Q. How do I remove suckers at the base of the trees in my orchard?

A. Rinieri side mount sucker removers easily & efficiently remove unwanted suckers at the base of a variety of trees without damaging the tree’s trunk.

Q. What are the most cost-effective means of removing weeds in my orchard?

A. Enviromist domed controlled droplet applicators do a very effective job of removing weeds using herbicides. The domed sprayers contain the material, so they will not kill the trees or neighboring crops. The CDA (controlled droplet applicator) atomizes the liquid being applied and reduces the use of the chemical by two-thirds and water.

Ghibli speed discs remove visible weeds on the surface of the orchard floor between rows of trees. They also cut sub-surface weeds that pose a future problem.

Q. What shredders are most effective for orchard prunings?

A. Falc shredders off the fastest blade tip speed to thoroughly shred orchard prunings and facilitate faster decomposition of organic material.

Q. What machine works best for burying stones in my orchard?

A. Massano stone burier tillers use reverse rotation to pull the fine dirt to the surface and bury stones to a depth of 6” -12”. This tiller makes it easier on ground prep machinery and harvest equipment.

Q. What is a quality brand of posthole diggers for planting a new orchard?

A. Pengo offers time-tested posthole diggers, both hydraulic and PTO-driven. They have numerous augers of varying sizes and abilities for varying soil conditions.

Shaver also offers time-tested posthole diggers, both hydraulic and PTO-driven. They have numerous augers of varying sizes and abilities for varying soil conditions.

Q. What is the most cost-effective way to retrieve plastic mulch from my field after harvest?

A. The most cost-effective way to retrieve plastic mulch from any field would be with the hydraulic-driven MOM retriever. There are a couple of different means of accomplishing this task, and MOM has a machine for your desired method. The first method is a three-point mounted unit that pulls up the plastic one row at a time as the tractor travels down each row. The plastic is lifted upward behind the tractor onto a hydraulically driven reel that coils it into a roll. This roll is discarded at the end of the row, or if the rows are short enough, the operator may turn around and repeat the process until the reel is at capacity. A two-row unit is available that allows the retrieval of two mulch beds to be pulled up simultaneously.

Another unit is still mounted at the tractor’s back on the three-point and driven hydraulically; however, this unit remains at the end of the field and draws the plastic mulch the length of the row. This process is slower but still outweighs the cost of hand labor attempting to accomplish the same task.

Q. I need to top my strawberry plants after harvest to promote another growing season. What is the best way to accomplish this?

A. There have been several attempts to top strawberry plants using sickle bar mowers or conventional shredders, but they have yet to be truly successful.

That is until Falc began production of its model Spit Green. Initially designed to shred green matter in the center of orchards or vineyards and deposit the material on water drip lines to prevent freezing via discharge chutes, Falc engineered a new discharge system specifically for the strawberry and vegetable markets in California. The problem with using a sickle bar mower or conventional shredder is that the material is scattered or dropped back on top of the bed, which doesn’t allow the plant sunlight. Falc’s Spit Green discharge chutes places the material in the base of the furrow where it can decompose.

Q. What’s the best planter for small acreage farms?

A. The best planter for small acreage farms is more determined by budget and the grower’s end goals. For example, if you are growing in a farm-to-fork or farmers’ market situation, your planted acreage may not warrant spending thousands of dollars on a vacuum planter.

Your acreage may still be large enough that using a walk-behind planter is too time-consuming. In a scenario such as this, it is best for the grower to look at a bar-mounted planter that they can pull with a tractor but doesn’t involve the cost of vacuum planters.

The first option would be a Stanhay belt planter. It can be configured anywhere from 1-15 rows of planters, giving the grower the ability to purchase based on budget. The S870 belt planter can simply plant seeds as small as lettuce and as large as peas with precision by changing the belt inside the metering unit. This is especially beneficial to the farm-to-fork or farmer’s market growers who need a variety of crops available for sale.

Another option would be the Seed Spider. This unit lacks the belt or vacuum planter’s precision and is more suitable for growers interested in population over precision.

The Seed Spider planter is calibrated to give the grower a desired number of seeds per acre at a given forward speed. With the use of GPS and Bluetooth technology, it can speed up and slow down as the tractor operator changes speed to maintain the desired population. The Seed Spider can plant seeds as small as lettuce and as large as radish or spinach. The latest version is controlled through Android phones or tablets via the Seed Spider app and yearly subscription.

Q. I want to plant high-density vegetable crops, but I don’t need the precision of a vacuum planter. What would be the best planter for this?

A. The best option would be the Seed Spider. This unit lacks the precision of the belt planter or vacuum planter and is more suitable for growers that are interested in population over precision.

The Seed Spider planter is calibrated to give the grower a desired number of seeds per acre at a given forward speed. With the use of GPS and Bluetooth technology, it can speed up and slow down as the tractor operator changes speed to maintain the desired population. The Seed Spider can plant seeds as small as lettuce and as large as radish or spinach. The latest version is controlled through Android phones or tablets via the Seed Spider app and yearly subscription.

Q. What can I use to spray weeds in my vineyard without killing the young grape plants?

A. ANSWER

The only means of combating this is with the Enviromist domed sprayers. Whether you are spraying the centers of each row, the ground between the vines, or both, the Enviromist domed sprayers contain herbicide to prevent damage to neighboring plants. The CDA (controlled droplet applicator) heads break chemical droplets into a mist form for easy absorption by the weeds. The domes contain this mist underneath to focus the herbicide exactly where it is needed.

This dome prevents the chemical from killing young vines or drifting to a neighboring field, ultimately killing anything it encounters, causing costly crop damage and potential lawsuits. By micronizing the chemical droplets, the CDA heads reduce the herbicide required by almost two-thirds and the water needed by about one-third. That is a benefit to the environment and your bottom line.

Q. Is there a machine to remove weeds between grape plants?

A. The Rinieri line offers multiple different models and working tools to accommodate any type of weed between the grape plants regardless of your plant or row spacing. Both single side and double sided cultivators are available like a standard weed knife, power harrow head, flail shredder, rotary mower, French plough, sucker remover, bio dynamic finger weeder and hoeing discs. Solex brings in all models that come with electro hydraulic controls for fast and accurate detection of plants of all sizes.

Q. Is there a more cost-effective way to remove leaves before harvest than hand labor?

A. The Rinieri de-leafer effectively draws leaves into a series of cutting blades using a suction fan. The de-leafer draws in only leaves and ensures that none of the vines are cut in the process. With either a single or double-sided de-leafer, growers can quickly remove unwanted leaves, increasing the pace of hand harvesting and making it easier on the worker.

Q. How can pre-pruners reduce labor costs for my vineyard?

A. Pre-pruners remove the majority of vine before having a hand crew come in and handle the finer work of trimming the canes down to the required two buds for future production. This process dramatically reduces the time required for hand labor, reduces the job strain for the workers, and reduces the cost of labor.

Q. What is the best way to handle the prunings from my vineyard?

A. The most cost-effective and environmentally sound means of achieving this is by shredding the prunings. A conventional shredder can accomplish this task, but it is not the most efficient simply because it can’t pick all the material off the vineyard floor to shred it. Falc and Rinieri both make a “pickup” style shredder that lifts the prunings into the shredder and delivers them to the hammers on the rotor of the machine for shredding. A large grate at the rear of the machine limits the size of material that can pass through. This grate forces the material to be shredded into a size that more easily decomposes into the soil. This eliminates hand labor to move the material out of the vineyard and eliminates the need to burn the prunings off-site.