GB2340371A - Plant supports and support systems - Google Patents

Abstract

A horticultural plant support system comprises supports (10) formed by tapering rods (14) fitted end to end on a stake rod (12), and fittings which include differently sized rod-embracing portions (45,48) so that, because of the taper of the rods, the fittings can be mounted on the rods at different heights. The fittings may include plant tie rings (18), braces and connectors (44,47) for linking the rods of adjacent supports, and plant restraining hoops (60).

Description

HORTICULTURAL PLANT SUPPORTS AND SUPPORT SYSTEMS This invention relates to

horticultural plant supports and support systems.

Many garden plants, particularly tall ones, require support as they grow in order to protect them against being broken by wind, rain or their own weight.

The disadvantages of using conventional bamboo canes and the like as plant supports include the canes not being durable, their untidy appearance, the difficulty of fixing the heights of plant ties in order to support the plant at appropriate points, and the ends of the canes representing a danger to the gardener's eyes.

The present invention concerns aspects of the horticultural plant supports and support systems described below. The scope of the invention extends to all novel aspects of the supports and systems whether individually or in combination with any of the other features disclosed herein.

More specifically, in one aspect of the invention a horticultural plant support system may comprise rods adapted to be joined end to end to form plant supports, and fittings attachable to the rods for making further connections between rods or for providing further support for plants; wherein the individual rods taper over their lengths to a tip at a first end from a tip-receiving socket at a wider second end, the fittings are attachable to the rods by means of a rod-embracing portion of the fitting gripping a tapering rod at a location intermediate its first and second ends, and the fittings are provided with alternative rod-embracing portions of different sizes whereby the thickness of a tapering rod matches the size of a rod-embracing portion of a fitting at more than one said location along the rod.

The system may include stake rods having a tip at a first end receivable in a socket at the second end of a tapering rod, and a soil-penetrating spike at a second end.

Alternative rod-embracing portions of different sizes may be provided on the same fittings. The rod-embracing portions of the fittings may have the same configuration as the cross-section of a rod at a location where their sizes match.

All the tips may have the same dimensions and all the sockets may have the same dimensions. Each tapering rod preferably has a conical configuration regularly tapering between a common first end diameter and a common second end diameter, or a cruciform or other ribbed cross-section regularly tapering between a common first end size and a common second end size, and conveniently all the taperJL_ng rods are identical.

The sockets are suitably axially located in the wider ends of the tapering rods.

Each tapering rod may have an anchorage formed at its wider end for the attachment of a plant tie, typically formed as a pierced collar around the wider end of the rod, but additional versatility is achieved by providing the plant support with fittings including one or more plant tie loops configured as two or more connected rings, at least one ring forming a rod-embracing portion of the fitting, and another ring being available as an anchorage for a plant tie. The connected rings may be of at least two different rod-embracing sizes, each being of a size to just fit over a said tapered rod at a position intermediate the ends thereof, so that by choosing a larger or a smaller ring to fit on to the tapered rod, the gardener is given a choice of two positions, according to their respective sizes, along each rod, at which the tie loop can be retained. Further rings can be added beyond two. The rings will usually be closed rings.

The plant support system fittings may also include a plantembracing hoop carried on a body provided with said rodembracing portions. The body may comprise a tapering ls cavity sized to just fit the width of the tapering rod at a position intermediate the ends thereof, the cavity being formed with an entrance slot sized to admit a corresponding length of the tapering rod laterally into the cavity, and the said length of rod lying between the said position and the first end of the rod. In this way the body can be slipped over a narrow portion of the rod and slid down the rod to the wider portion that it just fits. A plurality of cavities of different sizes allows selection of a size that corresponds to the desired height of the body carrying the plant-embracing hoop.

In a second aspect of the invention a composite horticultural plant support may comprise two plant supports formed by said rods joined end to end, tip of one rod received in socket of another rod, the supports being connected by a fitting which is a brace configured as two rings joined by a connecting limb, each ring encircling a tapering rod of one of the supports at a position intermediate the ends of the rod at which the ring just fits around the rod.

In a further aspect of the invention a horticultural plant support cage may comprise at least three plant supports formed by said rods joined end to end, tip of one rod received in socket of another rod, the supports being connected to form a plant enclosure by braces each configured as two rings Joined by a connecting limb, each ring encircling a tapering rod of one of the supports at a position intermediate the ends of the rod at which the ring just fits around the rod.

The connecting limbs of the braces may be stiff, to maintain the distance between adjacent supports both in tension and in compression. The two rings of any brace may be of different sizes or may be of equal size, so that they fit adjacent tapered rods at different or similar heights, but a number of sizes of brace can be provided, differing in ring size and in limb length, to give the gardener a variety of options.

The invention is illustrated, by way of example, in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is an elevation of a horticultural plant suppor- Jn accordance with the invention, standing in soil; Figure 2 is an elevation of the stake rod used in the plant support of Figure 1; Figure 3 is an elevation of one of the three identical tapering rods used in the plant support of Figure 1; Figure 4 is a fragmentary perspective view showing a rod tip about to enter the socket of a tapering rod; Figure 5 is an elevation of a safety cap; Figure 6 is a plan view of a tie loop; Figure 7 is a plan view of fittings comprising two plant support braces, of different ring sizes; Figure 8 is a perspective view of an assembled horticultural plant support cage in accordance with the invention, made up of four individual plant supports interconnected in a square configuration, each side of the square also forming a composite horticultural plant support in accordance with the invention comprising two adjacent individual supports; Figure 9 is an exploded underneath view of a plantembracing hoop and a body for carrying it on a tapering rod; Figure 10 is a perspective view of the body used in Figure 9; Figure 11 is a perspective view of the plant-embracing hoop mounted on a plant support; Figure 12 is a perspective view of an alternative design of tapering road; Figure 13 is a plan view of the rod of Figure 12; Figure 14 is an underneath view of the same rod; Figure 15 is a partial plan view of a fitting specially adapted for the rod of Figures 12 to 14, to fit near the wider end of the rod; and Figure 16 is a partial plan view of a fitting like that of Figure 15, but adapted to embrace the rod of Figures 12 to 14 near the narrow tip end.

Figure 1 shows an assembled horticultural plant support 10 in which a stake rod 12 stands in soil 11 and carries three identical tapering rods 14 engaged end to end. The uppermost tapering rod carries a plant tie loop 18, and is topped with a safety cap 16.

Figure 2 shows the stake rod 12 without the tapering rods 14 fitted to it. It consists of a soil penetrating spike 20 surmounted by a tapering tip 22 with a surrounding flange 24 between them, for limiting the penetration of the spike into the soil 11.

Figure 3 shows one of the identical tapering rods 14. Each is formed with a regular conical taper, from a wider lower end containing a socket 26 and surrounded by a pierced collar 28, to an upper tip 32. The socket is coaxial w-J-,-'i'- the rod, and has the same gradual taper as the tip 32 (and the identically dimensioned tip 22 of the stake rod 1211, so that the tip is gripped in the socket after assembly, but can be pulled out again after use.

Figure 4 shows a socket 26 at the wider end of a tapering rod 14 being placed over the tip 22 of a stake rod 12, or a tip 32 of another tapered rod 14. Collar 28 surrounding the lower end of the tapered rod is pierced with a hole 30 to provide an anchorage point for a conventional plant tie.

Figure 5 shows a safety cap 16 provided with a socket 36, allowing it to be placed securely on a tip 22 or 32. A rounded head 38 provides a safety feature.

The plant tie loop 18 shown in Figure 6 consists of a smaller ring 40 connected to an abutting larger ring 42. The smaller ring 40 is sized to fit around, grip and be supported by a tapered rod 14 passing through it, nearer to the narrower upper end of the rod than the wider lower end (see Figure 1), and the larger ring 42 is sized to fit around, grip and be supported by a wider portion of the tapered rod 14, nearer to the lower end than to the tip (see for example Figure 8).

Figure 7 shows a first connecting brace 44 consisting of a stiff connecting limb 50 joining two rings 45, of approximately equal size to the smaller ring 40 of tie loop 18, and a second connecting brace 47, which differs only in that its end loops 48 are larger, corresponding in size to the larger ring 42 of the tie loop.

The horticultural plant support cage shown in Figure 8 comprises four supports 10 interconnected in a square formation by the connecting braces 47, which therefore connect tapered rods 14 of adjacent supports closer to their wider ends than to their narrower ends, and a tle loop 18 attached to a support rod by its larger ring 42, nearer to the wider end of the rod than its narrower end.

Figures 9 to 11 show aspects of a plant-embracing hoop 60 comprising two semicircular half hoops 60a, 60b of springy wire or plastic, one end of each being a self-supporting (frictional) push fit into a corresponding hole 62 in each end of a body 64. The hoop section is round to fit the round holes 62 but both could by polygonal, eg square, to prevent rotation. The two half hoops make the hoop 60 discontinuous, to allow it to be temporarily opened to admit a plant, or a group of plants. 5 The body 64 has two conically tapering cavities 66, one wider than the other, each formed with an entrance slot 68. The sizings are such that the wider cavity just fits a tapering rod 14 at an intermediate position towards the rod's wider end, while the narrower cavity just fits a tapering rod 14 at an intermediate position towards the rod's narrower end (as shown in Figure 11). The respective entrance slots 68 are wide enough to admit narrower lengths of the rod 14 laterally into the cavities, whereupon the body 64 can be slid down the rod until it is tight on the rod. By this means, a plant support 10 does not need to be disassembled to place a body 64 on, or remove it from, an intermediate rod 14.

Figure 12 shows an alternative tapering rod 74 which may -Qrove easier to manufacture than the conical rods 14. The rod has a cruciform cross section formed by four radial ribs 84 which regularly tapers from one end of the rod to the other. A plurality of rods 74 will be provided, preferably with common end sizes. Each rod has a tip 82 at its narrower first end, at which the rib heights have diminished to zero, and a socket 76 at its wider second end, where the ribs 84 are linked by four quadrants of a collar 78. One quadrant has a hole 80 for the attachment of conventional plant ties to the rod at that height. Rods 74 can be joined end to end by the frictional engagement of the socket 76 of one rod with a tip 82 of another rod below it, the lowermost rod being mountable on a corresponding stake rod with a soil-penetrating spike, similar to that shown in Figure 2, but with an appropriately shaped cruciform tip at its first or upper end.

Figures 15 and 16 show one end each of braces corresponding to those shown in Figure 7, but it should be noted that the Figure 7 braces can of course also be used with cruciform tapering rods. The rings of the braces in Figures 15 and 16 are effectively formed by discs 100 pierced by cruciform apertures 88 (large), 86 (small), to respectively embrace and match the size of rods 74 at locations near the wider second end and the narrower first end thereof. The apertures 88, 86 are surrounded by respective reinforcing walls 98, 96, formed as raised cruciform mouldings on the discs 100. The rings are formed on the ends of stiff connecting limbs 90, and the discs 100 are provided with holes 92 for convenience in attaching plant ties. The rings on each limb are generally the same size, to connect rods at the same height. Limbs 90 may alternatively be arcuate or flexible to allow the rings at each end to be fitted to the same rod, to form a plant-supporting hoop. In this case the cruciform section prevents the rings from turning on the rod, so preserving the shape of the hoop.

The components described and illustrated provide a flexible plant support system that mitigates, in a consistent way, some of the disadvantages of using bamboo canes, as described above, and provides the further advantage that it can be extended as the plant grows. The components interlock and, as illustrated, rely on the frictional engagement of similarly tapered conical or cruciform components, or variously sized rings fitting at predetermined regions along a tapered rod. Interference push fits are sufficient for most conditions. For this purpose, high density polyethylene or similar durable rigid materials are suitable for the manufacture of the components. Made of such materials, the stake rods 12 can be left in the ground throughout the year, while the tapered rods 14 and their fittings can be removed when the 5 are not required.

Claims (19)

1 A horticultural plant support system, comprising rods adapted to be joined end to end to form plant supports, and fittings attachable to the rods for making further connections between rods or for providing further support for plants; wherein the individual rods taper over their lengths to a tip at a first end from a tip-receiving socket at a wider second end, the fittings are attachable to the rods by means of a rod-embracing portion of the fitting gripping a tapering rod at a location intermediate its first and second ends, and the fittings are provided with alternative rod-embracing portions of different sizes whereby the thickness of a tapering rod matches the size of a rod-embracing portion of a fitting at more than one said location along the rod.

2 A plant support system as claimed in claim 1 including stake rods having a tip at a first end receivable in a socket at the second end of a tapering rod, and a soilpenetrating spike at a second end.

3 A plant support system as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2 wherein the alternative rod-embracing portions of different sizes are provided on the same fittings.

4 A plant support system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the rod-embracing portions of the fittings have the same configuration as the cross-section of a rod at a location where their sizes match.

A plant support system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein all the tips have the same dimensions and all the sockets have the same dimensions.

6 A plant support system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein each tapering rod has a conical configuration regularly tapering between a common first end diameter and a common second end diameter.

7 A plant support system as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 5 wherein each tapering rod has a cruciform crosssection regularly tapering between a common first end size and a common second end size.

8 A plant support system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the socket is axially located in the wider end of each tapering rod.

9 A plant support system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein each tapering rod has an anchorage formed at its wider end for the attachment of a plant tie.

-0 A plant support system as claimed in claim 9 wherein the anchorage is formed as a pierced collar around the wider end of the rod.

il A plant support system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the fittings include a plant tie loop configured as two or more connected rings, at least one ring forming a rod-embracing portion of the fitting, and another ring being available as an anchorage for a plant tie.

12 A plant support system as claimed in claim 11 wherein the connected rings are of at least two different rodembracing sizes.

13 A plant support system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the fittings include a plantembracing hoop carried on a body provided with said rodembracing portions.

14 A plant support system as claimed in claim 13 in which the body comprises a tapering cavity sized to just fit the width of the tapering rod at a position intermediate to the ends thereof, the cavity being formed with an entrance slot sized to admit a corresponding length of the tapering rod laterally into the cavity, and the said length of rod lying between the said position and the first end of the rod.

A plant support system as claimed in claim 14 in which the body comprises a plurality of said tapering cavities, of different sizes.

16 A plant support system as claimed in any one of claims 13 to 15 in which the hoop is discontinuous.

17 A composite horticultural plant support formed from a system as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, comprising two plant supports formed by said rods Joine( end to end, tip of one rod received in socket of another rod, the supports being connected by a fitting which is a brace configured as two rings Joined by a connecting limb, each ring encircling a tapering rod of one of the supports at a position intermediate the ends of the rod at which the ring just fits around the rod.

18 A horticultural plant support cage formed from a system as claimed in any one of claims I to 16 comprising at least three plant supports formed by said rods joined end to end, tip of one rod received in socket of another rod, the supports being connected to form a plant enclosure by braces each configured as two rings joined by a connecting limb, each ring encircling a tapering rod of one of the supports at a position intermediate the ends of the rod at which the ring just fits around the rod.

19 A composite horticultural plant support or support cage as claimed in claim 17 or claim 18 respectively wherein the connecting limbs are stiff.

A horticultural plant support system, a composite horticultural plant support, or a horticultural plant support cage, substantially as herein described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.