Abstract: A vegetable topper for cutting the leafy tops off of tubers, such as onions, after they have been uprooted from the field. The topper is mounted on a wheeled moveable frame towed by a tractor, which uses a vacuum to lift the tops and snip them off. The power for the vacuum fan and topping operation is derived from a power take-off of the tractor. The shearing means comprises a linearly reciprocating sickle blade whose height relative to the oncoming tops is optimally predetermined for a shearing type of cut for varying sizes of onions, providing maximum efficiency. The sheared tops are substantially mulched into fine particles within a fan in the vacuum system and dispersed to the side of the topper. A conveyor system lifts the untopped onions into proximity with the fan and sickle blades and consolidates already topped onions into a reduced area.

Abstract: A vegetable topper for cutting the leafy tops off of tubers, such as onions, as they lie in the field. This improved topping system is designed to be mounted on a wheeled moveable frame towed by a tractor, which uses a vacuum to lift the tops and snip them off. The power for the vacuum fan and topping operation is supplied by a primary motor mounted on a wheeled frame, or derived from a power take-off of the tractor. The shearing means comprises a linearly reciprocating sickle blade whose angle relative to the oncoming tops may be adjusted for an optimally perpendicular shearing type of cut, providing maximum efficiency. The sheared tops are substantially mulched into fine particles within a fan in the vacuum system and dispersed to the side of the topper. A conveyor system consolidates already topped onions with a first conveyor picking up a portion of the topped onions and a second conveyor delivering said portion over the remainder of the topped onions, resulting in a reduced gathering area.