摘要 |
An apparatus and method for harvesting cranberries, the method including moving frame-mounted transverse dislodging rods through cranberry plants with each rod moving at the speed of the frame, thereby to dislodge cranberries from the cranberry plants. The apparatus includes a plurality of dislodging rods secured below the frame, the dislodging rods positioned substantially parallel to the field surface and generally perpendicular to the direction of movement whereby each dislodging rod is moved through the cranberry plants at the speed of the frame to dislodge the cranberries from the plants. Certain preferred embodiments use follower assemblies to configure an array of dislodging rods in an advantageous arrangement. In highly preferred embodiments, the mounted dislodging rods are such that the rods under load deflect in a plane substantially parallel to the field surface. The apparatus may include resiliently flexible dislodging rods.
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