Orchard Ladder

[sotc]

Pole loppers, regular loppers do 90 percent and a saddle with flipline for the rest

 

[Al Smith]

I can't attest to an orchard ladder but a 16 foot step ladder is not a one person task .I have a 12 footer fiber glass that's a chore in itself . Little giant has a nice line of ladders ,not cheap .

 

[MasterBlaster]

Fiberglass is heavy!!!

 

[Al Smith]

The 12 footer I have is a Werner and is heavy .They make an orchard type in a 16 footer .

 

[Benjo75]

I have a 24 ft fiberglass ladder. It's almost too much to move around. I think a 12 ft orchard ladder would do most of what I need. I just bought another bucket truck so I might be wanting to use it anyway.

 

[MasterBlaster]

24"? Holy crap!!!

 

[flushcut]

The 12 footer I have is a Werner and is heavy .They make an orchard type in a 16 footer .

Two years ago my wife bought me an orchard ladder a 12'er Werner and it is indeed heavy. Stable!

 

[MasterBlaster]

The ones I've seen were made from aluminum.

 

[DMc]

As the weight of a three-legged orchard goes up, its functionality goes down. They do not stay in one spot for very long so ease of mobility is, to a large extent, a measure of their usefulness.

 

[Cobleskill]

I have a 40 foot wood ladder. I had to get a bit older to learn you can seperate the sections and then put them together when they are up. Try not to use that one too much. 28 foot fibreglass too.

 

[Al Smith]

I've got both a 24 and a 32 foot wood rung ladder .It's all I can do any more to set up the 32 .

I made the mistake years ago of loaning my 32 to a roofer .Drunken SOB broke it .I actually made a new side rail from an 18 foot 2 by 6 , Sitka spruce fine and select from a local lumber yard .Must have went through a dozen to find one perfectly knot free .Ripped it to size,ran it through the planer ,good as new .

 

[Bodean]

Stability is based on perspective and level of comfort.

Just kidding... I took this picture and then told him to get a bigger ladder.

FWIW he's from Florida.

 

[MasterBlaster]

If I had a hand to hang on with, that wouldn't bother me a bit.

 

[flushcut]

As the weight of a three-legged orchard goes up, its functionality goes down. They do not stay in one spot for very long so ease of mobility is, to a large extent, a measure of their usefulness.

I completely agree. I wish she had bought one from treestuff but that's what I got.

 

[mdvaden]

Stability is based on perspective and level of comfort.

Just kidding... I took this picture and then told him to get a bigger ladder.

FWIW he's from Florida.

That's either a 6 footer or 8 footer with more rungs hidden.

The best combination I've used is owning both 6 foot and 10 foot.

Pole pruners for fruit trees are a hack tool when it comes to proper fruit spur management, so ladders or some other way to reach throughout the tree is best. I used to do taller fruit trees but decided to get people to remove apple or pear trees over 15 feet tall, reduce their height, or just avoid working on taller ones.

There's this Rogue Valley gardener radio show here, and the show host recommends training apple trees to start branching like knee high from what I recall him saying a few months ago. I think his trees don't need ladders.

For myself, I don't like apple or pear branched that low and ideally like trees where a 6 foot orchard ladder takes care of everything.

 

[Cobleskill]

We grow a lot of apples here. Most of the new plantings are grown on trellises more like grapes than apples. Productivity is supposed to be through the roof.

Already have to big a supply. Price of apples will be following milk, corn, ......

 

[sotc]

Pole pruners for fruit trees are a hack tool when it comes to proper fruit spur management, so ladders or some other way to reach throughout the tree is best.

If you say so :eyeroll:

 

[MasterBlaster]

I'd be using both, for sure!!! Just make good cuts...

 

[sotc]

Yeah, depends on the tree no doubt. That is mostly what my orchard ladders are used for, but seldom in a small fruit tree.

Well, I use them alot setting up the batting cages at the little league too

 

[mdvaden]

If you say so :eyeroll:

It's like an intricate choreography that is nicely suited to hand pruners and hand saw. Pole pruners are too long and bulky to maneuver for the proper cuts and angles from all directions.

These fruit spurs transitioned from water sprouts to fruit bearing in less than two years. This photo documents 4 stages of cutting within about 18 months of that two year period.

A pole pruner is fine for a small percentage of bigger cuts though. I probably do up to 2% of my cuts on fruit trees with a pole saw. As for fruit trees like apple and pear, the pruning is more intricate than typical pruning for most trees and shrubs.

 

[rfwoody]

Is it feasible and/or advisable to tie-in when pruning from an orchard ladder?

 

[mdvaden]

Is it feasible and/or advisable to tie-in when pruning from an orchard ladder?

I do not recall seeing somebody do it before, but I wouldn't ridicule someone with gear who did that in certain circumstances. These tripod ladders are fairly sturdy, but there are properties with mole holes or the like that can cause the ladder to tip unexpectedly. And tying it could allow a bit more freedom to cut bigger limbs that could fall and swat the front leg or side of the ladder. Either way, the idea sounds more good than bad.

One of the most important things is the angle of the legs, and I think some brands note that on the ladder or directions. If the front leg is placed too close in or too far out, the ladder becomes very unstable and likely to collapse.

 

[MasterBlaster]

You will never go wrong tieing in.

 

[sotc]

If there is an overhead tie in, yeah, but keep it a little loose or you will be hanging from it, guaranteed.

 

[MasterBlaster]

Better than hitting the ground. Offshore, anything above 4' required a harness and lanyard.

I always hated that.