DIY Apple Picker: 5 Ideas Using Household Items

Traditionally, gardeners eagerly await the arrival of autumn to begin harvesting. And how frustrating it can be when the ripest, juiciest, and most beautiful apples are found at the top of the tree. Without special tools, they're impossible to pick. Fruit pickers, both commercially made and homemade, come to the rescue.

DIY apple picker

A fruit picker is a device for removing apples from high tree branches. It can be made either industrially or by hand. This device is fairly easy to make from scrap materials: a plastic bottle, a plastic pipe, and even a tin can.

A homemade fruit picker must meet certain criteria:

• reach high;
• securely hold the picked fruits;
• be light and easy to use.

Apple picker made from a plastic bottle

An apple picker made from a plastic bottle isn't known for its durability. Its main advantage is its ease of use and low maintenance. This simple apple picker can be made at home, following these step-by-step instructions:

1. A two-liter plastic bottle is cut in half, separating the neck and the bottom, and the bottom is thrown away.
2. The opposite side of the part containing the neck is cut out in a decorative pattern with teeth, resembling petals in shape.
3. Two opposite holes are drilled in the neck.
4. One end of a long wooden pole (handle from a garden tool) is adapted to fit the opening of the bottle.
5. Cropped The bottle part with teeth is placed on the pole with its neck up, and then securely fastened with a pair of screws.

To harvest with this device, hold it up to a branch with fruit, place an apple inside the bottle, and then rotate the device clockwise until the apple is cut off by the teeth. This allows you to harvest up to three apples from a branch at a time.

Fruit picker made from plastic pipe

Another simple way to make a fruit picker is to construct one from a plastic pipe of a suitable diameter and at least 60 cm long. The manufacturing process follows this sequence:

1. The edge of the pipe is cut into teeth on one side, approximately 3 cm long.
2. The teeth are heated over a stove until the plastic softens, after which they are bent inward, forming the bottom of the future device.
3. On the other side of the pipe, a groove is cut out, the outline of which resembles a fishing hook.
4. Stepping back from the groove on both sides by approximately 6 mm, make slots into which the blade of a stationery knife is inserted.
5. From the same pipe, cut out a square with a side of 15 cm.
6. Heat the center of the square over the fire and wrap it around the metal rod.
7. Using the cooled part, a section of pipe with teeth is secured.
8. On the other side, insert a wooden one cutting the required length.

To remove an apple from the tree, the tool is held close to the fruit so that it is inside the tube and the stem is in the groove. By gently pulling the blade toward the fruit, the apple is carefully cut off and falls into the fruit picker's basket.

Fruit picker from a tin can

If the apple stem doesn't fit with a plastic bottle fruit picker, you can make a similar device from a large tin can. Step-by-step instructions:

1. On one side of the jar, cut a shallow line from the top with a knife.
2. The sides of the slot are spread apart using pliers so that it takes on a wedge-shaped form, pointed at the bottom.
3. Make two holes opposite the cut.
4. Through the holes made, the fruit collector is fixed to the pole using strong wire.

A stick for picking apples from tall trees

To ensure a long-lasting apple harvest, it's crucial to harvest it properly. That's why gardeners try to pick apples from the branches as carefully as possible to avoid damaging them or letting them fall to the ground. Long poles equipped with soft fruit pickers help them with this. Building such a fruit picker is quite easy, following these step-by-step instructions:

1. To make the grabber, take a 2-liter plastic bottle.
2. The bottom of the bottle is cut off and the lower part is cut into spatulas, forming a kind of crown.
3. Using a hole punch or a heated sharp awl, make two holes in each sector.
4. A strong fishing line approximately 3 m long is threaded through the resulting holes in a circle, bringing both ends out through the neck.
5. Now we begin attaching the main holder. A long pole (like a plastic mop handle or a pipe) is used.
6. The fishing line coming out of the neck of the bottle is threaded through the holes made at the end of the holder and brought out on the other side.
7. The ends of the fishing line are tied taut.

When picking apples, the line is pulled towards oneself, allowing the blades to perform grasping movements.

A homemade device for picking apples from the ground

Experienced gardeners advise collecting fallen apples immediately to prolong their shelf life. Since this is no easy task, a special device was invented that allows fruit to be collected from the ground without bending over. The "roll," as it's called, is an oval-shaped wire structure that is rolled along the ground using a long handle, collecting apples that fall between the rods and are then easily retrieved through a special opening.

What to do if your garden is littered with fallen fruit and you don't have plans to buy a roll? In this case, a simple homemade fruit picker on a long pole, slightly modified, will come to the rescue. Here are step-by-step instructions:

1. The bottom of a 1.5 liter plastic bottle is cut off.
2. Small teeth up to 10 cm deep are cut along the walls of the resulting bowl.
3. On the other hand, the throat is also cut off.
4. A holder is attached to the side of the resulting pipe at a convenient angle.
5. Place a small bag (a sock will do) on the side opposite the prongs and secure it. Your apple picker is ready.

A fruit picker is a simple yet convenient tool for harvesting fruit from high tree branches. It's easy to make yourself using readily available materials: a plastic bottle or pipe, a tin can, and any long stick. Apples picked carefully and promptly directly from the tree have a longer shelf life and retain their marketable appearance.