[Karen Passafaro]

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This is a tuber melanosporum orchard, so maximum pruning to get sun to the roots of the tree.  Pruning all little suckers and raking leaves away from base of the tree.  Also pruned up all branches coming off main stems to about 3 feet from the ground, to allow for the dogs to have better access close to the tree later in the year.

 

 

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[Karen Passafaro]

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The ratcheting feature allows you to cut through very large branches with ease.  They provide a lot of power without stressing your hand.  If you have never used a ratcheting tool, you really need to check it out.    The blades are very sharp and they clean up nicely.  I will probably try out their replacement blades at some point.  I have to be honest that these are the first ratcheting tools that I have used, so others may have additional brands to recommend, so we look forward to hearing from you.

[Karen Passafaro]

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We have put in an owl box a few years ago hoping a family of owls would move in and help control the critters.  But no owls have taken residence to date.

[Karen Passafaro]

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very cool!  I do have a lot of rocks that I need to ‘harvest’ after the power harrow went through the orchard.   I am wondering if I could get one to attach to my ATV to minimize the weight?

[Karen Passafaro]

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Thanks Elise!  You did a much better job describing how ratcheting tools work.  “minimum effort to get maximum result” says it all.  You should definitely try one out.  In California we also have a lot of work every year on ‘fire hardening’ and limbing up trees and removing a lot of brush and fire fuel.  The larger lopper with telescopic handles has come in very handy outside the orchard as well!

[Karen Passafaro]

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Fabrice:

Thanks for posting this little trick.  I had looked all over the site and profile settings to try and figure out how to get a profile picture on there, and here you already posted the answer!  Awesome!!

[Karen Passafaro]

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We also give a big thumbs up to the Felco PowerBlade pruners!  We have the 812 model.  We use it to cut all the hazel suckers and to trim up the oaks.  We were able to prune over 160 trees (mostly hazels and a few oaks) in 8 hours (actual time on the pruner) making over 10K cuts.  On average, we were able to prune a tree in less than 3 minutes, making about 64 cuts/tree which averaged over 1200 cuts per hour.  And no carpal tunnel or hand or wrist pain!  We highly recommend this tool as a major labor saving tool!  Here’s a hazel pre-pruning

[Karen Passafaro]

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Here’s the ‘post pruning’ picture after about 3 minutes of cutting with the Felco 812 pruner.  It’s an amazing labor saving device and we highly recommend it!

[Karen Passafaro]

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The Felco system (battery backpack and holster with the handpiece) is very comfortable to use/wear and it makes very quick work with hazel suckers.  Here’s the system on a pile of hazel suckers after only about an hour of cutting.

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