Patent Application
20190289793
Fruit trees such as apple, pears, cherry, and citrus rely on sunshine to grow, dry, and warm the branches, leaves and fruit. It is imperative to maintain separation of the branches to ensure both aeration and adequate sunshine reaches the interior of the trees. It is often necessary to prune the trees heavily to ensure that the tree receives enough sunshine and adequate airflow to dry the trees, and to prevent the build-up of frost or ice. However, pruning can lower the yield of the tree and when done incorrectly, can damage the tree.
Training fruit trees starts is a process whereby the branches of the tree are placed into a desired position as the tree grows to ensure desirable characteristics. Its more efficient to train trees early by placing limbs in a position, rather than pruning them later. Growth in fruit trees is regulated by plant hormones. Cytokinins produced in the roots move up to the highest points in the tree to break dormancy. When the buds on the tips of limbs start to grow, auxin is produced, and moves down the limb through gravity, and inhibits the growth of lateral buds below the highest points, an occurrence known as apical dominance. The best way to overcome apical dominance is to train branches early to grow more horizontal and remove unwanted upright shoots. The key to producing a well-trained tree in the shortest amount of time is to follow a training program consistently.
Training can also open spaces in the tree canopy for sunlight to penetrate and support leaf photosynthesis and the production of carbohydrates and energy that drive the growth of roots, shoots and fruits. Without adequate sunlight penetration during the growing season, flower bud production can be reduced with detrimental effects on cropping in the future. Training can reduce branch crowding and enable better air circulation that reduces humidity and allows for better coverage of protectant products (e.g., pesticides). Further, branch angles between a vertical trunk and lateral shoots are stronger as they approach a 90 degree angle. Narrow branch angles are typically weak and they may break under the weight of developing fruit, so training can help to ensure better branch orientation for better yields.
It would be beneficial to have a device that could easily work with any type of tree and enable the grower to maintain, separate, and lift the fruit laden branches of the trees in a particular formation to promote health, better yield, and aesthetics of the trees.
The present invention is a method and apparatus for shaping and lifting a plurality of trees of varying heights and denseness using a cost-effective, universal tree shaping system. The apparatus comprises a large sprocket of wood, aluminum, plastic, or other durable material having a central aperture and scalloped recesses around a perimeter. The sprocket is mounted to the top portion of a telescoping pole, which may have an implement at the bottom for securing in the ground. The telescoping pole is either secured tightly to the tree trunk, or alternatively can be hammered into the ground using the implement to facilitate this securement. The pole is then telescoped to lengthen the pole such that the top of the pole is approximately at the top of the tree. The sprocket is located on the top of the pole, providing a fulcrum for each of a plurality of cables. The plurality of cables (ropes, twine, or the like) are passed over the sprocket, where each cable is passed over two diametrically opposed scalloped recesses and secured to first and second tree branches. Each cable lifts two branches, and can be cut to ensure that each branch is raised to the desired height. Attachment means can also be included on the ends of the cable, such as a collar, slip knot, sleeve, et cet. The tree can then be shaped in pairs of branches, which each scalloped recess and the sprocket occupying one or more cables.
These and other features of the present invention may best be understood with reference to the detailed description of the invention below along with the accompanying drawings.
An apparatus 10 for lifting and separating branches of a tree 20, such as a fruit tree, is illustrated in
Turning to
The method and apparatus described above, and the drawings associated therewith, are not intended to be limiting but rather illustrative. It is understood that a person of ordinary skill in the art would readily recognize and appreciate many modifications and substitutions to the foregoing descriptions and depictions, and the scope of the invention is intended to include all such modifications and descriptions. Nothing in the drawings or descriptions should be interpreted as exclusive or limiting unless expressly stated.
