Plant husbandry – Ornamental beds
Patent
1994-09-06
1996-10-22
Melius, Terry Lee
Plant husbandry
Ornamental beds
47 23, 47 30, A01G 100
Patent
active
055665039
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
This invention relates to plant watering aids, in particular with the object of providing a continuous supply of water to the roots of a plant.
It is known to enclose a plant so as to retain water around its roots: thus the document GB-A-1 604 846 discloses a ring in the form of a wall or panel planted in the ground around the plant such as to confine liquid or fertiliser within it, especially on sloping ground. The document U.S. Pat. No.4,809,460 discloses a curved elongated member planted in the ground on the downhill side of a plant in sloping ground, so as to act as an earth-retaining wall or dam, retaining liquid on its uphill side.
In GB-A-1 604 846, the ring may consist of a single member bent into an approximate circle and having its vertical free ends curled in such a way that they can be interlocked to define a vertical aperture through which an anchor pin can be driven to retain the ring in place. Alternatively the ring may be built up from a number of flat panels, interlocked in the same way at their ends. The enclosing ring can thus be built up in a variety of sizes and shapes, but only by adding a plurality of additional components. Similarly, if an enclosure of a different size or shape is required in the arrangement disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,809,460, the wall must be replaced by another. The disclosure of U.S. Pat. No. 4,809,460 is directed to a permanent planting enclosure not intended to be removed.
When watering plants (which term includes trees) in a garden where the plants may be of widely-varying sizes, with some plants in awkward positions and with possibly a relatively large number of plants requiring frequent and/or regular watering--especially during prolonged periods of dry weather--there is a need for the watering operation to take as little time as possible, while at the same time involving minimum wastage of water. In addition, water applied too hastily can tend to escape on the surface instead of penetrating to the roots.
It is therefore desirable to provide a moisture--retaining wall that can be placed around each plant in turn, quickly, easily and effectively, and then removed equally quickly and easily. The wall should in addition be capable of being easily adaptable to the shape and size appropriate to each individual plant or group of plants temporarily enclosed within it, and to the shape and size of the ground accessible around the plant or plants.
According to the invention, a plant watering aid comprising a wall of flexible water-impervious material, adapted to be formed into a continuous wall and to be then inserted in the ground around a plant to be watered, so as to define a water-retaining enclosure within it, is characterised in that the wall has projections at intervals on a first side and recesses on the other or second side to engage at least some of said projections, for sealingly securing opposite end portions of the wall together.
The device is arranged to be inserted in the ground so that it can be moved from plant to plant as required. The means for securing opposite end portions of the wall together give the required continuous wall with substantially no gap through which significant amounts of water might escape.
The enclosure within the wall is open at the top, so that the ground over the roots of the plant can be watered within the enclosure; it is however also open at the bottom within the ground, so that the water is only retained laterally. There is thus no danger of the roots of the plant becoming waterlogged.
The wall may be of a suitable tough, flexible plastics material, or of a metal such as aluminium or galvanized sheet steel. The design lends itself, particularly to extrusion processes, however, so extrudable plastics materials and aluminium are preferred for this reason.
Various embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
FIG. 1 is a plan view of a watering enclosure formed around a plant using a plant watering aid according to the invention;
FIG. 2 i
REFERENCES:
patent: 3315752 (1967-04-01), Pasquini
patent: 5020272 (1991-06-01), Herrema et al.
Downs Joanne C.
Melius Terry Lee
Middleton James B.
LandOfFree
Plant watering aid enclosure does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Plant watering aid enclosure, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Plant watering aid enclosure will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2350313