Tobacco defoliating units with overlapping cutting edges

Abstract

An apparatus for priming tobacco plants having stalks and leaves extending outwardly therefrom comprising a pair of intermeshing defoliating units each of which includes a plurality of elongated members having sharp upper cutting edges extending generally in directions both longitudinal and transverse with respect to the row of plants. The units are driven such that the elongated members are moved through an orbital translational cycle in a direction such that the cutting edges of each elongated member will be moved inwardly toward the stalks, upwardly to sever the leaves from the stalks and then outwardly to carry the severed leaves away from the stalks. The improvement of the invention consists essentially in arranging the units with respect to one another such that the longitudinal extent of the cutting edges associated with the elongated members of each unit during their movement inwardly toward the stalks pass into a common vertical plane disposed closely adjacent the associated side of the stalks of a row of tobacco plants. The distance between the aforesaid vertical planes associated with both units is less than the transverse extent of the cutting edges of the units so that the free ends of the transverse extent of the cutting edges of each elongated member associated with each unit during their movement inwardly toward the stalk moves inwardly a distance beyond the vertical plane associated with the other unit so as to insure that leaves attached to stalks at positions other than at opposite sides thereof with respect to the row will be severed.