Planting – Plant setting – Plant dispensing
Patent
1995-10-18
1999-03-16
Will, Thomas B.
Planting
Plant setting
Plant dispensing
47901, A01C 0000, A01G 3100
Patent
active
058816550
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
DEFINITIONS
"seed leaves", on the top of a very small plantlet. from a parent plant (non-tissue culture propagation technique). Facilitates planting or transplanting into the substrate. seedling, which is generated from a seed (also called somatic seedling). moisture and nutrients to small plants growing in tissue culture. by shoot multiplication. Each of the resultant "microcuttings" must be rooted either in vitro or ex vitro before it grows into a new plant. holes. A STYROBLOCK.TM. is a planting tray made of styrofoam. The tray can be made of any material but mostly plastic and styrofoam are used. Other names include: nursery tray, plug tray or container, planting tray, multipot or tray. The styroblocks being used have 112 plug holes, 8 across 14 down, but the new machine can be adapted to any size or style of tray. substrate to be used as a plantlet receiving area. plant, includes seed, embryos, corms, bulbs, tubers, etc. start of the root, or the point where the plant should emerge from the soil. vegetative or non-sexual cells. nutrient or protective coating, either desiccated or undesiccated, and prepared for germination like true seed. materials, various foams, any mixture of perlite, vermiculite, wood fibers, bark, peat moss fertilizers, sand, rock wood, soil, loam or humus. to propagate and grow plant cells, tissue or organs.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Numerous situations exist in the greenhouse and nursery industry where small plantlets or early stage germinants must be planted into plug containers when coming from a bare-root or unpotted condition. All currently existing growing systems involve planting this material, or true seed, directly into pre-filled containers. The substrate in such containers may contain dibble holes (pre-formed planting holes) to accept plant material with less injury. Unrooted cuttings, for example, are typically stuck directly into containerized substrate for rooting purposes. A wide variety of containers exists for these purposes, of different sizes, density, growing medium, etc. In cases where pre-rooted plantlets must be planted into these container systems, the existence of the root poses problems at the point of inserting the plantlet into the substrate, even if a dibble hole exists. Excessive root damage or root bending may occur, even with the careful use of hand-planting tools, possibly creating transplant shock and a reduction in growth. In addition, hand planting material in this fashion can be very time consuming and costly. There therefore exists a need for automated equipment capable of quickly effecting the placement of plantlets into plug containers without damage to the plantlets, and in particular without damage to the delicate root systems thereof.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention overcomes the above disadvantages by enabling the planting operator to quickly and accurately place the root-portion of a plantlet into an open plantlet-receiving area of a plug member formed of pre-moistened substrate, which area is then mechanically closed prior to automatic transplantation. The invention creates a continuous supply of V-notches or open "sandwiches" or "books" of potting substrate, into which plantlets are placed, which then are closed around the plant roots or stem prior to automatic transplantation into a nursery container. The invention especially enables plantlets with small roots to be quickly and efficiently planted by an operator by "sandwiching" roots without injury or transplant shock. Essentially, bare-root or unpotted material is instantly converted into a mini-plug or potted format for mechanical transplantation by the apparatus. The specific size/density format handled by the invention can vary to suit different container systems, potting substrate and plant material. While this description relates to a manual operation for plantlet placement, it is contemplated that the task could be automated satisfactorily.
This invention is designed to use pre-rooted plantlets from a variety of sources, including seedlings, rooted cut
REFERENCES:
patent: 3337986 (1967-08-01), Boucher
patent: 4215513 (1980-08-01), Dedolph
patent: 4660479 (1987-04-01), Crisio, Jr. et al.
patent: 4788920 (1988-12-01), Shaw
patent: 4947579 (1990-08-01), Harrison et al.
patent: 5488802 (1996-02-01), Williams
Cervelli Robert Leo
Edmonds Timothy Kent
Pezzuto Robert
Will Thomas B.
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