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Thank you for accessing the Citrus Harvesting Decision Tool. The Decision Tool has been designed to help a grower decide the most profitable method of harvesting. As mechanical harvesting systems become available, a grower must determine whether or not a mechanical system is economically viable in his or her grove. Further, if more than one mechanical system is available, the Decision Tool will determine which system harvests at the lowest cost. The Decision Tool allows you, the user, to enter block-specific information. A series of three pages asks for relevant data about yield, fruit prices, harvest costs, and costs to prepare trees for mechanical harvesting systems. You will notice small "?" icons placed next to all input fields. Clicking on these icons will provide a small pop-up description of that field, as well as additional information that will assist you in entering the correct information. At the very least, you must provide information on harvest costs for a hand crew and one (1) mechanical system. The Decision Tool will allow you to enter information for as many as four (4) mechanical systems plus hand harvesting. Based on the data entered, the Decision Tool will compute the unit cost of harvesting ($/box and $/p.s.) by harvest method. The harvest cost represents the cost to "pick" and "roadside" fruit. Details of the computations behind the unit harvest cost results are available by clicking on the harvest cost values found on the "Summary Results Page." A user has the option of directly accessing the Harvesting Decision Tool by simply clicking on the icon below (Harvesting Decision Tool) or by creating a password-protected account. The advantage of creating an account, with a "user ID" and password, is that inputted data can be stored for future use. We welcome any and all comments about the Citrus Harvesting Decision Tool. Please e-mail Fritz Roka at fmroka@ufl.edu if you have any questions or wish to provide any comments.

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Hand vs Mechanical Harvesting Comparison Tool - Compare the costs and benefits of both hand harvesting or mechanical harvesting. By providing some basic cost and yield information, the results will be tailored to your specific crop situation.