Citrus Harvesting Tools

When harvesting citrus you need to use the correct harvesting tools for the job to ensure your fruit leaves the farm in the best possible condition.

We have 2 tools below that will satisfy your needs when it comes to harvesting your citrus.

Citrus Clipper

We searched around for a decent citrus clipper, and we came across this one, sourced from a reputable European manufacturer of hand tools.

This clipper is used by most citrus farmers in South Africa as well as neighbouring states, for harvesting fruit such as oranges, grapefruit, naartjies and lemons.

The citrus clipper has an "anvil" cutting action, meaning it has a sharp blade that cuts against a "blunt" face [as opposed to a "bypass" cut where the 2 blades of the scissor cut past each other]

The clipper's blades are designed and shaped in such a way that they will fit into the calyx of the fruit, cutting the stem off as close to the calyx as possible. The shorter the remaing stem, the less damage to other fruit during the harvesting & packing process.

The citrus clipper also has a rounded tip to ensure the skin of the fruit is not inadvertently damaged during harvesting. Leather straps attached to the clipper allow the picker to attach the tool to his finger, negating the need to put the clipper down, after harvesting each individual fruit.

Spares available include springs and nut & bolt sets.

Lemon Clipper

We call this a lemon clipper but it has many more applications than just the harvesting of lemons.

However, lets start with lemon harvesting. Due to the shape of the lemon fruit, where the calyx is more exposed to the worker [compared to oranges],this clipper is ideal for this purpose. The blades operate on the bypass system and are extremely sharp.

Due to the slight upward curve of the blades the skin of the fruit is not damaged during cutting, and the tips are rounded, not pointed.
Since introducing the scissor to citrus farmers as an alternative to the traditional, heavy lemon clipper the tool has been a success.
The harvesting of grapefruit has also been made easier with this scissor and we believe that with some training and concerted effort the lemon clipper can also be used for the harvesting of oranges as well.

In fact there are some growers in South Africa using it for oranges already!

This clipper can also be used for the harvesting of table grapes,  kiwi fruit, kumquats and many more.

A lightweight scissor with plastic coated handles for comfort and the spring is replaceable should it get lost/broken.

To look at other harvesting tools/scissors on our site please click on the following links :

Harvesting Olives

Harvesting Grapes

Harvesting Flowers

Harvesting Avocado Pears

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