Plant husbandry – Receptacle for growing medium – Irrigator
Patent
1990-02-28
1991-09-24
Scherbel, David A.
Plant husbandry
Receptacle for growing medium
Irrigator
47 81, 52102, A01G 2500
Patent
active
050503430
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
The present invention generally relates to a method and an apparatus for artificial irrigation of plants, both plants in pots and in the free earth and in stationary cultivation apparatus located above the ground or in the earth, and the invention is more particularly directed to such a method and such an apparatus, by means of which it is possible to form a closed irrigation loop by interconnecting a few numbers of tube or hose from standard components, which loop can after by choice provide a system whereby it is possible to irrigate a large or a small size area.
It is known for instance from the U.S. Pat. No. 2,346,029 to provide an irrigation apparatus in the form of a tube formed irrigation loop, whereby a tube having several spaced perforations, and having an inner wick is placed in the earth under the area to be irrigated, and the wick is put in contact with a source of water for soaking up water and transmitting it into the earth.
A, wick system is normally not capable of transporting water by a capillary action over long distances. Furthermore, the amount of water which is supplied by the wick decreases proportionately according to the distance from the source of water. This means that plants located close to the source of water irrevocably are subjected to a higher moisture than plants located farther from the source of water. For the same reason the prior art apparatus is strongly restricted as concerns the maximum useful length of the apparatus. Further, the apparatus does not allow an interconnection of tubes to any length, in a bow formation or in curved loops.
The German patent publication No. DOS 26 10 384 discloses a similar apparatus, in which water is allowed to flow through the tube and to become sucked upwardly by means of a wick. This apparatus is disadvantageous in the same respects as the apparatus shown in the above mentioned U.S. patent. In particular also this last mentioned apparatus does not allow a placing of the irrigation tubes in bows and curved loops.
The U.S. Pat. No. 2,653,449 also discloses a similar apparatus, in which, rather than using a sucking wick, the tube is formed with an inner sleeve, or several short inner sleeve pieces, made from a soaking concrete material. The water is allowed fo flow freely in the tube and to be soaked up through the concrete material at the open parts of the outer tube. Also this apparatus does not allow a laying of the irrigation tubes in bows or curved loops.
The known types of apparatus utilizing only wicks or other soaking pieces of material for the distribution of water from a central source of water give an uneven and unsatisfactory distribution of water to the irrigated ground areas along the length of the tube.
It has previously been suggested to let the earth itself soak the water into the ground from irrigation tubes by arranging feet having a perforated bottom and extending down in the irrigation tube from the upper side of the irrigation tube, so that the bottoms of the feet appear immersed in the water in the tube, and by filling the feet with a cultivation substrate or with earth, for instance the same type of earth as the earth in which the plants/grow, whereby the water soaking is made similar to that found in nature itself. Such an apparatus is shown in the Swedish laid out publication No. 8304030-3 having the publication No. 455.751. Normally said apparatus gives a good water distribution to the irrigated areas, but also in this case there are difficulties in laying the tubes in bows or curved loops.
All of the above mentioned apparatus consequently are disadvantageous for enabling an irrigation of a large ground area, since said apparatus must necessarily either be worked in a substantial and complicated bending operation, for making holes for the water soaking means, for connection to a source of water etc., or they must be composed by several different pieces, namely small pieces of tube, intermediate connection pieces, end pieces, connection means for the water filling system etc.
The object of the invention therefo
REFERENCES:
patent: 3603034 (1971-09-01), Maxwell-Stewart
patent: 4397114 (1983-08-01), Skaife
patent: 4761923 (1988-08-01), Reum et al.
patent: 4910910 (1990-03-01), Jones
Scherbel David A.
Watson Linda J.
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