attached to a long handle. It is enough to make sure that the fruit falls into the bowl, the stalk catches on the slot of the petal, and after that all that remains is to rotate the device around its own axis. As a result, the stalk will break off and the fruit will fall into the bowl undamaged.
Important! The simplest types of structures from the third group can be made independently, from scrap materials, including plastic bottles, pipes and even cans.
fruit picker
How to choose a fruit picker
If we're talking about For fairly large fruits, such as a pear or an apple, “tulip” fruit collectors are ideal. Much smaller berries are a completely different matter. A fruit picker with a gripper is unlikely to be suitable here; another option is needed. Previously, for such purposes, they usually simply used hooks on long handles, which were used to shake the branches. But in this case, the cherries fell directly to the ground, even on a spread tarpaulin, and could be damaged. Nowadays, for such purposes, devices with cutting elements and bags attached nearby are more often used.
Important! Much depends on the height of the tree, because holding a fruit picker with a long handle all the time is quite difficult, and with a short handle it is not suitable for tall trees. The way out of this situation is a telescopic fruit picker. It is distinguished by a special handle design that extends when necessary.
Review of the best fruit picker models
One of best models for the garden plot is the Skrab fruit collector, designed for individual collection of a wide variety of fruits and equipped with comfortable grips. This device can be used to harvest apples, apricots, and plums. It weighs about 1.2 kg. Essentially, this is a universal telescopic fruit picker with a 1.77 m boom and the ability to extend it up to 3 m.
The advantage of the model is the rubberized surface of the grips, which allows you to collect fruits without spoiling their surface. The grip diameter is 60-130 mm. The aluminum rod is very convenient to use. It is a three-piece design that weighs very little thanks to the alloy from which it is made. In addition, this rod is equipped with a comfortable rubber grip for the hand. Thanks to this solution, you can use the fruit collector even when large area garden, because the hand practically never gets tired. Moreover, there is also a metal pistol handle equipped with a lock.
Fruit collector Fiskars
The Fiskars fruit collector is a more complex device. Essentially, this is a pole saw with something like a textile fruit basket attached to it. The advantage of this model is that several fruits can be removed at a time. The telescope handle extends up to 4 m. It is very comfortable, and the manufacturer used materials to make it so that the palm does not slip.
Note! The bar turns out to be quite heavy, but the basket itself weighs only 220 g.
How to make a fruit picker with your own hands
It is not difficult to make a fruit picker with your own hands. You just need to pick suitable materials for work. The simplest option is a model made from a plastic bottle; it doesn’t even need a drawing, since it’s already clear what this bowl attached to a long pole will look like.
Just before you make a fruit picker from a plastic bottle, you need to think about whether it will be open or closed. In the first case, take a bottle with a capacity of 1.5-2 liters and cut off the bottom (the neck is attached to a pole). You can make cuts along the top edge that will resemble tulip petals. In each of the resulting segments, you need to make holes with a thick needle or awl - a fishing line is pulled through them, with the help of which these petals are “controlled”, squeezing and unclenching them.
How to make a fruit collector with your own hands, if we are talking about a closed model? This question interests those who want to collect several fruits at a time. In this case, you need to cut round hole not in the bottom of the bottle, but next to it, right on the wall. The upper part of such a hole is made jagged.
How to make a fruit picker with your own hands
Important! In both cases, the bottle is attached to a pole or pole using nails or at least glue. It is not difficult to make such a fruit collector with your own hands, but it is not very durable. If you plan to use it for several seasons, it is better to take a tin can.
Rules for the operation, care and storage of fruit pickers
The rules for operating and storing such devices depend on the material they are made of. If we are talking about a design such as a do-it-yourself fruit picker made from a bottle, then in this case You don't even have to store it. The pole or pole can be left in any utility room, and the “bowl” itself can be thrown away.
Storage of finished fruit pickers is carried out in accordance with the manufacturer's requirements. In particular, metal parts need to be cleaned of dirt and wiped dry so that they do not corrode. With plastic fruit pickers it's even easier; you can simply wash them according to the manufacturer's instructions. Some models have removable parts that will have to be replaced as they wear out.
Fruit pickers can make it much easier gardening work, therefore, their selection or production must be approached with the utmost seriousness.
Every year we struggle with picking apples. The trees have grown tall, and the usual puller - a “glass” with slots - is inconvenient to use: it is difficult to “drive” the stalk into the crack. Maybe there are some homemade designs that will help solve this problem. Otherwise, the harvest season will soon come, and I wouldn’t want to “poke” the fruits again with a clumsy puller.
Anastasia Valentinovna PETRAKOVSKAYA, Vitebsk region, Novopolotsk
I suggest homemade design, which will help you easily remove fruits from the greatest height.
Fruit picker design features
The main parts of the puller are two plastic bottles and an aluminum ski pole. The design of the puller is shown in Fig. 1.
Bottle 1 is selected depending on the size of the fruit, for example, 1.5 or 2 liters. This bottle has half of the bottom and part of the side wall cut out to allow fruit to pass through. In the remaining part of the bottom there are 2-3 narrow slits for capturing and breaking off the stalk. The cork is firmly fixed (glued) to the neck and a round hole is cut in it the diameter of the stick.
Bottle 2 is chosen to be smaller in volume and its bottom is completely cut off. It has a removable plug with a hole for passing a stick. Both bottles are sewn together with fishing line approximately 0.2 mm in diameter and secured into a single rigid block. The bottle caps have holes the diameter of a ski pole.
Method of sewing bottles for fruit picker
To sew bottles together, use a hot awl to punch paired holes on both sides of the seam line. We bend a thin copper wire in half, twist the ends and make a “needle” in the shape of a fishhook (Fig. 2).
Using this flexible “needle,” we insert the fishing line through adjacent pairs of holes and connect the bottles into a single block. With this method of stitching, your hands will always be outside the bottles.
A block of two bottles is put on a ski pole, in which (after fitting) a hole is drilled and a pin is rigidly fixed (Fig. 3). The length of the pin should correspond to the diameter of the bottle neck and the internal diameter of the stopper. On the neck of the bottle, you need to make 2 small diametrical cuts to fix the block of bottles on the pin.
The figure shows the cork removed from bottle 2. In this case, the bottle block can be freely removed from the ski pole. When screwing the cork onto the neck of the bottle 2, the pin firmly fixes the block of bottles on the stick.
The picture also shows a ring that prevents the plug from sliding down the stick and losing the plug. The ring is made of adhesive tape or electrical tape.
The entire design of the puller is extremely lightweight and easy to use.
Operating principle of the apple picker
We introduce the fruit through the cutout into bottle 1 and pick it off with the side wall or bottom. 3-4 apples (pears) or 15-20 plums are placed in the puller.
We lower the entire puller to a horizontal position. In this case, the remaining part of the bottom of the bottle 1 keeps the fruit from spilling out. Having unscrewed the cap 2, remove the bottle block from the stick, and pour the fruit through the cutout into a bucket or basket.
When collecting fruits from the lower branches of a tree, the harvester walks freely on the ground, and when collecting from the upper branches of a tree, he climbs onto a stepladder.
Drawing of a puller for apples and pears
Anatoly Grigorievich YARUSOV, Minsk
Hello to all DIY lovers!
Currently, summer is coming to an end and many people in their dacha gardens and personal plots A rich harvest of apples, pears, plums and other fruits is ripening.
At the same time, the issue of collecting these fruits often arises very acutely, especially since long-term storage, you cannot use fruits that have fallen and hit the ground, but you must carefully pick them from the tree using some kind of device for picking fruits.
It must be said that for many years (practically since the appearance of plastic bottles), homemade fruit pickers made from a long stick with the cut off upper part of a plastic bottle attached to its end have been very popular among people. In this case, a plastic bottle puller is attached to a stick, usually using a small screw or nail.
I myself have been using a similar homemade fruit picker for many years.
However, during operation, I noticed that such a device with a permanent, non-replaceable fruit picker attachment has some disadvantages.
For example, the fruits that have to be collected come in very different sizes. For example, plums (even large ones), as well as summer apples and pears, can be quite small, while many varieties of autumn and winter apples are truly enormous in size.
Of course, you can attach a puller cut from the largest plastic bottle to the stick and use it to collect all the fruits.
However, practice shows that this can be very inconvenient, since trees on which many small fruits grow, say, plums, have a very dense crown, through which it is often very difficult to squeeze through with a large fruit picker.
In addition, it will not be possible to replace a fruit picker attached to a stick in this way if it breaks, say, if cracks form in the plastic, quickly and easily!
As a result, I have long had the idea of making a stick or fruit picker rod so that, depending on the size of the fruit being collected, it would be possible to quickly change the picker attachments from plastic bottles.
However, in past years, hands somehow did not get around to this, especially since there were no harvests similar to what is expected this year.
However, this year, in the face of a literally unprecedented harvest (and this year we had a truly unprecedented harvest of apples, pears and plums), I still decided to make such a device.
So, to make a fruit picker with quick-change attachments, we will need the following accessories:
Materials and fasteners:
Long wooden stick or barbell;
Plastic stopper from a plastic bottle;
Several plastic bottles of different sizes;
Three small screws 3x15 mm;
Insulating tape.
Tools:
Scissors (possibly a utility knife);
Small wood saw;
Electric drill;
Metal drill with a diameter of 3 mm;
A screwdriver with a PH1 tip, or a corresponding bit;
Manufacturing process
First we saw off with a saw, the tip is at our stick. Moreover, we try to do this so that the cut is perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the stick.
Then we use an awl to mark three holes in the plastic bottle cap. The centers of these holes should be 3-4 mm away from the side of the cork.
Now we drill the planned holes.
Then we screw the cork with screws to the end cut of our stick.
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After this, we tightly wrap the screwed plug and the part of the stick underneath it with insulating tape. This is done to give additional strength and rigidity to both the cork and the top of the stick.
Now we cut out fruit pullers from plastic bottles.
So far I have cut out two pullers (and I already had one), and they all turned out well different sizes, respectively, for collecting fruits of different sizes.
Now you can take any fruit picker and screw it into the cork. It only takes 2-3 seconds.
And now our device for collecting fruits is ready.
If necessary, we can quickly change the fruit picker to another. Again, this will only take a few seconds.
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Thus, our universal fruit picker with a set of attachments is ready for work!
Now let's try it in action.
For example, let’s use it to collect a basket of pears. To do this, I put on the middle nozzle.
And now the pear has already been picked.
But in a very short time I have already picked almost half a basket of pears.
By the way, here I want to make a very important remark.
When working with such a fruit picker, you must remember that if you have to scroll it in order to pick a fruit (or cut off the fruit stalk with the teeth of a plastic bottle attachment), then this should only be done clockwise, looking upward. Otherwise, the plastic bottle attachment may unscrew from the cork. However, after some practice this is already done automatically.
In general, after several experiments in collecting different fruits with such a fruit picker, I was quite pleased!
I must say that at the beginning I had concerns that the cap from a plastic bottle, used as a fastening for various attachments-pullers, might turn out to be too flimsy. Still, during the collection of many fruits, quite large loads are applied to the extractor attachments (especially when it is necessary to pick some fruits).
But nevertheless, as a result, the cork withstood everything very well, without a single damage, which proved the practical suitability of such a fruit picker.
In addition, during further operation, other advantages of this fruit picker were revealed.
For example, it turned out that a stick without a bottle remover is much more convenient and easier to store than with a bottle screwed on.
Also, the puller attachments are very convenient to store, inserting them one into the other like nesting dolls. So they take up very little space.
Moreover, in the future I am thinking of making two more extractor attachments from plastic bottles, one smallest one - from a bottle of about half a liter and one large one - from a 2.5-3 liter bottle. I don’t currently have bottles of this size on hand, but I will definitely do so in the future. Then the set of attachments will be complete.
It's really convenient and makes your work much easier and faster!
Well, that's all for now and happy harvesting!
When the trees in the garden are large and spreading, you have to reach down from the ladder, trying to reach the next one in the tangle of branches. ripe fruit– not the best and not the fastest activity. Harvesting this way can take hours, and the result will not be the best, because if it is not done, you won’t be able to get the apples from the top. But since ancient times, if someone could not reach the upper branches, then they took a stick in their hands. She will help us out again.
Picking apples with a pole
So, we will need a long pole, on the basis of which we will combine the main functions of a nail puller and a basketball hoop: from the first - to catch, from the second - to pass a round object through itself. The task seems difficult, but in fact we need 2 pins on the top of the rod (which can be telescopic, for example, an old fishing rod), perpendicular to the axis of the pole. The apple stalk should easily fit into the gap between these protrusions.
Below we attach a small copy of a basketball hoop made of wire, for example, from a thick aluminum core from a cable. Only the usual through mesh will be replaced by a linen or similar mesh bag. Raise the device as high as possible, moving your hands over it until you grab the lower end of the pole. We place the ring under the apple so that the stem falls into the “nail puller”. We pull towards ourselves, the fruit breaks off and falls through the ring into the bag.
In the old days, it was a very fashionable game when a wooden cup or glass made of the same material, or a small wicker basket was attached to the top of a stick with a handle. A ball was tied to this device, which was called a bilboke, with a long cord, which had to be thrown higher and caught in the hole. We suggest doing something similar to pick apples from a great height when maneuvering with a stepladder is difficult.
The simplest option is a plastic bottle. We cut off the bottom of it and, turning it over, place the neck on the upper end of a long pole, specially planed to required diameter so that both parts are connected tightly.
Stick with plastic bottle for picking fruits
Next, we make slits from the edge of the resulting glass to a quarter of its length in increments of 2.5–3 centimeters so that they divide the bottle into equal sectors. Moreover, the resulting cracks should be wedge-shaped, that is, narrow downwards. Now you just need to reach for the apple, place the device under it and catch it in the container so that the stem ends up in the slot. We pull to the side, and the fruit is trapped, we catch the next one. When the bottle is filled to the slots, tilt the tool and pour the collected apples into a basket or box.
Another option - mounted on a bar Wicker basket, which can be made from wicker or wire. The second type is preferable, since in this case several vertical rods can be made longer and their ends bent inward, this will result in a hybrid of a bielboke hole with the previously used nail puller function. You can, on the contrary, simplify the tool, and a two-liter plastic bottle put it on the pole without cutting it, but by making a round hole in the middle of its wall with a small wedge-shaped slot of 2 centimeters, directed towards the bottom.
Any of the above devices is suitable only if the apples easily break off and even fall on their own when the tree is slightly shaken. But what to do if the cutting is firmly attached to the trunk? The “nail puller” can accidentally damage the flesh, and the “bielboke” itself can break or become deformed with a strong tug. This is where tin cans will help you out.
The first option is the simplest. We simply screw a large, deep tin can onto a stick with wire, making small holes in the wall. Next, we cut a wedge-shaped slit in the edge for the handle and slightly move it outward from top to bottom, creating something like a spout on a coffee pot. The sharp edge of the tin will easily cut the apple from the branch.
Device for collecting fruits
The second option is from plastic pipe large diameter, such as those used for gutters or sewers. We cut a piece about 40 centimeters long on one side into petals, which we bend inward, thus creating a closed end (even with slots). We make a slot in the upper part, which should bend to the side, and then slightly upward, that is, in the shape of a fish hook. To finish it off, use two screws to fasten a blade from a pencil sharpener or just a sharpened strip of metal. Now it is enough to catch an apple stalk in this slot, bring it to the blade, and the fruit will fall into the tube.
The third device is the most difficult to implement, but will last the longest. So you'll need a trim metal pipe, a washer or circle of large diameter (about 3-4 centimeters) and a dozen metal rods with a centimeter cross-section and up to half a meter in length. We weld a washer or a metal circle to the end of the pipe (a stick will be inserted into it on the other). Next, with equal steps, we weld the rods at a slight angle so that they diverge from the center upward.
From the outside it will work classic shape janitor's brooms. The welding must be done very securely so that the rods can be bent slightly if necessary. Now we simply hook the apple so that it is inside the structure, turn the device, and the fruit will come off. For any device, it is better to take not a long wooden pole, but a telescopic rod or a rod assembled from several separate sections in order to adjust the length as needed.
In stores they sell special nozzles for collecting fruits, made in the shape of a crown, with teeth facing upward, to which a bag is attached below. They are quite reliable, but short-lived, since thin galvanized metal is usually used. In addition, the teeth can easily damage the fruit, so a large number of protruding parts on the fruit collector is undesirable. However, such devices are used on small dacha, where there are no large harvests and you can work slowly.
Crown attachment for fruit harvesting
If you don't feel like messing around, a net can be made to quickly collect apples from a regular (old) fishing net. At the point farthest from the handle, you need to make a bend so that you get the shape of a beak, it will replace the wedge-shaped slot in this device. Now all you have to do is catch the apple and pull it so that it lands right in the net. You can repeat until the grid is full.
