GB2141612A

GB2141612A - Plant cultivator unit

Info

Publication number: GB2141612A
Application number: GB08314476A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Geoffrey William Pell
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1983-05-25
Filing date: 1983-05-25
Publication date: 1985-01-03
Also published as: GB2141612B; GB8314476D0

Abstract

The cultivator unit comprises a plant-cultivation surface (1), a cover (23) therefor; the cover being transparent so as to expose a plant being cultivated on said surface to the ambient light; and an enclosure (11); the plant-cultivation surface being set above said enclosure so that the underside of the surface is in thermal contact with the atmosphere in the enclosure whereby, on generation of heat in said space, heat may be passed through the plant-cultivation surface to the plant being cultivated. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Plant cultivator unit The present invention relates to a unit for cultivating plants and, more particularly, for cultivating bedding and pot plants.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a unit for use indoors or outdoors for cultivating plants, by means of which the kind of conditions obtained in a greenhouse can be reproduced.

The present invention provides a cultivator unit for plants comprising a plant-support surface, a cover therefor; the cover being transparent so as to expose the plant supported on the plant support surface to the ambient light; and an enclosure; said plant support surface being set above said enclosure so that the underside of the plant support surface is in thermal contact with the atmosphere in the enclosure whereby, on generation of heat in said space, heat may be passed through the plant support surface to a plant supported thereon.

The unit may incorporate a heating device, but it may be more convenient in practice to leave the user to chose a heating device which can simply be manually placed in the enclosure. Thus, if the user intends to use the unit outdoors, then a paraffin heater might be thought to be the more appropriate whereas if the intended use is indoors, an electrical heater might be thought to be more appropriate.

It is preferred in the present invention that the plant support surface be provided in the form of stepped terraces, and the steps may be of different dimensions to accomodate plants of different sizes. It is also preferred that the plant support surface, in plan, be substantially rectangular in shape and that the steps be flighted at an angle of substantially 45' to the horizontai. It is also preferred that the enclosure be constituted by a cabinet the top of which is closed by the plant support surface and which has a lateral wall formed with a door or doors to provide access to the interior of the cabinet. The door or each door is preferably formed as a sliding door and convenientiy the cabinet may be formed with panels preferably transparent panels, i.e. of glass or clear plastics fastened together or to a framework.The cover is preferably formed of a clear plastics material, e.g. perspex. The cover may be made removable or it may be hinged to the unit or it could be made displaceable by means of a sliding movement.

It is also preferred that the unit comprise wheels or rollers to permit the unit to be readily moved around.

The present invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a front elevation of a cultivator unit according to the present invention; Figure 2 is a rear perspective view of the unit shown in Fig. 1, and Figure 3 is a side elevation of the unit shown in Fig. 1.

Referring now to the drawings, the illustrated embodiment comprises a plant support surface 1 in the form of a plurality of stepped terraces 3, 5, 7 and 9. One or more or all of the terraces may be formed with a front retaining wall RW. In plan view, the plant support surface is rectangular.

The plant support surface is set above an enclosure formed by a cabinet 11 comprising a base 13, side walls 15, 1 7 and a rear wall 19 comprising a sliding door 21. The cabinet may be formed of any suitable material, e.g.

wood, but, from the point of view of durability, it may be advantageous to form it of a non-perishable material such as aluminium, glass or clear plastics. In this case, panels could be used which are directly fastened to one another by any suitable means or the cabinet could comprise a framework to which the panels could be fastened. The use of a transparent material is preferred.

The illustrated unit also comprises a cover 23 of a transparent material e.g. perspex, so as to expose any plant positioned on the plant support surface to the ambient light. In this instance the cover is shown as simply resting in place at the top and bottom of the plant support surface and on the top of the side walls of the cabinet so that it can be completely removed to give access to the plant support surface. If it is to be used outdoors, however, it may be desirable to hinge the cover in place e.g. to the top edge of the plant support surface or to arrange it so that it can be slid in place and removed therefrom to give access to the plant support surface.

The cabinet further comprises legs 25, one at each corner at the base of the cabinet, and each leg is mounted on a castor roller 27, whereby the unit can readily be moved around and, in particular, can be moved to give the plant support surface the best exposure to the ambient light.

In use of the illustrated unit, plants in bedding trays or boxes or in plant pots are placed on the terraces and the cover then positioned in place. A heater, such as a small paraffin heater as indicated at 29 in Fig. 2, is then placed within the cabinet and the sliding door 21 closed. Heat from the heater is then conducted through the plant support surface and thereby to the plants positioned thereon.

The combination of heat with adequate light admitted through the transparent cover and the fact that the plants are not exposed to the ambient atmosphere, creates conditions approximating to those in a greenhouse and greatly promotes the growth of the plants. For this reason, the cultivator may also be used to germinate seeds. The seeds may also be ger minated within the cabinet provided a suitable heater is used and the cabinet admits light.

It will be evident that many modifications may be made in the illustrated embodiment.

For instance, the shape of the plant support surface, in plan, need not be rectangular and the plant support surface need not be formed as a series of stepped terraces. For instance, it could simply consist of a number of shelves fixed to the side walls of the cabinet. In this case, heat could pass directly from the heater in the cabinet directly to heat the space above the plant support surface. However, in the case where the heater employed is, say a paraffin heater, it might not be advisable to allow direct contact of the combustion gases with the plants. Again, the rear wall of the cabinet could be formed by two sliding doors or the or each door could be hinged. For instance it could be made as a drop-down door. This might be particularly convenient in view of the fact that the cabinet may be used as a store for empty plant pots and trays since the drop-down door, when opened, would provide a surface on which such articles could conveniently be rested on being placed in or being removed from the cabinet. Further, it need not be formed with legs; and wheels or rollers could be attached directly to the base of the cabinet.

Claims

1. A cultivator unit for plants comprising a plant-cultivation surface, a cover therefor; the cover being transparent so as to expose a plant being cultivated on said surface to the ambient light; and an enclosure; the plantcultivation surface being set above said enclosure so that the underside of said surface is in thermal contact with the atmosphere in the enclosure whereby, on generation of heat in said space, heat may be passed through the plant-cultivation surface to the plant being cultivated.

2. A unit according to Claim 1 including a heating device.

3. A unit according to Claim 2, wherein the unit incorporates the heating device.

4. A unit according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the plant-cultivation surface is provided in the form of stepped terraces.

5. A unit according to Claim 4, wherein the steps are of different dimensions to accommodate plants of different sizes.

6. A unit according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the plant-cultivation surface in plan is substantially rectangular in shape.

7. A unit according to Claim 4 or 5 or to Claim 6 as dependent on Claim 4, wherein the steps are flighted at an angle of substantially 45 to the horizontal.

8. A unit according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the enclosure is constituted by a cabinet the top of which is closed by the plant-cultivation surface and which has a lateral wall formed with a door or doors to provide access to the interior of the cabinet.

9. A unit according to Claim 8, wherein the door or each door is formed as a sliding door.

1 0. A unit according to Claim 8 or 9, wherein the cabinet is formed with panels fastened together or to a framework.

11. A unit according to Claim 10, wherein the panels are transparent.

1 2. A unit according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the cover is formed of a clear plastics material.

1 3. A unit according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the cover is removable or displaceable.

14. A unit according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the unit comprises wheels or rollers to permit the unit to be readily moved around.

1 5. A plant cultivator unit substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.