Summer is the time when sweet berries are ripe and it's time to pick them. When difficulties arise during work, a lingonberry harvester will help you, which you can make yourself. With this device you can easily collect whole fruits from your garden. The process of making the device will not bring any difficulties, and harvesting will become very convenient and interesting.
Materials and design
This DIY berry harvester is somewhat reminiscent of a scoop.
In order to make such a simple device for small berries with your own hands, you need the most common materials and tools that are found in every home:
- sheet steel;
- fasteners;
- tree branches;
- drill;
- metal wire.
The design of the device is quite simple, so you can easily make it. It will become simply indispensable in use. Now you can quickly and easily collect not only lingonberries, but also blueberries, cranberries and other berries (Fig. 1):
- The entire design of this device is a body with handles and a bottom. To prevent the berries from falling out again, a comb is provided.
- It has a special partition (Fig. 3), which facilitates harvesting in large quantities. The main advantage of this device is that the lingonberries do not spoil at all while they are being collected.
- Before starting work, you will also need to purchase plywood or plastic from which the main part is cut (Fig. 1). The rest is done with wire.
Manufacturing technique
- In order for a berry harvester to serve you for more than 1 year, you need to carefully carry out calculations, draw up all the drawings and diagrams, which describe in detail the dimensions of all parts of the device.
- Next, use special scissors to cut out the body and bottom of the combine from a piece of metal (Fig. 2).
- Then proceed to making parts for the comb, which is made from wire with a diameter of 3 mm. Prepare several of these pins no larger than 100 mm in size.
- Bend galvanized steel at one end, you will get a hard edge, at a distance of which a straight line is drawn, perpendicular to the long side of the plate.
- Make several holes whose diameter is equal to the caliber of the rods. They are located on the sides of the plate. The most suitable distance between the teeth is 4 mm (Fig. 3).
- Bend the ends of the plate so that you get a side. The detail prevents the collected berries from falling; Insert the rods into the holes made and secure them with a wooden strip.
- The rods should be soldered to the base of the device.
- The sides must be cut separately from the bottom of the structure, and their height can be selected as desired. The edges must be bent at right angles to the inside. Attach the bottom to the fold lines, and make rods on the sides to make the device a little stiffer.
- To give the handle a unique shape, use no large number galvanized steel. Release a few centimeters from the edges of the strip and bend it at an angle. Attach the handle to the top side of the base of the piece. Another version of the handle can be made from a metal rod and welded.
- To avoid harming your fingers, wrap everything with electrical tape.
Now picking berries will not cause any trouble.
Of course, metal devices are the most durable, but there are options for making a combine from other materials.
How to make a berry harvester (video)
Other options for creating a device
If you don't know what material to use for your harvester, then pay attention to wood. The manufacturing method is quite simple and practical. What you will need:
- kebabs skewers;
- large tree branches (approximate branch diameter 10-12 cm);
- saw;
- chisel;
- drill;
- drill;
- glue.
First, use a saw to make 2 identical circles from branches. Then, using a chisel, make a hole on one wooden figure with a distance of 1 cm from the edges. The resulting parts need to be properly sanded and get rid of splinters and burrs.
After this, proceed to creating the comb. For this purpose, you will need a drill and a drill bit, the diameter of which should match the caliber of the kebab sticks. Drill holes in the circle.
The optimal distance between the holes is no more than 5 mm, so that the berries do not fall to the ground when picked. When the holes on the first figure are ready, repeat the same with the second. Next, place one rounded piece on top of the other so that their holes match. Using kebab sticks, pull both figures away from each other at a distance of 15 cm and secure the frame with glue. The harvester is ready (Fig. 4).
The simplest option for assembling a combine consists of a durable plastic bottle. For this design you will also need a knife, stick, leash, etc.
Ketchup containers, which are known for their durability, work best. The mineral water container can quickly become unusable. The bottle itself should be small sizes, with a large neck to easily remove the collected berries.
Make marks on it, a small flag with a couple of teeth. By using sharp knife A hole is cut along the contour, after which the bottle is tied to a stick with a cord or secured with tape.
Harvester for collecting blueberries and lingonberries (video)
Berry harvesters not only help to significantly facilitate the process of picking blueberries, lingonberries, cranberries and other berries, but also make this process as efficient as possible, reducing losses and shortening the time of activities.
Users can choose either a production model or design a manual harvester for picking berries with their own hands. The configurations of such devices are quite simple, and following the instructions and drawings, creating them is quite easy.
Features of blueberry harvesters
Picking blueberries is a very labor-intensive process, and care must be taken, since the berries, although dense, are easy to damage. Used plastic containers or baskets, but do not frequently move the crop from one tank to another.
Factory-produced berry harvesters
The most common design has become a manual blueberry harvester in the form of a scoop. Despite the fact that it is extremely simple, the device speeds up the process three or four times. The cost of a blueberry harvester is not high, but you can find it in the hardware department or in garden tools. The equipment is known to users under several names:
- Yagodnik.
- Fruit picker.
- Berry harvester.
Design
- The container of the device has the shape of a parallelepiped.
- On the underside there are elongated curved teeth for combing out berries.
- The gap between the teeth is five, six millimeters.
Branches with foliage easily pass between the cloves without being damaged, and the berries are torn off and sent to the back of the equipment. Among various models The berry harvester made in Finland is very popular. The body of homemade and factory-made products can be metal, plastic or wood. As for the teeth, they are almost always made of wire.
How to make a blueberry harvester with your own hands?
It’s quite easy to make a blueberry harvester with your own hands; for this you will need:
- Patterns of paper parts - two side walls and one back, bottom, handle, part with teeth.
- Place the pattern on the surface of the material from which the body will be made, trace and cut.
- Fasten all the components according to the diagram.
Using the drawings, creating a blueberry harvester with your own hands is quite simple. For the teeth you can use wire. After making several long loops, secure them to the bottom of the device.
Cranberry harvester
One of the most popular combines for harvesting cranberries is the Toropushka device. Manual fixture damages plants, ensuring gentle and quick harvesting. The device is equipped with a capacious storage sleeve into which the picked berries are sent. To pour them into the tank, just one movement of your hand is enough. If you want to make a popular Toropushka cranberry harvester with your own hands, look at the drawings.
Design Features:
- The cranberry harvester has solid metal baffles to prevent bunches of plants from getting tangled. This allows grass and moss to escape without problems, leaving the berries in the container.
- The springiness of the plates does not tear leaves from the branches.
- Thanks to the rounded shape of the device, berries can be removed even from recesses.
- The sleeve is made of fabric, which reduces the time it takes to extract berries - you will need to lower the edge of the sleeve into the container.
Harvester for collecting lingonberries
A convenient and efficient manual harvester for collecting lingonberries was previously produced by domestic manufacturers. Its configuration is similar to other devices for berries:
- Body equipped with a handle.
- Bottom with a comb made of wire.
- A metal partition located inside the manual berry harvester, covering the cross-section of the body, prevents accidental loss of lingonberries.
- The partition is fixed in the side plates of the housing so that it can be easily rotated to allow berries to be accessed directly into the combine.
This design is often used to make do-it-yourself berry harvesters. Today, inexpensive models made of durable plastic are increasingly used. Most often on the market you can find Finnish berry harvesters, which have proven themselves to be excellent for working with various harvest volumes.
The practice of berry pickers in wildlife shows that a special manual harvester is the most convenient means for collecting lingonberries in the wild. Despite certain of its shortcomings and even a ban on its use in some countries (including Russia), it is with this type of combine that the bulk of lingonberries are collected in forests and on many plantations.
Classic harvester for collecting lingonberries
Indeed, such a device greatly simplifies the task of picking berries. The video shows how such a device collects in the forest:
With developed skills in use, the combine speeds up the collection of berries by 2-3 times compared to manual collection, and therefore is widely used by harvesters. And in countries where such devices are approved for use (mainly in Scandinavian countries - Sweden, Norway, Finland), they are produced by industry and are widely used by the population. Moreover, such devices must strictly comply with safety requirements so that their use does not lead to injury to bushes and a decrease in yield even in the wild.
Actually, it is for this reason that such combines are prohibited for use in Russia and Belarus: methods of monitoring what the population uses have not been worked out, and most assemblers prefer to use imported machines instead of safe and harmless ones. homemade devices, which lead to injury to the bushes and loss of green mass. In such conditions, it is easier to ban combines.
Note
People call tools for picking berries differently - “scrapers”, “combs”, “grabbers”, “peelers” and others. Some of these names specifically indicate the roughness of the tool and its traumatic nature for bushes.
However, it is obvious that progress is behind such devices, and sooner or later the ban on their use will be lifted, but only those that do not harm the bushes can be used. Therefore, let's figure out what a harvester looks like, which makes the task of picking berries easier and does not harm berry bushes, what varieties it has, how it works, how much it costs and how to make such a safe tool with your own hands.
What is such a combine?
Structurally, the harvesting combine is a deep bucket, to which a special comb with long teeth is attached at the front bottom, and a handle for holding the entire device is located at the top.
The disadvantage of this model is the thin metal handle, which is uncomfortable to hold and quickly rubs calluses.
The main working body of such a device is the comb. The length of its teeth is 10-20 cm, so that in one movement you can grab and “comb” an entire lingonberry bush. The distance between the teeth is approximately 4-5 mm. It is into such gaps that the leaves and stems of the bush easily fit, but the berries no longer fit.
Experience shows that a lingonberry harvester is also suitable for harvesting cranberries, bearberries, and large berries blueberries and blueberries. Small blueberries fit between the teeth and are easily crushed. Other berries - strawberries, cloudberries, currants - cannot be harvested with such combs, since the leaves of their bushes are very large and do not fit between the teeth.
The receiving compartment of the device is blind; berries picked with a comb accumulate in it.
When working, the picker holds the scoop in his hand, brings the comb to the base of the bush and simply lifts it up. Stems, branches and leaves pass between the teeth, and the berries are torn off and rolled into the depths of the receiving chamber. At one time or another, the picker pours the berries from the harvester into a bucket or basket.
This way you can pick berries from one bush in a few seconds. When collecting manually, the same operation takes at least a minute.
In well-designed harvesters, the comb does not have sharp cutting edges and therefore does not scratch the plant stems or tear off leaves. Even the edges of the teeth are rounded and do not scratch the stems. That is, in a good case, the tool is harmless to lingonberry bushes. In many cases, when such devices are made by hand, they contain areas that are dangerous for plants, which cause damage to the bushes.
Such devices are manufactured by many manufacturers and therefore have different appearance and design features.
For example, in Karelia and Leningrad region Finnish combine harvesters MARJUKKA are very famous. They are made of durable plastic and therefore are quite lightweight, but at the same time durable. The photo shows a classic version of such a device:
You can buy such a harvester in an online store for about 750 rubles - it will pay for itself in just a few days of harvesting.
And here is a model for children in the shape of a fox: 
Its price is similar - 750 rubles.
Simpler devices can be made of steel:
and sometimes they don’t even have teeth, but simply a rounded lattice in the front part:
You can order them at a price of 600-650 rubles per unit.
These are the models that are considered the safest. Already these options:
...they pick off a large number of leaves that do not fit between the teeth. It is these harvesters and their analogues that are considered poachers and it is with them that the ministry is fighting natural resources. And they are the ones that cost less (in the range of 300-400 rubles), which is why they are most popular among the population.
And on cranberry or blueberry plantations, real mobile harvesters are used:
Actually, these manual deep buckets with handles are also called manual harvesters. However, other devices for picking berries, often not at all similar to buckets, work on a similar principle.
Similar designs: rakes, scoops, shovels, combs and others
The principle of “combing” berries from herbaceous shrubs implemented in some devices, either simpler in design, or designed to further simplify the work of the assembler.
For example, the most simple options- these are ordinary wooden scoops with long teeth on the leading edge:
Some of their options are simplified as much as possible:
And in some homemade models an excellent balance is maintained between simplicity, cheapness and functionality. For example, here's a combine:
It is made of wire, thread and a bag, but is very compact and is not inferior in ease of use to industrial options.
In these cases typical design the combine is simplified for the fastest possible production. However, these options have their drawbacks. For example, the scoop has low sides and if accidentally tilted, the berries easily spill out of it. A wooden ladles quickly become dirty.
In other cases, inventors are working to make it possible to use a harvester to pick berries without bending over or crawling through the forest on your knees. The simplest option in this case is a special rake:
They can be used to comb the bushes without bending over, from time to time pouring the collected berries into a bucket.
More difficult option- This is a combination of a rake and a combine. Simply put, the combine long handle, allowing you to change the angle of inclination of the bucket itself. The video shows an example of such a device:
And, by the way, please note: even such complex designs It’s entirely possible to do it yourself. And when correct production the resulting combine will be no worse than an industrial one. Therefore, it is worth saying a few words about how to correctly implement the basic principle in such a product.
How to make such a device with your own hands?
The easiest way to make a scoop for picking berries is to take a regular scoop and cut teeth into it so that the gap between the teeth is at least 5 mm. The photo shows an example of what should happen in the end:
The disadvantage of this design is the handle located at the back. Practice shows that it is much more convenient if the handle is on top. In this case, the risk of berries spilling out of the receiving chamber of the scoop is less high, and the hand holding the scoop is in a natural position. Accordingly, the wrist does not strain and the device can be used to pick berries for a long time.
The video shows how to make a real harvester with your own hands:
Below are drawings according to which the body of the combine itself can be cut out of metal, onto which a grid with a ridge will later be attached:
The width of the combine can be greater if necessary.
Finally, you can make a rake for berries if you have a tool for working with metal:
In some cases, craftsmen manage to make fully functional devices literally from tin cans and scraps of lumber:
As you can see, the build quality here is not bad, but the appearance of the products still leaves much to be desired. Be that as it may, how quickly and easily it will be possible to collect lingonberries with such a device will depend only on how skillfully the picker works with the ladle itself. Often, a person with the most primitive device collects more berries than his colleague with an expensive imported scraper, simply because he does not make unnecessary movements and makes all movements more efficiently.
However, it is important to remember that the speed of harvesting lingonberries most often directly correlates with harm to the plants themselves (especially with poor harvesting techniques).
Is mechanized berry picking harmful to berry bushes?
Even the highest quality harvester in any case injures the bushes more than a person picking lingonberries by hand does. At a minimum, some of the leaves and individual shoots are still torn off and end up in the receiving chamber. And on very light forest soil, especially with a moss bedding, individual bushes can be torn out entirely if the stem accidentally becomes intertwined in the ridge. One-time cases of such damage are, in principle, not critical. But we must take into account that thousands of people pick berries in the forest in the summer; most of them use rough, rather than gentle, imported scoops. homemade structures, which can break or pull out bushes literally “in one go.”
Observations in nature and forestry logs show that areas in the forest that are under heavy pressure from berry pickers very quickly lose their productivity. The more people in a particular area collect berries with combines, the worse the fruit production of this area will be in a year. And with constant harvesting, the yield decreases every year.
Perhaps, in just a few years, it will hardly be possible to collect at least one bucket from the same plot from which these berries were now collected.
At the same time, according to environmental organizations in Finland and Sweden, with proper control by foresters and disciplined pickers, the use of combines does not affect the yield of berry fields in the forest. In these countries, the designs of devices that can be used for picking berries are strictly regulated, and serious fines are imposed for violations of the requirements. As a result, the population mainly uses safe structures, so the berry growers themselves do not suffer.
In Russia and Belarus, pickers also note that with proper, careful harvesting, using only gentle modern combines and a small number of pickers (when the bushes are not trampled), the harm from the harvesters themselves is practically not felt, and the berry plants bear fruit equally whether with manual picking or with delicate picking special combs. Where there are a lot of people, and the pickers do not disdain any devices, working on the principle “after us, even a flood,” berry growers die out.
Administrative responsibility for the use of combines
Today in Belarus, Ukraine and Russia, wild berries are collected using mechanical hand-held devices(harvesters) is prohibited by law. The fine for violation in Ukraine is about 1900 UAH, in Bulorussia - 420 rubles, in the Russian Federation - 4000 rubles. At the same time, having a combine harvester with you in the forest is not considered a crime. The forester can fine only if he catches the picker red-handed - both with the harvester and with the berries.
I decided to show and write another article on how to do it quickly. This will be useful for beginners. Everything will be done very simply and you won’t need any great skills for this. You need to pick berries now and there is no time to make a berry harvester for a long time.
I need to make two berry harvesters in one day, but they need to be durable, convenient and of high quality. We will do it in the simplest way. For production, scraps will be used, which are usually thrown away, but I always put them in right time they will always be useful to me. 
Part Dimensions
1. bottom - 220 x 100 x 13 mm
2. top - 155 x 114 x 7 mm
3. sidewall - 210 x 90 x 7 mm - 2 pcs.
4. back - 100 x 90 x 7 mm
Selecting from scraps required sizes in length, width and thickness. You can do a little less or more, sticking to mine. My second one turned out a little wider. 
Working bottom part, made of birch. The rest of the parts are made of pine. We select areas without knots and cracks. If there are no scraps, then we prepare them on machines. First of all, on jointer we drive the board away. Read my article on working on a woodworking jointing machine. 
In the article I described what you need to pay attention to. Next we skip the thickness we need on the thickness gauge and on circular saw we cut the required dimensions. I recommend reading another article, working on a woodworking machine with a circular saw. All the subtleties of work. 
The cuts on the lower part were made on a saw; the length of the cut is 60 mm if measured from the bottom, and 75 mm from the top. I set the saw to 3 mm. The gap between cuts is 5 mm. Then I made a slight bend on mine. Make it and grinder it is possible, but it will be fine without it if there is no opportunity or tool for this. 
You also need to shape the sides. We make an oblique cut, leave 155 mm at the top, and 25 mm at the bottom and saw off at the oblique. On the lower part we sharpen the ends a little, sand everything with sandpaper and prepare it for assembly. I stained it and coated it with waterproof varnish before assembling it. I drilled holes in the sides and top with a thin drill for nails and, before knocking them down, coated the joints with glue, epoxy resin. The handle and berry clamp were made from thin 1 mm iron.
Iron parts
1. handle - 220 x 30 mm
2. clamp - 115 x 100 mm
I used metal scissors to cut out the required dimensions. You can screw any handle, not necessarily the one I made. I bent the ears on the clamp and drilled holes. Covered with bronze waterproof coating. 
For the clamp, I drilled holes in the combine and screwed it onto the bolts. It should open and close freely. I bent the handle in a vice and bent the edges before painting. I drilled holes in the handle and in the berry harvester. All you have to do is screw on the handle and you're ready. 
This is one of simple ways, and in winter you can try and make it carved. Look and read the article