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Mechanization of white asparagus harvest
– overview and perspectives -
Martin Geyer
01.10.2017 2
• White asparagus is the most important vegetable
crop in Germany
Introduction
Koch: Gemüse 4/2017
01.10.2017 3
• White asparagus is the most important vegetable
crop in Germany
• Hand harvest of white asparagus is very arduous,
labor and cost intensive
Introduction
Koch: Gemüse 4/2017
01.10.2017 4
• White asparagus is the most important vegetable
crop in Germany
• Hand harvest of white asparagus is very arduous,
labor and cost intensive
• Since more than 60 years growers and
manufacturers contemplate to facilitate this process.
Introduction
Koch: Gemüse 4/2017
01.10.2017 5
Harvesting principles
• Hand harvest with basket
• Hand harvest supported by harvesting aids
• Nonselective harvest
• Selective harvest
01.10.2017 6
Harvesting principles
• Hand harvest with basket
• Hand harvest supported by harvesting aids
• Nonselective harvest
• Selective harvest
01.10.2017 7
0
5
10
15
20
25
Seku
nd
en
/ S
tan
ge
blind
teilblind
freigraben geschult
freigraben ungeschult
freigraben auf schw eren Boden
a b c d e
Manual harvesting: time for one spear
Blind
Half-blind
Trained digging
Untrained digging
Untrained digging on heavy soil
S
econds /
Spear
01.10.2017 8
3 – 4 workers per ha
Hand harvest with basket
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Hand harvest with basket;
working distance
Folie abdecken
Spargel stechen
Folie schließen
Korb leeren
Zeit
Folie abdecken
Spargel stechen
Folie schließen
Korb leeren
Zeit
Tim
e
Removing the film
Hand harvest
Closing the film
Empty the basket
In total the workers walk about 15 km to harvest one ha
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Hand harvest with push carriages and
improved film handling
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Single row electric driven harvest aids with automatic
handling of the film and transport of the spears
Asparagus spider, Engels
Innovatietechniek BV, Panningen, NL
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Single row electric driven harvest aids
• Battery performance should last one day
• Long „arc“ with enough height
• Ease of use
• Simple stop and go function by hand or by optical sensors
• Fast gear for periods with low yield
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Same harvest aid with double film handling;
black/white film + tunnel
Engels Innovatietechniek BV, Panningen, NL Supports
01.10.2017 14
Single-row combustion engine driven harvesters
with sitting harvest position (about year 2000)
Böckenhoff GmbH, Raesfeld, German)
01.10.2017 15
Two-rowed harvester (Engels, NL)
Performance problems in periods with
low yield because of waiting times
without spears
01.10.2017 16
Three-row harvesting aid
Sitting position in the center of the harvester (about 2000)
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5-row harvesting aid with sunscreen;
deposition in boxes
01.10.2017 18
14-row harvesting aid; deposition on a belt (2015)
(Strauss, Buxtehude Germany)
The film is lifted the asparagus are pre-cut,
pre-washed and pre-sorted on the machine
and stored at the back, to be unloaded in
one single movement.
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Tim
e in h
/ha
Raw yield in kg/ha
More row
Hand „+“
Hand „-“
The harvesting time depends on yield,
mechanization and work organization
Comparison of different harvesting systems
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Improving the use of one-row
harvesting aids by shift operation (Allofs 2015)
Harvesting period: 35 days
System 1 System 2 System3
Workers 2 + harvest aid 1 + harvest aid 3 + carriage
Working hours 8 h 10 h 10 h
(per worker & day)
Performance 3703 spears 3110 spears 2213 spears
(per worker & day) (2500 / 8 h) (1770 / 8h)
(per worker & h) 463 / h 311 / h 221 / h
Harvested area 0,8 ha 0,67 ha (-16%) 0,48 ha (-40%)
(per worker & day)
01.10.2017 21
Summary harvest aids
• Today electric driven single row harvesting aids are
predominantly used for white asparagus
• The amount of workers per ha can be reduced to less than 1
• Harvesting performance can be improved by two workers for
one harvester in shift operation
01.10.2017 22
Harvesting principles
• Hand harvest with basket
• Hand harvest supported by harvesting aids
• Nonselective harvest
• Selective harvest
(160) ... 180 ... 200 cm
40...45 cm
70 ... 80 cm
~ 3
5 c
m
cut
forward motion
vibrator
separating conveyor
(sive belt)
cutting unit
The whole ridge has to be cut
with a cutting unit
The spears were separated
from the soil with a sieve belt
(900 m³ soil / ha)
Manual removal from a
horizontal belt
Restore the ridge
Nonselective harvest,
principle
In the early fifties of the last century
american engineers started with this
harvesting principle for the can industry
(Kepner and O`Brian 1967)
Reaction of the asparagus plant
Harvest frequency
Yield, grade, quality etc.
Moisture distribution in the ridge
Heat distribution in the ridge
Phytosanitary questions
Economy
Many open questions
ATB – Prototype of the harvester ca. 1998
Paschold, P. J.; Geyer, M.(1998): Geyer, M.; Oberbarnscheidt, B.; Paschold, P.-J. (2002):
01.10.2017 26
Unfavorable distribution of the spear length
forward motion
vibrator
separating conveyor
(sive belt)
cutting unit
Photo: Kirpy: ai-solution GmbH, Wolfsburg, Germany, http://www.ai-solution.de/
Other manufacturer:
Christiaens Agro Systems, Neer (NL) www.christiaensagro.com
Photo: Kirpy, ai-solution GmbH
Results Kirpy
Kirpy 2009
01.10.2017 30
Tagesertrag
0
100
200
300
400
500
25.04.2003 05.05.2003 15.05.2003 25.05.2003 04.06.2003 14.06.2003 24.06.2003
Datum
Ert
rag
in
kg
/ha
Daily yield in 2003
Date
Yie
ld in k
g/h
a a
nd d
ay
(About 15 raw spears per kg)
01.10.2017 31
Harvesting principles
• Hand harvest with basket
• Hand harvest supported by harvesting aids
• Nonselective harvest
• Selective harvest
Selective harvest of white asparagus
Asparagus Panther
(It should replace up to
10 workers in shift
operation)
Photos: ai-solution Agrarmaschinen
www.ai-solution.de
01.10.2017 33
Machine decreases wage costs by 40% (Juni 2008) Brabantse Wal presents first full-automatic asparagus harvester in the world http://www.freshplaza.com/news_detail.asp?id=24250
Selective harvest of white asparagus; Brabantse Wal
01.10.2017 34
AutoSpar (Strauss, Buxdehude)
AutoSpar "Development of an automatic harvesting system for white and violet Asparagus" Two color cameras with background illumination
Machine speed: In ‘auto’ mode and ‘find target’: 0,5 m/s
In ‘manual’ mode: from 0 – 1,5 m/s Harvesting efficiency: Up to 5 asparagus stalks per minute http://www.autospar.net/index.html
01.10.2017 35
Source:
http://www.cerescon.com/NL/home
Cerescon selective harvester (2017)
01.10.2017 36
• All in all, development of white asparagus harvest
mechanization is not completed
• Most growers are still waiting for a selective white
asparagus harvesting robot
• It should be fast, inexpensive and gentle to the
produce to limit the labor costs and the high number
of workers in the vegetable companies
Conclusion
Many thanks for your attention
01.10.2017 37