FR2541862A1 - Decomposable agricultural containers in the shape of truncated cones or pyramids - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to containers for transplanting plants. It applies the following three principles: 1. Weight for weight, it is better for the plant for its container to be deep and narrow rather than short or flared towards the top; 2. Containers that are flared towards the bottom (like an "inverted" flowerpot) facilitate the detachment of the roots and transplanting to open soil; 3. Containers that can be separated into two truncated cones or pyramids enable the plant to be removed without being pulled on. These containers can comprise two parts 1 and 2 whose upper edges are crenellated so that the raised portions can be fastened, 1 and 2 being secured by means of hooks or Parker screws 4. The invention is applicable to fruit farming, horticulture and mechanised industrial agriculture. In the last of these, which is particularly broad, the use of truncated cones with an elongated elliptical base (narrow flare) or truncated pyramids with an elongated rectanglar base, could lead to a major development for agricultural container manufacture.

Description

 The present invention relates to containers used in agriculture, horticulture etc., in particular those intended for transplanting plants. Its purpose is to facilitate this transplanting and to increase the "depth divided by volume" ratio of the containers.

The agricultural containers are generally flared upwards, in a "flower pot", therefore with a depth / volume ratio unfavorable to the roots and a large upper surface area resulting in a significant loss of water by evaporation. plant, which can tear the roots. A proposal to remedy this was made by
TEEPE (1952) with removable flat bottom containers (patent
CHA 287 136). The INRA (RIEDACKER) patents of 1976 and 1977 "Containers for forest and ornamental plants" (2,356,360 hl and 2,412,255 A1) offer containers with sharp angles to avoid spiraling the roots. it is probably more important that the roots, and especially those of the trees, are immediately at an optimal depth, which makes them less susceptible to drought and uprooting. The container plant set necessarily has a limited weight, it is interesting to plant in fairly long cylindrical pipes 50 to 100cm. We have thus obtained good results in three years, on cherry trees, hazel trees and peach trees. However, the root clearance is difficult. '' remedy this by using decomposable containers in the form of trunks of cones or pyramids.

The assembly according to FIG. 1 of two plastic containers, in the form of trunks of square-based pyramids, is made with commercial models, with the following modifications
the lower half (1> is an ordinary flowerpot (so with small openings at the bottom) in which we drilled four small holes in the corners to allow the passage of fixing hooks (3), or Parker screws (4) .The upper half (2) is also perforated at the top, possibly leaving a rim to keep the solidity of the piece and to avoid the detachment of clods of earth when the whole is turned over during transplantation.

There are several advantages to using this device: the fact that the container is decomposable makes it possible to free the whole plant-clod of soil without pulling on the stem. Your upper part of the container can remain with the plant for a time more or shorter, to slow evaporation for example.

Anyway, the release of this upper part will be easy because of its shape in "inverted flower pot", because the earth will have peeled off by compaction.

-the fact that the container is deep makes it possible to obtain plants with faster development, less sensitive to drought.

-to increase the depth / volume ratio, we can not only lengthen the pieces, but also reduce one of the widths, so as to obtain, for example, kinds of crushed cones, with an elongated elliptical or rectangular section 3 The lower part may overflow slightly so as to collect the water which falls on the upper part e
The advantage of square, rectangular, hexagonal pots is to completely cover the storage surface, while the round pots leave voids which give rise to a loss of spray water.
However, commercial experience shows that round pots are most in demand. We will improve their appearance by cutting their edge into slots (fig 2). These slots have the technical advantage of allowing hanging hanging branches, stolons etc.

 The two components can be of different volumes, the lower part can be reduced to a saucer, or to the cone storage plate (8).

 Even if the plant is not intended to be transplanted, a container formed by the assembly of two trunks of cones or pyramids will have the advantage of having a greater depth / volume ratio and of having a smaller upper surface.

In the case of young trees, the model in Figure 3 is particularly interesting, because it keeps the soil-root block intact during transplantation.
May be closed with Parker screws and deployable in a flat sheet, to facilitate the release of the container, once the tree is in place. For Christmas trees and other decorative shrubs the part (5) can be made of sheet metal. bright, openable on a generator
The lower part (@) can be pointed downwards, so that the assembly can be pitted into the ground.

The fixing of the two parts will be done by metal hooks, Parker screws, spikes etc. For the tapered cones, the screws will be driven horizontally. The parts can also be molded with roughness, threads which will allow fixing by pressure or by rotation, as is commonly done for plastic box covers.

 The appended drawings present some embodiments combining the three characteristics: -elongation in the direction of the height, -structure decomposable into two parts, -reduction of the volume by reduction of the horizontal section.

Figure 1 (dimensions from 1Q to a few tens of cm) is a side view of a container formed by two pots with a square base. The fasteners (3) are metal hooks.

Figure 2 shows the assembly of two round pots; the fasteners (4) are Parker screws driven horizontally into holes prepared in advance. The cutting into slots does not exclude the presence of a horizontal inner rim, to ensure solidity.

Figure 3 (dimensions of the order of 50cm) is a model of interest mainly in arboriculture and horticulture. The upper truncated cone can be molded or open according to a generator (5).

Figure 4 (dimensions of the order of 10 to 20cm) gives a side and top view of a horn with elliptical (6) or rectangular section (7) and the grouping mode on a plate (8) such that 'We can consider it for mechanized agriculture.

The common point of all the models examined is that the release of the plant is done without it being necessary to touch it. In the simple case of the horns (6) and (7), the whole will be put in the ground and the horn will be removed immediately after the end of the operation, either on the following days or weeks. Note that if the horn is made of biodegradable material (waxed paper for example) and it is not intended to enter removed, the "inverted" cone shape will remain interesting, in particular because the contact with the ground will be better than with a cylindrical container (absence of the phenomenon of unhooking of the earth).

Furthermore, the grouping of the empty cylindrical cones would be more cumbersome, since they cannot be nested.

For the operation of the decomposable containers, it is advisable to turn the assembly over to release the bottom ball. We see the interest of an interior rim at the top of the container, because this rim retains the soil; the container overturned, the hooks or the screws and the lower part (it is useful to have a suitable depth pipe to wedge the assembly).

It is only when the plant is finally in place that the upper part of the container will be released.

The model in Figure 3 is such that we can keep the upper part along the trunk of the shrub, to protect it from rodent animals.

The elongated shape of the root-earth blocks, fully highlights the new methods of digging by auger.

 The field of application of the containers described above will be arboriculture, horticulture, but also hopefully this very important field - that is mechanized industrial agriculture. The fact of having plants at a growth stage of the order of two months, which can be placed in the field without transplant shock, should allow two crops to be obtained per year in many temperate countries. For example immediately after a wheat harvest followed by plowing, we can put beets, corn, cabbage ... at an advanced stage.

The use of greenhouses should also save several weeks in harvest time.

In dry climates, the containers remaining in the open field should help to combat drought.

Claims (7)

 1 / Agricultural container made of plastic, metal sheet, terracotta or biodegradable material, characterized in that it is of reduced volume for a given height, and decomposable into two parts (1) and (2) in the form of truncated cones with circular or elliptical base, or trunks of pyramid with triangular, square, rectangular, hexagonal or polygonal base parts fixed by hooks, Parker screws (4), molded threads on the parts X Or edges opening by pressure ;  2 / Container 'according to 1 / characterized in that it is provided at the top with an internal rim and / or that it is cut into slots at its upper edges, slots serving for the fixing of stolons or drooping branches;  3 / Container according to 1 / characterized by a very elongated shape and possibly pointed at the bottom, so that it can be pierced in the ground;  4 / Container according to 1 / characterized by an upper part significantly higher than the base, the latter possibly being a cover, a saucer, or a plate;  5 / Container according to 4 / characterized by an upper part which can be opened according to a generator, possibly in shiny t8le or decorated for Christmas tree or other decorative shrub  6 / Container 'according to 4 / characterized in that it is in the form of an inverted horn of narrow horizontal section, elliptical or elongated rectangular, therefore of particularly reduced volume when the height is fixed; ;  7 / Container according to 6 / characterized by the absence of a lower part, the bottom being a plate (8) for storing plants in large numbers.