Les Halloway, Rancho R`eal Orchards
“I’ve tried everything from a Clemens Grape Hoe to a Speedo blade. I had to use a berm disk first and then run the grape hoe or speedo blade second and make two passes. I WON’T USE ANYTHING BUT THE WONDER WEEDER NOW. I’ve tried everything else.
With the Wonder Weeder I can go through with one pass where other machines required three passes. Now, I just put the Wonder Weeder on the front of my tractor while I’m mowing so I’m mowing and Wonder Weeding at the same time! Now I’m only making one pass through the orchard.
I use the Wonder Weeder 3-4 times per year. Usually, when I mow my cover crop I do my weeding at the same time which makes operating the Wonder Weeder free! And that’s what I like the most about it: it’s just one guy, one pass. By the time we get all the way across the 300 acres, it’s time to mow again so we just keep the Wonder Weeder going. This keeps the ground worked up and the weed growth down. It also mulches the weeds into the soil which is beneficial to the crop.
My maintenance cost on the Wonder Weeder is a few shear bars and that’s about it. Every two or three passes through the orchard I change it out. That’s the only consumable item. With other machines, I would spend 2 hours in the orchard and 4 hours in the shop fixing them.
Weeding the first time for the year I only run the Wonder Weeder but a little slower than mowing speed. After that initial pass, I run it simultaneously with a mower at regular mowing speed.
In the four years I have used this machine, I haven’t come across any detrimental effects to my orchard. The only way you could have negative experience with the Wonder Weeder is if the tractor driver flat runs into a tree. Why not own a Wonder Weeder? Every orchard or vineyard owner should have at least one. It just makes sense!”
Les Halloway, Rancho R`eal Orchards
Orchard Acreage: 300 acres
Years using the Wonder Weeder: 4
