Equipment for Ground Harvesting Jojoba Seed

Two self-propelled vacuum harvesters were developed to harvest jojoba seed from the soil surface. One machine straddled one row, and harvested that row and the inside of each adjacent row. The other harvester traveled between two rows and collected seed from one side of each. After collection, the seed was conveyed to expansion chambers which separated the seed and heavier materials from the delivery airstream. The seed then was cleaned by mechanical and pneumatic means by both machines. Field harvest speeds averaged 0.85 km/h (0.52 mph) for the straddle unit, and 0.95 km/h (0.59 mph) for the other harvester. Field capacities were 0.61 ha/h (1.5 ac/h) and 0.35 ha/h (0.86 ac/h) for the two machines, respectively, when operated in fields having 3.6 m (12 ft) rows.