1950 



MACHINERY 



MACHINERY 



hung branches. Not only are extensions used, but in 

 some cases they are covered with guards to lift the 

 branches and prevent injury from contact with the 

 working parts of the harrow. In maintaining the dust 

 mulch, frequent but shallow tillage and a finely pul- 

 verized soil are essential. To meet these conditions, the 

 harrow manufacturers have designed wide-cutting but 

 light-draft tools, making it possible to work lightly a 



2277. Double-row shovel-cultivator. 



large area with a minimum amount of horse-power. 

 Very many forms of teeth are used, some designed for 

 pulverizing, others for leveling and others simply for 

 stirring the surface. 



The character of the orchard soil will determine, to 

 a large extent, the type of shallow cultivator used. In 

 soil free from stone or stumps and not uneven as to 

 surface, the light tools, Acme or Kimball type, may be 

 successfully operated, as may also the extra-wide (12 

 to IS feet) spike-tooth and spring-tooth harrows. In 

 rough or stony land, or among stumps, the orchardist 

 must be content with the narrow but strongly built 

 float or semi-float spike- or spring-tooth harrows. 



The larger orchardists have recently developed an 

 active interest in mechanical power for working the 

 orchard. It seems true unquestionably that the tractor 

 will eventually largely supersede the horse and mule in 

 orchards of 100 acres and over. The cost of horse-labor 

 and man-labor is constantly increasing and the cost of 

 mechanical power is steadily becoming lower, so it 

 seems to be only a matter of time when the latter will 

 come into common usage. At present the tractor is of 

 value only upon comparatively smooth land, free from 

 boulders and stumps. 



Some of the lighter tractors, when tested in West 

 Virginia orchards, were unable to stand up under the 



2278. Orchard cultivator. 



strain. In other cases, the heavier types of tractors 

 developed so much power that it was difficult to get cul- 

 tural tools strong enough to stand the strain imposed 

 upon them on rough or uneven lands. To strike a 

 boulder or stump would usually mean the breakage of 

 something. Both the "caterpillar" and the ordinary 

 wheel-driven types give good satisfaction when condi- 

 tions are favorable for their use, and the choice of 

 design depends upon the local conditions. 



One interesting development of the mechanical 

 power is found in the motor cultivator. This light 

 and cheap outfit may be attached to almost any two- 

 horse harrow or cultivator and will work efficiently in 

 small orchards where the large tractor might prove 

 unwieldy. 



Pruning implements. 



The implements used in pruning fall naturally into 

 four classes: hand-shears and knives, long -handled 

 shears, pole-pruners, and saws. No attempt will be 

 made to consider different makes of these implements 

 but the various types of each may be discussed with 

 considerable freedom. 



For a pruning-knife, the average orchardist will con- 

 sider nothing but some sort of pocket- or clasp-knife. 

 Those having rigid blades and handles are both incon- 

 venient and dangerous to carry when not in use. In 

 picking out a clasp-knife for pruning, one should choose 

 either a slightly crooked (hawk bill), or a straight- 

 edged blade. The hook in the blade causes the knife 

 to "hang to the limb" when cutting toward the point 

 and lessens the danger of slipping and cutting the 

 wrong branch. The handle should be fairly thick and 

 large enough to enable one to get a comfortable grip 

 on it. The narrow metal handles sometimes seen are 

 unmanageable and a forerunner of blisters and ill 

 temper. 



Great ingenuity has been displayed in designing 

 hand-shears, but it seems that more thought has been 

 expended in making an elaborate handle than upon the 

 principles governing an effective cutting blade. Pro- 

 jections, loops and guards upon the handles are only a 

 source of annoyance and hindrance. The simple, 

 graceful, yet powerful handles of the American Rieser 

 and California types are satisfactory and convenient 

 in every respect. A poor spring in the handle will 

 cause much trouble by slipping out or by being easily 

 broken. Experience has demonstrated the superiority 

 of the curved double brass spring over either the round 

 or flat spiral springs. The fact that every catalogue of 

 pruning-shears quotes prices upon extra spiral springs 

 indicates their weakness. 



The most important feature in a pruning -shear is 

 the cutting part. The California pattern, which is 

 probably more extensively used than any other, has 

 a rather full rounded blade, well formed for cutting 

 toward its base, but is a trifle too blunt at the point, 

 a feature which sometimes causes it to slip off a limb 

 when not securely gripped. The bluntness or roundness 

 has a tendency to interfere with rapid pruning in young 

 trees by making one open the jaws wider each time to 

 receive the limb nearer the base of the blade. This 

 difficulty has been overcome largely in the Swiss and 

 American Rieser patterns in which the blade is made 

 more tapering. These latter shears are somewhat finer 

 pointed than the California pattern and can be used 

 with greater ease to remove limbs from crowded 

 crotches. With this exception, there is little to choose 

 from between these two excellent types of shears. The 

 French shears give good satisfaction, but have no 

 advantages over the ones above mentioned. The 

 straight-bladed types lack in cutting power and are 

 poorly shaped for working in narrow crotches or where 

 limbs are thickly crowded. The latter objection applies 

 with equal force to the Connecticut and Henry pat- 

 terns and the parrot-headed type, while one using the 

 Lenin pattern will frequently find it almost impossible 

 to prune closely where limbs are close together. The 

 double-cut pruner has one objectionable feature in the 

 fact that curved blades compel the wide openings of 

 the handles to receive the limb. Anyone who has 

 pruned will recognize how this will slow up the work 

 and unduly tire the hand. 



Long-handled shears are designed for lopping off 

 heavier branches than can be cut with the hand-shears. 



