JP2012500624A - Nursery box - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a seedling box having an opening for draining excess irrigation water on at least one side wall of the box. Furthermore, the present invention also relates to the use of such a seedling box for growing young plants (especially young rice) and to a method for growing young plants (especially young rice), the method comprising a growth medium contained in such a seedling box. Or sowing seeds (especially rice seeds) on top and growing plants in this box until a predetermined size is reached.
[Selection] Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a seedling box having an opening for draining excess irrigation water on at least one side wall of the box. Furthermore, the present invention uses such a seedling box for growing young plants (especially young rice), and seeds seeds (especially rice seeds) in or on the growth medium contained in such seedling boxes, It also relates to a method of growing young plants (especially young rice), including the step of growing the plants in boxes until they reach size.

  Growing rice seeds and raising seedlings in a nursery box (also called a nursery box) is a common rice growing method, especially in Japan. In general, seedling boxes are placed in a greenhouse or protected area until the seedlings reach a certain height. Thereafter, the young plant is transplanted to a paddy field, for example.

  A normal rice seedling box is a rectangular container or tray that is several centimeters high and open at the top. Generally, the bottom side is perforated (ie has several openings) for draining excess irrigation water. The box contains a growth medium (generally soil) in which rice seeds are sown and grown.

  In recent years it has become the usual practice to provide boxes with layers containing pesticides or to treat growth media or seeds with pesticides, especially pesticides (e.g. insecticides and fungicides). Yes.

  Since a normal nursery box has an opening on the bottom side, excess irrigation water is drained through the bottom opening and is accompanied by some of the pesticides present on or in the growth medium. As a result, the soil below the nursery box becomes contaminated with the pesticides that are washed away. This is problematic for farmers who have transplanted young rice and want to plant other crops immediately in the place where the seedling box was previously placed. Many pesticides are recognized as good only for rice, so farmers cannot plant other crops in contaminated areas. In this case, farmers are encouraged to wait for a while until the pesticides deteriorate, but of course with economic disadvantages.

  Another problem is that soil illnesses (e.g. soil fungi or bacteria) appearing in the soil on which the seedling box is placed move through the bottom opening to the seedling box, where growth media and / or seeds or It is possible to infect young plants.

  Furthermore, pesticides are wasted due to leakage.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention was to provide a seedling box that does not have the disadvantages of conventional seedling boxes. In particular, the nursery box should avoid or at least reduce the contamination of the soil below the nursery box by the pesticides present therein. In addition, nursery boxes should also reduce irrigation water consumption and the amount of pesticide required. In addition, infections due to soil diseases should be avoided or at least reduced.

  The object of the invention is achieved by a seedling box having an opening for draining excess irrigation water on at least one side wall of the box. In particular, the seedling box is a rice seedling box, but it can of course be used for other plants.

The figure schematically shows a rice seedling box having a rectangular bottom shape.

  The plant can be, for example, a cereal or an ornamental plant. Cereals are cultivars of grass (grassaceae), such as wheat (including spells, hits wheat, emmer, kamut, durum and triticale), rye, barley, rice , Including wild rice, corn, millet, sorghum, tef and oats. Preferably, the plant is rice.

  Preferably, the box does not have an opening at the bottom.

  “Aperture” means a hole or perforation in the wall.

  The relative terms “side wall” (of nursery box), “top” (also called “top”) and “bottom” should be understood as follows. The side wall is a wall essentially parallel to the main growth direction of the plant. “Essentially parallel” means that the deviation from a completely parallel direction is less than 45 °, more preferably less than 30 °, more preferably less than 20 °, in particular less than 10 °. The bottom is the part of the box on which the box is placed and placed on the soil (and perpendicular to the main growth direction of the plant). The top of the box is opposite the bottom and is perpendicular to the main growth direction of the plant. In general, the top is open, but if desired, it can be covered with, for example, a hard cover or a flexible sheet (eg plastic film).

  The box can have any suitable shape. For example, polygons (e.g., triangles, rectangles, squares, pentagons, hexagons or octagons), especially squares or rectangles, circles, ellipses (oval) or irregular bottom shapes (`` bottom shape '' means bottom Should be understood as a plan view). However, for space saving and manufacturing reasons, it preferably has a square or rectangular shape, more preferably a rectangular bottom shape.

  The box preferably has a height of 1-50 cm, more preferably 2-20 cm, more preferably 2-10 cm, especially 2-5 cm, especially 3 cm-4 cm.

  If the bottom is square, the length of the side is preferably 10-100 cm, more preferably 20-80 cm, in particular 30-60 cm.

  If the bottom is rectangular, the length is preferably 20-100 cm, more preferably 30-80 cm, in particular 50-70 cm. The width is preferably 10 to 80 cm, more preferably 10 to 50 cm, especially 20 to 40 cm. Of course, the width corresponds to the shorter side of the rectangle.

  If the bottom has a circular shape, the diameter of the bottom is preferably 10 to 80 cm, more preferably 20 to 60 cm, especially 30 to 50 cm.

  The wall thickness of the box is of course determined by the size or internal volume of the box and is generally 0.5-15 mm, more preferably 1-10 mm, more preferably 2-8 mm, in particular 3-5 mm (of course excluding openings) Range. The bottom can have a thicker thickness, for example 20 mm or less, even 30 mm or 40 mm or less.

  When the bottom has a polygon, the nursery box has the same number of side walls as the number of sides forming the polygon. Preferably, the box has openings on at least 50% of the number of side walls, more preferably at least 75% of the number of side walls, in particular on all side walls. Alternatively, the box preferably has openings on at least two side walls, more preferably at least three side walls, in particular on all side walls. For example, if the bottom is rectangular or square, the seedling box preferably has openings on at least two side walls, more preferably at least three side walls, in particular all four side walls.

  If the bottom cross-section is circular or elliptical, the openings are preferably distributed over a portion corresponding to 20-100% of the circumference of the side wall at each height, more preferably over the entire circumference of the side wall.

  The box material can be any suitable and commonly used material for this purpose, such as ceramic (e.g. porcelain), concrete, metal (e.g. aluminum) or preferably a suitable plastic, e.g. polyethylene (PE), especially high Density polyethylene (HDPE), polypropylene (PP) (including syndiotactic, atactic and isotactic PP), ethylene / propylene copolymer, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyamide, polyethylene or coextrudate of polypropylene and polyamide, polyethylene Or coextruded polypropylene and ethylene copolymer (eg ethylene vinyl acetate copolymer, ethylene-vinyl alcohol copolymer), polyethylene or coextruded polypropylene and polyethylene terephthalate, polyacrylonitrile (PAN), styrene - acrylonitrile, polystyrene (PS) or a resin material such as phenolic resins, such as formaldehyde - phenol resin, a polyester resin or the like.

  The shape of the opening is not critical and can take any suitable regular or irregular form. In general, the apertures are manufactured industrially, so that they are in a somewhat regular geometric form, for example in the form of a circle, ellipse or polygon (eg triangle, rectangle, square, pentagon, hexagon, heptagon or octagon). I take the. The dimension of the longest axis of the aperture (diameter for a circle, long axis for an ellipse, longest side for a triangle, diagonal for a rectangle or square, diagonal for more polygons The longest diagonal) is preferably in the range of 1 mm to 50 mm, more preferably 2 mm to 40 mm, more preferably 2 mm to 30 mm, especially 2 mm to 20 mm, more particularly 2 mm to 15 mm, especially 2 mm to 10 mm, more particularly 2 to 5 mm. is there.

  The number of openings depends on its surface and is preferably selected so as to allow sufficient drainage of excess irrigation water while not compromising the stability of the box.

  The openings can be covered with a grid or mesh to avoid washing out the solid material.

  In order to avoid or reduce contamination of the soil below the box by the pesticide, preferably the opening is placed above the (virtual or planned) top of the (highest) medium containing the pesticide. As mentioned above, this medium can be in the form of another pesticide layer, such as a pesticide-containing granule, or the medium can be a plant growth medium (especially soil) containing the pesticide. If there is more than one layer containing pesticides, the `` highest '' is the highest above these layers (i.e. the layer farthest from the bottom of the box), more precisely, the highest of this highest layer It means to be placed above the high vertex. At least part of the opening is placed close enough to the top of the (highest) medium containing pesticides to allow drainage of excess irrigation water. `` Close enough '' is at most 3 cm above the top of the medium containing the pesticide (highest), preferably at most 2 cm (e.g. 0-3 cm above the top of the medium containing the pesticide (highest), preferably 0.2 ~ 2 cm, more preferably 0.5-2 cm, especially 0.5-1 cm above). Since rice can also grow in water, the opening can be a certain distance from the top of the (highest) medium containing pesticides.

  The top of the highest medium or growth medium containing pesticides depends on the type of plant that grows in the nursery box (different plants have different root forms and require different depths of growth medium) and It is determined in advance according to a predetermined size to be grown before transplantation. While the plant is growing, the growing medium can be expanded by the growing roots, and thus the upper end can move upward. However, in general this expansion is very limited and can therefore be ignored.

  In general, the nursery box is filled with a growth medium and pesticide to a height of 1 cm to 5 cm, preferably 2 to 4 cm, so preferably the opening is 1.5 to 6 cm at the bottom of the nursery box, more preferably 2 to 5 cm, especially 3 to Installed 4cm above.

  Pesticides are any kind of chemicals normally used in agriculture, such as pesticides (e.g. fungicides, insecticides, herbicides, nematicides, bactericides), fertilizers, growth regulators, etc. Can be. Preferably, the pesticide is a pesticide, in particular an insecticide or fungicide.

  The “growth medium” can be soil or artificial solid growth medium, preferably soil.

  In a specific embodiment, the nursery box is further openable and closable and includes an opening disposed in at least one side wall. The opening and closing is preferably realized by a slide or flap mechanism. Preferably, these opening and closing openings are arranged at a height at which the growth medium is or is to be placed. More preferably, these opening and closing openings are arranged close to the bottom. These opening and closing holes relate to the following process. When the seedling box is prepared for planting, the seedling box is provided with a growth medium and then thoroughly watered. A large excess of water is drained through these openings before the pesticide is applied, the openings are closed and remain closed while the plant is growing. Furthermore, they make it possible to wash the nursery box easily after transplanting. Closure is accomplished by any suitable method, such as plates, flaps, hatches, seats, slides, sliding gates, and the like.

  In a particular embodiment, the present invention provides said nursery box comprising a growth medium layer (preferably soil) and preferably at least one pesticide in the form of a layer containing granules, which is placed on the growth medium layer. About.

  Furthermore, the present invention also relates to the use of the seedling box for growing plants. Preferably, the box is used to grow young plants until a predetermined size is reached. More preferably, the box is used to grow young rice until it reaches a predetermined size. In general, the predetermined size is usually the size at which each plant is transplanted into open land. This depends on several factors, such as the plant species and variety, the climate in which the plant is subsequently transplanted, the size of the box and the density of the plant in the box, etc. It is known.

  Furthermore, this invention relates also to the method of growing a plant including the step which grows a plant in the said seedling box. Preferably, the method is useful for growing young rice. The method comprises the steps of providing a seedling box having a growth medium and optionally at least one pesticide, planting the propagation material of the plant to be grown (especially sowing the seed of the plant to be grown) and until the plant reaches a predetermined size Including the step of growing plants. Also, the pesticide can be introduced into the box separately (alternatively) or additionally after sowing.

  "Reproductive material" includes seeds, grains, fruits, tubers, rhizomes, spores, cuttings, offshoots, meristem tissue, single and multiple plant cells, and complete plants Including any other plant tissue that can be obtained. One particular propagule is a seed.

  The nursery box of the present invention avoids or at least reduces contamination of the soil on which the nursery box is placed by pesticides washed away with excess irrigation water, reducing the amount of pesticide and water required Let In a preferred embodiment of the box without an opening at the bottom, infection of the growth medium and / or seeds or plants inside the box due to soil illness derived from the soil on which the box is placed is avoided, or At least reduced. Furthermore, in a preferred embodiment of the present invention, since there is no opening at the bottom of the box, the roots of the plant do not spread through the opening and therefore when the plant is removed from the nursery box (e.g. when transplanted to a paddy field). No root cutting is necessary. This means less work and, moreover, cutting the roots is always associated with the weakening of the plant, thus making it a more lively plant.

  Further, the present invention will be described with reference to non-limiting drawings.

  The figure schematically shows a rice seedling box with a rectangular bottom shape (plan view), with no openings at the bottom and a hypothetical growth with pesticides or pesticides on the side walls on the side walls. There is an opening (1) close to the top (2) of the medium layer and an open / closed opening (3) close to the bottom.

  The number and location of openings (1) on the sidewalls should not be understood as being limited to that shown in the figures. On the contrary, the openings can be distributed over all four walls. The shape of the opening should not be understood as being limited to the shape shown in the drawings, and can take any suitable shape.

Claims (16)

  A nursery box containing an opening for draining excess irrigation water on at least one side wall of the box.   The nursery box according to claim 1, wherein the bottom of the box does not include an opening.   The seedling box of Claim 1 or 2 which has the shape of a polygonal bottom part.   The seedling box according to claim 3, which has a square or rectangular bottom shape.   The seedling box according to any one of claims 1 to 4, comprising an opening in at least two side walls of the box.   The nursery box according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the seedling box has a circular or oval bottom shape.   The seedling box according to claim 6, which has openings distributed over the entire circumference of the side wall.   The seedling box according to any one of claims 1 to 7, further comprising at least one growth medium and at least one pesticide.   Said at least one pesticide comprising at least one layer comprising granules comprising at least one pesticide, wherein one layer is placed on the growth medium layer or distributed in the growth medium The nursery box according to any one of claims 1 to 8, which is present in the form of a layer.   The seedling box according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the opening is disposed on the upper end of the highest layer containing the pesticide.   The seedling box according to any one of claims 1 to 10, further comprising an opening that can be opened and closed on at least one side wall of the box.   The seedling box according to claim 10 or 11, wherein the openable and closable opening is disposed close to an upper part of the bottom of the box.   Use of the nursery box according to any one of claims 1 to 12 for growing plants.   14. Use according to claim 13, wherein the young rice is grown until it reaches a predetermined size.   The method to grow a plant including the step which grows a plant in the seedling raising box of any one of Claims 1-12.   The method according to claim 15, wherein young rice is grown.

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