Plant husbandry – Receptacle for growing medium – Specific container material
Patent
1994-09-29
1996-05-14
Raduazo, Henry E.
Plant husbandry
Receptacle for growing medium
Specific container material
47DIG6, A01G 3102
Patent
active
055156487
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
In conventional glasshouse methods, cuttings are rooted in a substrate by holding them in a horizontal plane beneath artificial and/or natural light. As will as requiring a relatively large ground area for each plant, the use of overhead light sources leads to an uneven intensity in the light levels received by individual plants in the crop, and thus growth rates are non-uniform. Working or harvesting the crop from ground level is also labour-intensive and slow due to the inconvenient working attitude.
In U.S. Pat. No. 3,529,379, there is described an apparatus wherein potted plants are placed on trays which are linked to a conveyor system, the plants being maintained in a vertical orientation and passing vertically by a plurality of light sources arranged in a vertical planar array. The plants passing the light sources receive the majority of their incident radiation from the side, rather than in a vertically downward direction relative to the plants.
In U.S. Pat. No. 3,882,634, an apparatus intended to increase plant yield by effectively removing gravitational influences on such growth is described. The apparatus comprises a plurality of plant supports wherein plants are held, the plant supports and plants being rotated about horizontal axes which are substantially perpendicular to the plant stems.
It is an objective of the present invention to provide an apparatus and system for the cultivation of plants wherein a large number of plants can be grown in a small area, with substantially uniform illumination of all the plants in the crop, and with facilitated ergonomic access to the plants for working the crop.
According to a first aspect of the present invention, an apparatus for the cultivation of plants comprises a pair of substantially rigid rotatable end frames mounted for rotation about a common horizontal axis, a number of elongate plant-supporting elements mounted at their respective ends to the respective end frames and arranged with their longitudinal axes generally parallel, the plant-supporting elements being rotatable about their longitudinal axes relative to the end frames, and wherein the plant-supporting elements are provided with radially extending plant receptacles arranged regularly on their surfaces, characterised in that an elongate horizontal linear source of radiation beneficial to plants, emitting radiation substantially uniformly in all radial directions, is positioned along the axis of rotation of the end frames to expose the surfaces of the plant-supporting elements to a uniform amount of incident radiation from all directions relative to the plant stem direction. The plant-supporting elements are rotatable about their respective individual axes, and are also rotatable about the axis of the radiation source in order to achieve uniform exposure to ambient light. The plant-supporting elements are preferably hollow cylindrical components which support the plants in sockets or grooves for growth in directions substantially perpendicular to the surface of the cylinder. Nutrients may be provided to the interior of the cylinder either as a mist, a spray of droplets, or as a liquid stream.
Preferably, the plant-supporting elements are adjustable in their spacing from the radiation source so as to provide for variation of the intensity of radiation incident upon the plants.
While the array of plant-supporting elements rotates about the central radiation source, it is foreseen that auxiliary radiation sources similar to and parallel to the central radiation source may be provided, either at locations fixed in space or at locations fixed relative to the array of plant-supporting elements. By radiation is meant not only visible light but also infra-red and ultraviolet light, the radiation being monochromatic or composed of multiple frequencies.
When the individual plant-supporting elements are rotated about their axes as well as about the central axis, in a "planetary" type motion, it will be understood that the two speeds of rotation will be arranged so that all
REFERENCES:
patent: 3343300 (1967-09-01), Englert
patent: 3529379 (1970-09-01), Ware
patent: 3882634 (1975-05-01), Dedolph
patent: 3909978 (1975-10-01), Fleming
The Washington Post Science/Engineering p. A3 Oct. 24, 1994.
Perifleur Products Ltd.
Raduazo Henry E.
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