GB2194722A

GB2194722A - Tube for plant cultivation

Info

Publication number: GB2194722A
Application number: GB08721077A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Knud Hogdal Thomsen
Original assignee: Timmermann Poul
Current assignee: Timmermann Poul
Priority date: 1986-09-10
Filing date: 1987-09-08
Publication date: 1988-03-16
Anticipated expiration: 2007-09-08
Also published as: GB2194722B; CA1321710C; NL8702158A; NL193130C; DE3730666A1; GB8721077D0; DE3730666C2; NL193130B

Description

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SPECIFICATION

A plant tube for use in flower pots The present invention relates to a plant tube for use in flower pots. Some species of plants, e.g. ivy and Scirpus, grow in a more or less loose hanging manner, and for pre senting these plants in an improved manner it is already customary to let them grow up from a relatively narrow tube, which is stuck down into a central area of the earth or grow ing medium in an ordinary plant pot. As the plant grows it may then rise over the upper edge of the narrow tube and thus become -hanging- from an increased height.

In practice the tube is mounted and filled partially with a growth medium, and the plant is supplied to this medium as a sprout or a seed. The roots, of course, grow downwardly 85 and may gradually project through the lower end of the tube and into the surrounding growth medium of the pot.

Thus, the lower end portion of the tube should be provided with holes located some what spaced above the bottom of the pot. It is customary that this is achieved by shaping the tube such that its lower end portion, in which side holes are provided, is narrowing conically downwardly to form a pointed end portion, whereby the tube is esay to stick down into the earth filled pot.

Such tubes are used in large numbers and should of course be produced in a cheap man ner, preferably by die casting of a cheap plas- 100 tic material. The provision of the said holes in the conical end portion may cause some troubles with respect to the formation of thin material fins projecting inwardly from the hole edges towards the centre of the respective holes, and seen in the axial direction of the tube such fin portions will greatly reduce the available penetration are of the roots. Alreadly the holes themselves do not provide for any large penetration area, since the area of the remaining wall of the conical tube end portion is of about the same size as the total area of the holes.

It is the purpose of the invention to provide a plant tube which has an advantageous shape and is easy to produce.

According to the invention the tube has a generally non-narrowing shape adjacent its lower end and is provided with one or more downwardly projecting protrusions of a thin walled planar or part-cylindrical shape. In this context the term---thin-walled- will refer to a wall thickness of the same magnitude as the wall thickness of the tube itself. In this man ner the tube may show a wide aperture at the lower end thereof, such that the roots may seek downwardly practically without any ob struction.

In the following the invention is described in more detail, by way of example, with refence to the drawing, in which:

Figure 1 is a schematic side view of a plant pot fitted with a tube according to the invention, Figure 2 is a Figure 3 is from the top Figure 4 is side view of the tube itself, an end view of the tube, seen thereof, and a perspective view of the tube.

The plant pot 2 of Fig. 1 is provided with a growth medium 4, and in the middle thereof is planted a tube member 6 having an upper tube portion 8 and a lower pointed portion 10 projecting downwardly from the lower edge 12 of the tube portion 8. The tube member 6 as prefilled with a growth medium is stuck into the medium 4 until the lower end of the pointed portion hits the bottom of the pot, whereby the tube member is known to assume a correct position, when it is otherwise adapted to the size of the pot.

The growth medium inside the tube 8 holds a sprout or a seed of the relevant type, and after a while the pot with the developed plant 14 is ready for delivery from the greenhouse.

The roots of the plant have grown down through the lower tube end 12 and into the medium 4.

The tube member 6 as shown in Figs. 2-4 has a top portion 16 of enlarged diameter, whereby it is able to be suspended between two opposed carrier rods or edges, shown at 18 in dotted lines in Fig. 2, for the purpose of being filled wiyh its growth medium prior to its mounting in the plant pot. The pointed portion 10 is constithuted by a cross plate structure comprising four radial wing plates 20, which are each secured to the lower edge 12 of the tube portion 8, at respective areas 22.

The wing plates 20 will contribute to stabil- ize the tube memeber 6 in the plant pot, and with their pointed shape thpy will facilitate the sticking down of the tube member into the pot.

It will be appreciated that the lower end of the tube portion 8, as most clearly shown by Fig. 3, will show a wide total light, the presence of the wing plates 20 giving rise to but a small area reduction, whereby the roots are free to grow straight downwardly out of the tube The illustrated tube member is easy to produce by die casting from some cheap thermoplastic material.

The wing plates 20 should not necessarily be downwardly pointed, and there may be more or less than just four of the radial plates. The "open" lower portion 10 should not even necessarily be constituted by "radial plates", as these plates may be substituted e.g. by downwardly projecting, mutually spaced axial prolongations of the wall material of the tube portion 8, whereby the bottom hole of the tube will be left entirely open, though with some restriction in the growing path of the roots outwardly from the area un- 2 GB2194722A 2 derneath the tube portion 8.

Claims

1. A plant tube for mounting in an upright position in a plant pot and having an at least partly open lower end portion shaped so as to have a rigid outer end for abutting the bottom of the plant pot and one or more root penetration openings located axially spaced from said outer end, characterized in that the tube has a generally non- narrowing shape adjacent its lower end and is provided with one or more downwardly projecting protrusions of a thin-walled planar or part- cylindrical shape.

2. A plant tube according to claim 1, characterized in that the protrusions are arranged as radial plate portions meeting along an axial line, preferably a central axial line.

3. A plant tube according to claim 2, char- acterized in that the outer edges of the radial plate portions are downwardly and inwardly converging.

4. A plant tube according to claim 2 or 3, characterized in that the radial plate portions are arranged cross sectional[y as mutually orthogonal diametrical plate members.

5. A plant tube according to claim 1, characterized in that an upper portion of the tube member is of increased diameter relative to the lower portion thereof.

Published 1988 at The Patent Office, State House, 66/71 HigHolborn, London WC 1 R 4TP. Further copies may be obtained from The Patent Office, Sales Branch, St Mary Cray, Orpington, Kent BR5 3RD. Printed by Burgess &Son (Abingdon) Ltd. Con. 1/87.

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