When ripe cherries hang high on the branches, I. A. Krylov’s fable “The Fox and the Grapes” comes to mind. Like that fox, “the eye sees, but the tooth is numb,” juicy berries, teasing with their ripeness. But inventive gardeners have come up with many devices in order to pick cherries from a tall tree without leaving a rich harvest on the branches. You can, of course, grow dwarf varieties of fruit trees, but on tall trees the fruits are larger and sweeter.
Features of devices
There are several ways to collect cherries. They depend on the number of trees on the site, their height, and productivity.A low bush can be picked by hand without using improvised means. Sometimes a ladder may be needed. Otherwise, it’s enough to take a bucket and pick cherries into it, with or without cuttings. When a cherry tree reaches a height of 4-5 meters, it is problematic to harvest from it. And here various devices for tilting branches down and removing fruits come to the rescue.
Stone fruit plantations can be harvested using combine harvesters. There is a device with a mechanical arm on sale. Vibration knocks the berries off the branches, and they fall onto a tarpaulin spread under the cherry tree. The machine, which has an arched frame, plucks fruit using vibrating brushes that place bright red cherries on a conveyor belt. Such devices can be used on farms. Without auxiliary devices, it is impossible to remove cherries from high branches, but you don’t want to lose the harvest of delicious berries.
Collection devices
Collecting fruits from a tall tree is always difficult. First of all, you need devices that can be purchased in a store or made with your own hands. The most convenient device was invented a long time ago. This is a fruit picker for cherries. This could be a tin container, the opening of which is a “mouth” with teeth. Carefully grab the fruits with the hole and tear them off with cuttings. After filling the container, pour the crop into a bucket.
The ladder is the gardener’s main help for collecting ripe fruits. This could be a stepladder matched to the height of the tree. It is convenient to pick ripe berries from it. But sometimes you can use a simple wooden ladder for collecting, leaning it against the trunk of a mature tree.
A simple gathering device in the form of a strong and sturdy hook is useful for bending branches downwards. Having secured the branches, they pick the ripe berries with their hands.
You can also use a medium-sized hook to hang a bucket. A plastic container suspended from a tree is useful for storing ripe cherries. Standing on a ladder, it is difficult to simultaneously hold the container for the harvest and pick ripe fruits from a tall tree. A rope used to tie a bucket to a belt will also work here.
It is convenient to combine pruning branches with harvesting stone fruit crops. To do this you need a tool such as a hacksaw. Long ropes are tied to his arms. One end is held by the person standing under the tree, and the other by the person standing on the stairs. The device allows you to cut down a branch along with juicy fruits. This is how they kill two birds with one stone: the tree is rejuvenated, and the cherries remain intact and do not get crushed during harvest.
Homemade devices
We have made so many devices for working in the garden with our own hands that they are known to every experienced gardener. Among them are:
- working comb;
- pyramid-shaped staircase;
- fruit collectors of different designs;
- hooks
The comb device is made of thick wire. Bend its ends and insert it into the neck of a 5-liter plastic bottle. A pole is inserted into the vessel from the side of the cut out bottom. It should be light and comfortable. The comb teeth are screwed to the side parts of the pole with self-tapping screws. Place the comb under the branches of the bush and pick off the fruits.
To make the climbing device more stable, you need to build a structure in the shape of a pyramid. The bottom side of the device is made within 1 meter. Then the homemade device will not swing, but will be able to stand firmly on the ground.On each side, slats measuring 50 x 25 millimeters are filled. The result is a strong ladder that will become an assistant in harvesting ripe berries.
What are fruit collectors made of? Reconstructed cherries are used to collect:
- a plastic tube cut at an angle;
- plastic bottle;
- the shape of a fishing net, which is used to move along the branches and knock down the fruits.
Since many devices can be made from scrap materials, everyone has in their piggy bank some devices that have been tested while picking cherries from a tall tree. They are used during the ripening period of plums and ranetki, which are located on tall trees.
