Drop Tests 



Bunches of grapes should not be dropped more than 6 inches. Single grapes 

 may be dropped as much as 18 inches without causing significant injury. 



Pressure and Piling 



Bunch grapes may be piled to a depth of 18 inches; shelled grapes (grapes that 

 fall from the bunches) to a somewhat lesser depth. 



Settling Tests 



Ten inches of freshly picked bunch grapes allowed to stand for 48 hours settled 

 very little. Twenty-four inches of similar lots carried approximately 7 miles in a 

 pickup truck settled about 21/2 inches or about 10 percent. Other transporting 

 studies showed that bunches of grapes piled to a depth of 18 inches can be handled 

 without appreciable damage. 



Other Properties 



Fruit accounts for 97 percent of the weight of bunched grapes; stems for the 

 other 3 percent. Shelled grapes occupy only about 75 percent of the volume taken 

 up by bunch grapes. 



Pallet Handling 



Handling lugs of grapes on pallets with forklift trucks increased the rate of 

 handling from 40 lugs per hour to 59 in one instance and to 79 in another. These 

 figures indicate that one forklift unit can handle up to 40 tons of grapes in an 8- 

 hour day. AERD estimates that growers with 30 or more acres of grapes can 

 justify the purchase of lift equipment. Less than 30 acres may also merit lift equip- 

 ment because it makes the work easier — even though profits may not be increased. 



Bulk-box Handling 



Emptying filled lugs into bulk boxes, accumulating the boxes until 15 were filled, 

 and then carrying the bulk boxes to the plant with a straddle truck increased the 

 handling rate from 40 to 60 lugs per man-hour. These trials were so promising that 

 the cooperating processor asked that the work be continued and expanded. 



Citrus 



Last year growers paid $50 million to have their citrus fruit picked. Expecta- 

 tions are that this production cost will increase as the supply of handpickers 

 dwindles and until research can develop mechanical harvesting methods. 



AERD has already tested shakers and catching frames to harvest grapefruit. 

 In preliminary trials, AERD and the Citrus Experiment Station, Lake Alfred, Fla., 

 achieved from 50 to 70 percent removal using strokes of 1 to IV2 inches. Additional 

 work may reveal that the proper combination of frequency and amplitude of stroke 

 will remove at least 90 percent of the fruit. The experimenters also tested oscillat- 

 ing air blasts at velocities up to 125 miles per hour. They achieved 99 percent re- 

 moval but felt they also removed too many leaves. 



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