FI110156B - Liquid growth device for plants - Google Patents

Description

, 110156

FLOATING PLANT GROWING DEVICE

The invention relates to a plant growing apparatus comprising at least a one-piece flotation unit delimited by at least one growing space and a water permeable bottom below to hold the material to be placed in the growing space and to conduct water from the water tray to the growing space.

Of course, when growing flowers, greenery and other plants, they must be watered regularly. In practice, most of the time it is done manually. This is a hassle, and furthermore, it is a problem if the rearing takes place in a place that is not continuously resident. Therefore, it would be desirable and useful to have an automatic watering of the plants. One possibility for this is a floating breeding medium, for example, in the coastal waters of a summer cottage plot. However, with current pot designs, such a floating platform will not succeed. Plants either dry out due to lack of water for irrigation, float too high and fall over, the entire 15-piece plant with the plants sinks to the bottom, or leaves in the wind.

US 4,133,141 discloses a floating structure for growing plants with separate compartments for nutrients and water required by the plants. These are absorbed into the sand layer where the roots of the plants are. A disadvantage of the structure is its relative complexity and the consequent relatively high manufacturing costs. In addition, use of the device requires expertise.

It is an object of the invention to reduce the above-mentioned disadvantages associated with the prior art.

The structure of the invention is characterized in what is disclosed in independent claim 1.

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According to the invention, said single rearing space is substantially uniform, and the rearing device further comprises at least one wall of said floating unit. 30 vertical grooves for conducting air to the material in the growth space. The purpose of the uranium / uricn ... is to introduce air into the material in the growing space to improve the rooting of the plant ·; · 'and on the other hand to accelerate the drying of material such as soil:'.: If it gets too wet.

35 The basic idea of the invention is as follows: A plant-growing state on which nutrient-containing soil *. ·, Or similar, is placed in the recess of the floating structure. The actual breeding space is arranged by a float above the water level. At the bottom of the breeding space is a layer of porous, airy material. In the middle of the bottom is a water-permeable, 110156 2 carrying base. The roots of the plants are intended to extend to the humid part of the porous intermediate layer or further to the water.

An advantage of the growing device according to the invention is that the watering of the plants to be grown works automatically; the plants get the moisture they need from the water surface even during long dry seasons. On the other hand, the humidity brought by the abundant rainfall from above flows through the rearing space to the aquifer without causing the plants to suffocate. Thus, the humidity limit in the vertical direction automatically stays in place. A further advantage of the growing device according to the invention is that the device is mechanically reliable and stable. A further advantage of the invention is that the cultivation in a device according to the invention does not require any particular plant nutrition expertise. A further advantage is that the device according to the invention is relatively simple and its manufacturing costs are relatively low.

The invention will now be described in more detail. Reference is made to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 illustrates an example of a growth apparatus according to the invention, Figure 2 shows a cross-sectional view of the structure of Figure 1, and Figures 3a-e show examples of shaping of a culture medium.

Figure 1 shows an example of a structure according to the invention. The structure 100 includes a float 110, a bottom 120 which is not shown in the figure, and an intermediate layer 120. In this example, the float is a truncated cone which is open downwards at its upper end.

• * 'In the center there is a downward shrinking space for plant growing space in the picture ···.' 150. Below said breeding space 150 is said intermediate layer 130. Figure 1 further shows vertical grooves, such as 115, on the edge of the breeding space, on the inner surface of the float 110.

Figure 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the structure 100 of Figure 1. In which: ***; the float 110, the bottom 120, and the intermediate layer 130 are shown. The float is an integral piece of lightweight material in the example shown. Advantageously, it may also be a hollow body made of rigid material 30, or a rigid body open from below. The bottom 120, ···, is an example of a perforated strong film attached to a float in the illustration. It may also preferably be the same body as the float. Intermediate layer 130 may, for example, be coarse *. * ·: Natural material, some appropriately porous artificial material or a mechanical grille.

Figure 2 also shows a projection 121 associated with the base 120 to which a string 122 is attached. for anchoring the device. Further, the figure shows nutrient-containing material 160 in the growth space, as well as the dashed water level S when the device is in use.

110156 3

Figures 3a-e show examples of a top view of the design of a rearing device. Figure 3a shows a structure according to the structure of Figures 1 and 2. Fig. 3b shows a structure similar to Fig. 3a, except that the structure is rectangular in cross-section rather than circular in cross-section. In the structure of Figure 3c, the rearing space is oblong and straight. In the structure of Fig. 3d 5, the growth space 35 is elliptical in cross-section. In the structure of Fig. 3e, the buoyancy unit 31 consists of five parallel parts. Between these, there will be four elongated rearing facilities. Of course, the thickness of the interlayer is individually selectable in growing conditions, as shown in section A-A. The floating unit 31 may be made into a single piece. Preferably, however, its parts 10 are manufactured separately and then joined together by some simple mechanism.

Above, a structure of the plant growing apparatus according to the invention and some variants thereof have been described. The invention is not specifically limited to the design of the structure. For example, the device 15 may have a uniform exterior dimension instead of being downwardly extending. Furthermore, the invention does not limit the manner in which the structure is made. The inventive idea can be applied in various ways within the limits set by the independent claim 1.

Claims (4)

110156 A plant growing device (100) comprising at least a one-piece floating unit (110) delimited by at least one substantially uniform growing space (150) to hold a water permeable bottom (120) underneath it to hold material and conduct water from the water tray to the growing space. , characterized in that the growing device further comprises at least one vertical groove (115) in the wall of said floating unit for conducting air to the material (160) in the growing space. Rearing device according to Claim 1, characterized in that said floating unit is downwardly expandable in its operating position. The rearing device according to claim 1, characterized in that said rearing space is in the center of a floating unit and is vertically widened upwards in the vertical position in the operating position. Rearing device according to Claim 1, characterized in that a lower layer (130) of airy material is provided at the bottom of said rearing space. 20 i »I« * * {1 110156