Plant husbandry – Cover – shade – or screen – Adjustable on supporting structure or having means allowing...
Reexamination Certificate
2000-09-22
2001-09-04
Jordan, Charles T. (Department: 3644)
Plant husbandry
Cover, shade, or screen
Adjustable on supporting structure or having means allowing...
Reexamination Certificate
active
06282835
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention.
This invention relates generally to enclosure structures for protecting plants. More specifically, this invention relates to a method and means for thermally protecting plants from extreme temperatures and physically protecting plants from wind and other physical assaults. The present invention provides plants with a flexible yet stable fluid fillable enclosure formed by a plurality of vertical tubes interconnected by a basal annular ring.
2. Description of the Prior Art.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,267,665 (Wallace et al.) discloses thermal protective coverings for plants consisting of a double walled insulative device closable at the top and adapted to fit about the plant wherein the insulative space within the walls is filled with water. The device disclosed in the '665 patent, however, lacks radial stability, and may damage the plant when exposed to external stress. The device is difficult to use in that a separate, internal structural support, such as a five gallon drum, must be used during filling to keep the device from collapsing onto the plant. The device requires additional staking or anchoring to support the structure in a manner sufficient to keep the device from damaging the plant. Furthermore, the device disclosed in the '665 patent may not be closed at the top without the use of a string or tie of some sort.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,821,453 (Morehead) discloses a rigid, conical, transparent plant protector that is adapted to contain a fluid that may absorb thermal energy from an outside source and may release that absorbed thermal energy at another time. The '453 patent discloses a rigid device which overcomes the dimensional stability shortcomings of the previously discussed '665 patent. However, there is a need for a lightweight, flexible plant protector made from low cost material which exhibits the dimensional stability of the Morehead device.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,509,229 (Thomasson et al.) discloses a self supporting plant enclosure including a plurality of elongated hollow closure bodies each having a pair of outer and inner transparent walls. Each closure body is closed along the opposite sides and base and is open at least through a portion of the top, defining an internal cavity in the closure body capable of receiving and holding a quantity of fluid therein. The closure bodies are positioned in side-by-side relation and are coupled one closure body to the next along the opposite sides thereof so as to form the plant enclosure. Like the Morehead device, the plant protector disclosed in Thomasson is comprised of rigid material.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,012,249 (Cheney) discloses an insulated plant cover having a transparent or translucent inner cylinder which has a top and a bottom. The inner cylinder top has a chimney. The inner cylinder also has a bottom spacer positioned circumferentially along the bottom end of the inner cylinder. The disclosed plant cover also has a transparent or translucent outer cylinder. Fluid may be held in the concentric shell formed between the inner and outer cylinders. Once again, the Cheney device is rigid.
Still, there is a need for a lightweight, flexible plant protector made from low cost material which exhibits superior dimensional stability. Further, there is a need for such a plant protector which has the requisite stability to obviate the need for stakes or other anchors. Additionally, said device should be self closing without the aid of a string or tie. Finally said device must be easily filled with fluid and easily transported from one plant to another.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention is a flexible plant protector with vertical tubes connected by an annular ring. The tubes may be filled with water or other fluids in order to protect the plant from damaging hot or cold temperatures. The invention effectively extends the growing period of plants by artificially creating warmer days and warm nights in the plants' immediate environment, thereby triggering the plants to begin the growing season at a date earlier than the plants would otherwise begin their growing season. The present invention also provides plants with a physical barrier which protects the plants from wind, animals, and other mechanical stresses.
Since the dawn of agriculture, humans have struggled with the effects of weather. The interaction of weather and living systems is a basic aspect of agriculture. Although great strides in technology have resulted in massive production increases and improved quality, weather remains the limiting factor. One weather characteristic of agricultural value is the degree day. This concept holds that the growth of a plant is dependent on the total amount of heat to which it is subjected during its lifetime, accumulated as degree days. Common practice is to use 50° F. (10° C.) as a base. Thus, if the mean daily temperature for a particular day is 60° F. (16° C.), then 10 degree days are accumulated for that day on the Fahrenheit scale. The total number of growing degree days required form maturity varies with crop variety as well as plant species. Also, the minimum threshold temperature (the temperature below which the plant is damaged or unable to grow) varies with plants; e.g., 40° F. (4° C.) for peas, 50° F. (10° C.) for corn, and 55° F. (13° C.) for citrus. The present invention effectively increases the number of growing degree days for each plant protected by raising the mean daily temperature for each plant. The present invention also keeps the plants from being exposed to temperatures below the minimum threshold temperature early in the season when temperatures are otherwise below that in which the plants are able to grow.
The present invention creates an environment which provides plants with certain advantages with respect to the interaction between weather and agriculture. The essence of the weather-agriculture interaction lies in wise adaptation of agricultural operations to the local climate and in techniques for manipulating or modifying the local environment to minimize weather stresses on plants. Regardless of how favorable light and moisture conditions may be, plant growth ceases when the air and leaf temperature drops below a certain minimum or exceeds a certain maximum value. Between these limits, there is an optimum temperature at which growth proceeds with greatest rapidity. These three temperature points are the cardinal temperatures for a given plant; the cardinal temperatures are known for most plant species, at least approximately. The present invention affords the user a method and apparatus for keeping plants at or near the optimal temperature.
Another aspect of temperature control is frost protection. Likelihood of damage from freezing temperature depends upon the plant species, the season, the manner of temperature change, the physiological state of the plant, and other factors. Two types of frost are recognized: (1) radiation frost, which occurs on clear nights with little or no wind, and (2) wind, or advection, frost, which occurs at any time, day or night, regardless of cloud cover. The present invention protects plants form both types of frost by (1) leaning the tops of the tubes inward to form a closed, inverted conical structure over the plant to reduce radiational cooling, and (2) forming a physical barrier around the plant reducing wind exposure. The present invention, when surrounding the plant and filled with water, will protect plants even if the water freezes. Since water releases its latent heat of fusion upon freezing, the plant is protected from unusually cold temperature. It is important that the present invention be made of a flexible material, such as a thermoplastic material, so that it may expand to accommodate the increased volume of frozen water.
There are additional advantages offered by the present invention with respect to wind remediation. Wind effects plant growth in other ways, including transpiration and mechanical breakage. Transpiration (the loss of water mainly through the stomata of leaves) increases with
Jordan Charles T.
Palo Francis T.
Pedersen Barbara S.
Pedersen Ken J.
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