Tobacco harvester

Claim 1

APPARATUS FOR PRIMING TOBACCO PLANTS HAVING STALKS AND LEAVES EXTENDING OUTWARDLY THEREFORM ARRANGED TO BE MOUNTED ON A VEHICLE FRAME MOVABLE ALONG A ROW OF SUCH PLANTS COMPRISING A PAIR OF DEFOLIATING UNITS, MEANS OPERATIVELY ASSOCIATED WITH SAID DEFOLITAING UNITS ADAPTED TO MOUNT THE SAME ON THE VEHICLE FRAME IN LONGITUDINALLY INCLINED SPACED TRANSVERSE RELATION TO PERMIT PASSAGE OF THE TOBACCO PLANTS THEREBETWEEN DURING THE MOVEMENT OF THE VEHICLE FRAME ALONG THE ROW OF PLANTS, AT LEAST ONE OF SAID UNITS INCLUDING A PLURALITY OF MEMBERS HAVING CUTTING BLADE MEANS THEREON AND MEANS MOUNTING SAID MEMBERS FOR MOVEMENT IN AN ENDLESS PATH WHICH INCLUDES INWARD MOVEMENT TOWARD THE STALKS TO BRING SAID CUTTING BLADE MEANS INTO CUTTING POSITION IN VERTICALLY SPACED RELATION TO THE LEAVES ADJACENT THE STALKS, VERTICAL MOVEMENT TO SEVER THE LEAVES ENGAGED THEREBY ADJACENT THE STALKS AND OUTWARD MOVEMENT TO RETRACT THE CUTTING BLADE MEANS FROM ADJACENT THE STALKS, SAID CUTTING BLADE MEANS HAVING SHARP CUTTING EDGES FACING IN THE DIRECTION OF SAID VERTICAL SEVERING MOVEMENT AND EXTENDING GENERALLY IN DIRECTIONS BOTH LONGITUDINALLY AND TRANSVERSE WITH RESPECT TO THE ROW OF PLANTS DURING SAID VERTICAL SEVERING MOVEMENT SO THAT SAID CUTTING EDGES WILL ENGAGE THE LEAVES OF THE PLANTS WHICH EXTEND BOTH LONGITUDINALLY AND TRANSVERSELY OUTWARDLY OF THE STALKS WITH RESPECT TO THE ROW ON THE SIDE THEREOF OF SAID ONE UNIT.