The Provitis Pre Pruner is sometimes called a barrel pruner. This tool swiftly cuts 50cm or so from the top of the canopy significantly reducing the time, cost and effort of doing the job by hand.
A series of overlapping dishes and blades cut and drop the prunings at forward speeds of up to 10kph. The dexterity of the mast and controls provides for precise positioning of the tool over the trellis with drivers usually setting the tool vertically over the vines with the bottom blade just above the top bud of next year’s fruiting cane so as not to damage it, normally this means cutting just below the top pair of parallel wires.
Removing the clinging tendrils on these wires is a significant step forward in efficiency by hugely reducing the time and effort expended when tugging and pulling branches out by hand. According to user reports 15,000 to 20,000 vines can be pre pruned in an eight hour to 10 hour day depending on row length and operator comfort.
The Provitis Pre Pruner module is one of many modules which can be attached to the mast (e.g. trimmer and deleafer) rendering investment in a different mast for each tool unnecessary.
The mast itself enables the module to be positioned for height, offset and tilt exactly where needed over the canopy. The in cab controls can be either provided by Provitis as part of the overall kit, or on the tractor if it has sufficient facilities, however the Provitis system is often preferred as it is simpler to fit and use requiring only two hydraulic hoses to be connected to the tractor and it also has the additional advantage of having a future proofed control box pre-loaded should more tools be added to the mast at a later date.
The Provitis controls are easy to use and designed to give utmost precision. The multi-purpose functionality of the mast also means that if you already have one of their masts then it is possible to hire only the Pre Pruner head or other modules from Vitifruit Equipment which can be very useful for smaller vineyards on a tight budget.
Generally all these trellising tools are used on the more powerful vineyard specific tractors, however it is also possible to use them on smaller tractors with a little advanced planning as it is necessary to check the oil flow and general specifications of each tractor.
More information is available: www.provitis.fr and follow the link to “Wide Spaced Vineyards” then “Pre Pruner MP 122”.
