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  • From: "Jeffery Blake" <echoecho AT bedford.heartland.net>
  • To: "market farming" <market-farming AT franklin.oit.unc.edu>
  • Subject: Sweet corn pickin was Re: website
  • Date: Fri, 9 Feb 2001 09:15:36 -0600


This is a topic that interests me as well. There are some Amish that grow
for my wholesaler. They use a sled that fits between the rows and one mule.
They dump the sled at the end of the row and have the kids load it on a
wagon.

For a one man operation I don't use any thing to carry it in. Keep your
rows farily short. I carry it in my left arm and pick with my right. I
pick 25 ears at once and carry it back to the wagon. I think it is much
more work wrestling around baskes etc.

For those bigger jobs,I think I will rig up a picking cart this year. I
have an old manure
spreader (well cleaned of course), that I will pull behind the tractor. I'm
going to weld a bar with a seat on it on each side of the spreader so two
or three people can sit, pick and toss it in the spreader. The rows between
the tires concern me. I haven't decided if I can extend the spreader
tounge, so the corn pops back up from under the tractor before it goes under
the spreader. It will take some fiddlin'. I might be able to use a forecart
on the spreader and an extension off the lift arms of the tractor. I'm not
sure. Using a 3point hitch means using the big tractor and I would rather
use my old Farmall, it has higher clearance. Another alternative would be
to weld a seat to the front end loader for the middle rows, that might work
well. I plant Ambrosia which is short enough to drive over all season long
with out hurting anything. I doubt if tractor picking would work with some
of the taller varieties. I'd sure love to see other peoples suggestions
too. Getting that corn picked is a chore.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Bob Meyer" <rhmeyer1 AT facstaff.wisc.edu>
To: "market farming" <market-farming AT franklin.oit.unc.edu>
Sent: Wednesday, February 07, 2001 4:24 PM
Subject: Re: website


> Anyone wanting really, specific information, just drop me a line. I've
> worked with the project from the start. Our funding all comes from non-ag
> sources at the moment (the CDC's National Institute for Occupational

Safety
> and Health). We should be adding additional tip sheets later this spring
> to both the vegetable growers and berry growers pages.
>
> One question that came to me from a small-scale sweet corn grower the
other
> day relates to any decent tool, or technique for harvesting (one-person
> crew) and carrying sweet corn. Does anyone have a tool or technique to
> share? Mostly it seems folks are carrying bags or bushels into the field
> and filling and carrying them as they go.
>
>








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