WO2017035601A1

WO2017035601A1 - Stackable container system

Info

Publication number: WO2017035601A1
Application number: PCT/AU2016/050833
Authority: WO
Inventors: Stephen William Bigg
Original assignee: Stephen William Bigg
Priority date: 2015-09-02
Filing date: 2016-09-02
Publication date: 2017-03-09
Also published as: AU2016314781B2; AU2016314781A1; AU2016314781B9

Abstract

A stackable container system comprising containers, each of which has a bottom and an open top, and at least one support configured to hold one container atop another whereby the containers can be arranged in a stack.

Description

STACKABLE CONTAINER SYSTEM

Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a stackable container system and to a stack formed from components of that system.

The invention has particular, thought not necessarily exclusive, application to cultivation including in particular growing vegetation. Background

Stackable pots for growing plants, such as flowering plants or plants bearing fruit/vegetables or herbs, have become popular over the years, particularly for dwellings where there is limited outdoor space, such as apartments or villas having small balconies or courtyards. There is a need in the art for improved stackable container systems.

Summary of the Invention

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a stackable container system comprising containers, each of which has a bottom and an open top, and at least one support configured to hold one container atop another whereby the containers can be arranged in a stack.

Preferably, the bottom of each container is substantially closed. However, without departure from the invention, the bottom of at least one of the containers may be open and a said support configured so as, when holding that container atop another, to close the bottom.

Preferably, the containers are separate from the support(s) and the or each support is releasably engageable with the bottom of one said container and the top of another whereby the containers can be arranged in said stack. Alternatively, at least one said container may be integrally formed, at a bottom thereof, with a respective said support, whereby that support is permanently attached to that container. Alternatively again, at least one said container may be integrally formed, at a top thereof, with a respective said support, whereby that support is permanently attached to that container.

Preferably, the or each support is configured with an upwardly opening recess shaped such that the bottom of the container which that support engages in the stack snugly fits in the recess.

Preferably, at least one of the containers is configured with one or more drainage holes at a lower end thereof, such that liquid can drain, via the drainage hole(s), from an interior of an upper one of the containers in the stack to an interior of a lower one of the containers in the stack.

Preferably, the or each support is configured with at least one vegetation-growing opening therethrough, the opening(s) being arranged such that when the support holds one container atop another, vegetation being grown in the latter container can pass through the opening(s) so as to be exposed. Preferably, the system is configured such that the or each opening through the or each support overlies an interior of the container atop which that support holds a said container in said stack. Preferably, the system is configured such that the one or more openings through the or each support are positioned around a part of the support which overlies substantially the entirety of a periphery of said interior. Preferably, the or each support is configured with plural said openings arranged at spaced positions therein.

Preferably, the system includes one or more dividers, the or each divider being receivable in a respective said container such that the interior of the container is divided into separate regions, which may be separate cultivation, e.g. growing, regions. Preferably, the or each divider comprises plates arrangeable in said interior at positions which are angularly spaced about a central upright axis of the interior such that each plate extends between said axis and a side wall of the container. Preferably, the or each divider further comprises a central support member with which the plates releasably engage at radially inner ends thereof so as to assume said positions in said interior. Preferably, the central support member comprises an upright configured with angularly spaced apart radially outwardly opening slots extending therealong, each slot receiving a radially inner edge of a respective one of said plates. Preferably, the number of plates of the or each divider, and thus the number of growing areas, is variable. Preferably, the or each divider is configured such that each region underlies at least one respective said opening.

In the system according to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the or each container configured with one or more holes is configured with plural said holes arranged such that each is disposed at a respective one of said spaced positions in a support which receives a base of that container in said stack. Preferably, that system includes one or more separators, the or each separator being configured to support, in the interior of a respective said container configured with plural said holes, growing medium over a lower part of that interior, and configured to permit drainage, into that lower part, of liquid which seeps through the growing medium supported thereover, such that the liquid can flow through said holes with which the container is configured. Preferably, the or each separator comprises a partition configured with apertures permitting said drainage. Preferably, the or each container configured with plural said holes includes a water collection reservoir arranged such that liquid which has been permitted, by a said separator in the container, to drain into said lower part of the interior of the container accumulates in said reservoir, the reservoir having a side wall formed with openings therethrough at spaced positions therearound, the container being configured such that accumulated water which passes from the reservoir through each of those openings thence flows to a respective one of said holes arranged to receive water from the reservoir via that opening, the openings being arranged such that one or more of them is lower than the other(s) if the container is not level, and configured such that restrictions to passage of the accumulated water therethrough are, owing to surface tension of the water, formed at those openings, the restriction at the or each lower opening being greater than at the/each other opening, whereby there is defined a distributor, comprising said reservoir and the openings through said side wall thereof, which, in addition to outputting accumulated water to the hole(s) arranged to receive water via the lower opening(s), outputs an amount of the accumulated water to the hole(s) arranged to receive the water via said other opening(s). Preferably, the side wall of the or each reservoir is defined by a rib. Preferably, each of the openings through or each the reservoir side wall is upwardly divergent. Preferably, each of the openings through the or each reservoir side wall is defined by a notch. Preferably, the opening through the or each reservoir side wall is V-shaped.

In the system according to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the number of containers is at least three, whereby the number of supports is at least two. Preferably, the system of that embodiment comprises at least one trellis member or stabiliser member connectable to supports in said stack to interconnect the joiners.

Preferably, the system includes a base arranged to receive a lowermost one of the containers in the stack. Preferably, the base is defined by a said support. Preferably, the system includes at least one trellis member or stabiliser member connectable to the base and at least one support in said stack to interconnect the base and the support(s).

Preferably, the system of that embodiment comprises plural said members connectable to the base/support(s) in said stack at spaced positions therearound. Preferably, the member(s) and the base/support(s) to which the or each member is connectable are configured to engage interlockingly. Preferably, opposite ends of the or each member and/or the base/support(s) to which that member is connectable are configured with formations or connection points via which the member(s) and base/support(s) are interconnectable. Preferably, opposite ends of the or each member and the base/support(s) to which that member is connectable are configured with mating connection points via which the member(s) and supports can be interconnected.

In the system according to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the supports and containers are configured such that, in said stack, the opening(s) in one support are rotationally offset, about an upright axis, from the opening(s) in the or each support adjacent to it in said stack. Preferably, the system according to that embodiment is configured such that said upright axis is a central axis of the stack. The system according to a preferred embodiment of the invention further comprises a liquid collecting receptacle configured to extend through a said opening and into a said container against the top of which the support configured with that opening is received in said stack, so as to be supported in a position which is such that a volume of liquid which accumulates in that container accumulates in the receptacle, the receptacle being configured such that it can be withdrawn through the opening through which it extends such that said volume of liquid can be emptied therefrom. Preferably, the receptacle is a ladle. Preferably, the receptacle has an exterior cross-sectional configuration complementary to the configuration of the or each opening through which it is configured to extend, so as to form a mating fit with the support configured with that opening when it extends therethrough. Preferably, the receptacle is configured with a liquid transfer opening which passes through an upper portion of a side wall thereof, whereby, when liquid in the container into which the receptacle extends reaches the level of a lower end of the liquid transfer opening, an amount thereof flows, through the liquid transfer opening, into the receptacle, such that said volume of liquid accumulates in the receptacle.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided the stack formed from the containers and at least one said support of a system as defined above. In the stack according to a preferred embodiment of the invention, said receptacle extends through a said opening and into the container against the top of which the support configured with that opening is received, so as to be supported in said position. Preferably, the container into which the receptacle extends in that stack is a lowermost container in said stack.

The stack according to a preferred embodiment of the invention includes a said support which receives the bottom of a lowermost one of said containers to define a base of the stack. Preferably, the support which receives the lowermost container is provided with ground-engaging rotatable elements whereby the stack is displaceable over the ground. Preferably, the rolling elements are rotatable about axes each of which extends from an upright axis of the stack whereby the stack is rotatably displaceable about said axis over the ground. Preferably, said axis is a central axis of the stack.

In the stack according to a preferred embodiment of the invention, at least one said divider is arranged in a respective said container such that the interior of the container is divided into said separate said regions.

In the stack according to a preferred embodiment of the invention, at least one said separator is arranged in a respective said container configured with plural said holes to support, in the interior of that container, growing medium over a lower part of that interior, and to permit drainage, into that lower part, of liquid which seeps through the growing medium supported thereover, such that the liquid can flow through said holes with which the container is configured.

Brief Description of the Drawings

The invention will now be described, by way of non-limiting example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is an upper perspective view of a cultivation station comprising a stacked container assembly formed from components of a system according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

Figure 2 is a lower perspective view of the station of Figure 1 ;

Figure 3 is top perspective view of the station of Figure 1 ;

Figure 4 is a cut-away elevation perspective view showing interior details of the station of Figure 1 ;

Figure 5 is a lower perspective view of a pot of the system/station;

Figure 6 is a first upper perspective view of the pot of Figure 5; Figure 7 is a second upper perspective view of the pot of Figure 5;

Figure 8 is a bottom perspective view of the pot of Figure 5;

Figure 9 is an upper perspective view of a lowermost pot of the system/station;

Figure 10 is a lower perspective view of the lowermost pot;

Figure 11 is an upper perspective view of a joiner piece of the system/station;

Figure 12 is a lower perspective view of the joiner piece of Figure 11;

Figure 13 is an upper perspective view of a combined joiner and trellis/stabiliser piece of the system/station;

Figure 14 is a lower perspective view of the piece of Figure 13;

Figure 15 is an upper perspective view of a separator of the system/station, receivable in a pot as shown in Figure 5 or Figure 9 to support a growing medium in the pot clear of the bottom of the pot;

Figure 16 is a lower perspective view of the separator;

Figure 17 is a top perspective view of a water-collecting ladle of the system/station; Figure 18 is a side perspective view of the ladle;

Figure 19 is a perspective view of a trellis/stabiliser rod of the system/station; Figure 20 is an upper perspective view of the pot of Figure 5 and a divider of the system/station arranged in the pot so as to divide the pot interior into separate growing regions;

Figure 21 is a top view of the arrangement shown in Figure 20;

Figure 22 is an upper perspective cutaway view showing details of the divider in the arrangement of Figure 20;

Figure 23 is an upper perspective view of an upright of the divider; and

Figure 24 is an upper perspective view of a plate of the divider.

Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiments of the Invention

Shown in Figure 1 is a station 100 comprising stacked containers, generally designated 10, suitable for cultivation purposes, particularly for growing vegetation (though possibly instead for holding decomposing plant or vegetable matter to cultivate compost or for drying matter, e.g. fruit, so that the station 100 functions to cultivate dry produce). The station 100 further comprises support pieces, generally designated 20, each of which can fit to the top or bottom of any one of the pots 10 and, when arranged between adjacent ones of the pots 10, functions as a joiner via which those pots are coupled together.

The pots 10 consist of a lowermost pot 10A and pots 10B which are arranged above the pot 10A in the assembly. The pots 10B are identical to each other, and one of them is shown in detail at Figures 5 to 8, from which it can be seen that the container 10B comprises a base 11 and a side wall 12 which extends upwardly from the base 11. The side wall 12 is configured with corrugations 13 arranged circumferentially therearound, each corrugation 13 extending from the base 11 to an open top end of the pot 10B. The sidewall 12 is upwardly divergent, being generally trumpet- shaped in the present embodiment, whereby the footprint of the base 11 lies wholly within the footprint of the upper end 14, as can best be seen at Figure 8, each corrugation 13 thus progressively widening, with the circumference of the sidewall 12, in a direction from the base 11 to the top 14. Owing to the sidewall 12 being upwardly divergent, the container 10 can be nested with the other containers 10 of the system to form a compact stack for transportation or storage purposes. The sidewall 12 is configured with a circumferential step or shoulder 19 slightly above the lower end thereof. Referring particularly to Figures 6 and 7, the container 10B includes horizontal ribs 15 each of which projects upwardly from the upper end of the sidewall 12 and conforms to the curvature of a respective one of the corrugations 13 at that upper end. The pot 10B is configured with drainage holes 16 each of which passes through a junction between respective adjacent corrugations 13 at the base 11. The pot 10B additionally comprises upright/longitudinal ribs 17, projecting radially inwardly from centrelines of the corrugations 13 and junctions between the corrugations 13, each extending substantially throughout the height of the pot 10B. In addition, referring to Figure 7, the pot 10B comprises a circumferential rib 18 configured with V-shaped notches 18A therein which are arranged equiangularly therearound, the rib 18 projecting upwardly from the base 11 and being centrally disposed about a central upright axis of the pot 10B. Extending radially outwardly from the rib 18 and centred about the notches 18A are respective pairs of parallel radial ribs 18B, each of those pairs defining a radial channel 18C which extends from the rib 18 to a respective one of the drainage holes 16 and has a floor which slopes downwardly to that hole. The functionality of the circumferential rib 18, notches 18A and channels 18C will be described later.

The bottom pot 10A, referring to Figures 9 and 10, is identical to the pot 10B but does not have drainage holes 16. The joiners 20 of the system comprise small joiners 20A, one of which is shown in Figures 11 and 12, and large joiners 20B, one of which is shown in Figures 13 and 14. The exemplary station 100 shown comprises one small joiner 20A and three large joiners 20B, though the numbers of either joiner 20 in the station, like the number of pots 10, can vary without departure from the invention. The small joiner 20A is generally circular and comprises a central section 21 and a peripheral section 22 which surrounds the central section 21. The central section 21 comprises a floor 23 and a peripheral side wall 24 which surrounds and projects upwardly from the floor 23, whereby an upwardly opening recess is defined by the floor 23 and wall 24. The central section 21 further includes, formed into the floor 23, a central basin 25 and channels 26 which extend radially outwardly from the basin 25 to respective openings 27 each of which is formed through the floor 23 and wall 24, each channel 26 having a floor which is angled slightly downwardly in the radially outward direction. The channels 26 and openings 27 are equiangularly spaced about the centre of the basin 25, through the centre of which basin a central upright axis of the joiner 20A passes.

The inner face of wall 24 has a configuration complementary to that of the exterior of the portion of the sidewall 12 of any of the containers 10 defined below the step 19 of that container, whereby, if the joiner 20A is to be used to couple two containers 10 (i.e. in a station alternative to that illustrated), that portion fits snugly in the upwardly opening central recess of the joiner 20A. Where the container 10 received by the recess is a container 10B, each of the drainage holes 16 in that container aligns with a respective one of the holes 27 in the joiner 20A. The peripheral section 22 comprises arm portions which project radially outwardly from, and are equiangularly arranged around, the wall 24, each arm 28 extending along an axis which is halfway between the axes along which respective adjacent ones of the channels 26 extend. The peripheral section 22 additionally comprises an outer ring 29 which connects to radially outer ends of the arms 28. The wall 24, arms 28 and ring 29 define openings 29 A through the joiner 20 A equiangularly arranged therearound.

The ring portion 29 has a configuration complementary to that of the upper end of each pot 10. Referring to Figure 12, each of the radially outwardly convex portions which that ring portion 29 thus comprises is configured with a downwardly opening channel or groove 29B into which a respective one of the ribs 15 is receivable whereby the joiner 20A snugly fits to the top end of the container (see uppermost joiner 20A in Figure 1). As can best be seen at Figure 3, when a joiner 20A is coupled to the upper end of a pot 10, the openings 29A through that joiner directly overlie an interior of the pot 10. Vegetation grown in a growing medium inside that pot 10 can grow/pass through the openings 29A whereby to be exposed at the exterior of the station 100.

Referring to Figures 13 and 14, each joiner 20B is identical to joiner 20A though additionally comprises a further peripheral section 22' which is connected to, and arranged radially outward of, the peripheral section 22. The outermost peripheral section 22' comprises arm portions 28' which project radially outwardly from, and are equiangularly spaced around, the peripheral section 22, and a ring portion 29' connected to radially outer ends of the arm portions 28' and defining the outer periphery of the joiner 20B. The rings 29 and 29' and the arm portions 28' extending between them define respective openings 29A' each of which aligns radially with a respective one of the openings 29A. Extending through the ring portion 29', and equiangularly spaced therearound, are openings 29C which define connection points for ends of respective trellis/stabiliser rods 30 of the system, which rods are shown in Figures 1 to 4 and one of which rods is shown in detail in Figure 19. A joiner 20B directly couples adjacent pots 10 in exactly the same way as a joiner 20A would, and, where a joiner 20B is coupled to the bottom of the bottom pot 10A (as shown), it functions, owing to its diameter being significantly greater than that of the bottom of that pot, as a topple-resistant base of the station 100. The opposite ends of the rods 30 are configured with connection portions 31 receivable into and through aligned notches/slots/openings 29C of respective joiners 20B whereby to be snap-fit engageable with the joiners 20B, as can best be seen at Figure 1. The rods 30 thus, advantageously, lock together the joiners 20B which they thus interconnect, whereby the lowermost pot 10A is tied down to the base-defining joiner 20B, and the pot 10B directly above the lowermost pot 10A is tied down to the middle one of the joiners 20B, and thus (indirectly) to the base-defining joiner 20B, so that the stacked pots 10 in the station 100 are stabilised. The number of joiners 20B in a station formed from the system can vary, as can the number of pots 10 between adjacent ones of those joiners, the rods 30 in the system being provided in differing lengths so that there are ones which can interconnect adjacent joiners 20B between which there is only one pot (as shown in Figures 1 to 4) or plural pots 10. Advantageously, the rods 30, particularly if arranged above the lowermost pot 10A, and any one of the joiners 20B, particularly where that joiner is likewise arranged above the lowermost pot 10A, either respectively or in combination, define a trellis structure around, over and through which vegetation grown in the pots 10 can grow/extend.

The system/station 100 may include a submersible pump (not shown) which can be received in the bottom pot 10A. When the pump is so received, an output line from it may extend through one of the openings 29A in the joiner 20 fitted to the top of the pot 10A, through openings 29A' in any joiner 20B which might be arranged thereabove in a given station formed from the system, and thence through an opening 29A in the joiner 20 fitted to the top of the uppermost pot 10B whereby an outlet end of that line is arranged in the uppermost pot 10B so that the pump can be operated to pump, to the uppermost pot 10B, liquid which has drained through the station 100 to the lowermost pot 10A, thereby recycling/recirculating it.

The system includes rollers 35 which can be snap-fitted into the underside of any one of the joiners 20B whereby, when they are so fitted in the lowermost, base-defining, joiner 20B, as shown in Figure 2, they support the station 100 on the ground in a manner permitting rotation of the station 100 about a central upright axis thereof.

The system further includes separator pieces 40, or partitions, one of which is shown in Figures 15 and 16. Each separator piece 40 is configured with radially outwardly convex peripheral portions 41, each of which is sized and shaped such that an outer edge thereof, which is defined by an upwardly projecting lip 42 contacts and conforms to the interior face of a respective one of the corrugations 13 adjacent the lower end of a given pot 10, and such that notches 43 are formed at radially outermost extents of the portions 41 and also between those portions 41 so as to receive respective ribs 17 in that pot when the separator 40 is inserted in the pot, as can best be seen at Figure 4. The resulting interengagement between the ribs 17 and notches 43 rotationally locks the separator 40 in position in the container 10, as does the interengagement between the lip 42 and corrugations 13. The separator 40 additionally comprises a floor 46 which is configured with apertures 47 therethrough. When the separator is arranged in a given pot 10, as shown in Figure 4, the apertures 47 overlie a central water collection reservoir 18D circumscribed by the rib 18 such that, growing medium thereafter added to the pot is supported over a bottom part of the pot interior by the separator 40 and liquid which seeps downwardly through the medium to the separator 40 can drain, through the apertures 47, into the reservoir 18D and thence flow through the notches 18A and along the channels 18C to the drain holes 16 in the pot 10B, whereby to drain through those holes. The underside of the separator 40 is supported on the rib 18 when the separator 40 is positioned in the container 10. Also, when the separator 40 is so positioned, the curved outer edges of the portions 41 rest against the step/shoulder 19. The separator 40 is thus reliably supported above the base of the container 10.

Referring again to Figure 7, the rib 18/reservoir 18D, notches 18A and channels 18C define a distributor which compensates for the pot 10 in which they are formed not being exactly level, such that water which drains, through the separator 40, into the reservoir 18D flows to each of the drain holes 16 in that pot. More particularly, the water in the reservoir 18D (which, in correspondence to the pot 10 in which it is formed, is not level) will, owing to its surface tension, adhere to the rib 18 at or adjacent the upwardly divergent edges of the notches 18A so as to form a restriction to the passage of water at each notch 18 A, the restriction being greater at ones of the notches 18A which are lower lying (as a result of the pot 10 being non-level) than ones of the notches 18A which are higher lying (likewise as a result of the pot 10 being non-level). As a result, water can flow through the higher-lying notches 18A and thence along the channels 18C into which they open (the floors of which slope downwardly, notwithstanding the pot 10 not being level, because they are steeper than the angle the reservoir 18C forms from the horizontal which results from the pot 10 not being level) and to/through the drain holes to which those channels 18C extend. The sides of each notch 18A form an angle of about 15 degrees. In the exemplary station 100 shown in Figures 1 to 4, the lowermost pot 10A, unlike each of the pots 10B, is not used to hold growing medium and vegetation which grows therein but rather purely for collection of water which drains the containers 10B from above (hence there being no separator 40 in the pot 10A, as will be clear from Figure 4). Referring to Figures 17 and 18, the system includes a water-collecting ladle 50 having a base 51 and a side wall 52 which extends upwardly from the base 51 and has an exterior cross-sectional configuration corresponding to the configuration of each of the openings 29A in the joiners 20. The sidewall 52 is formed with a slight taper whereby it diverges slightly in the upward direction, such that the ladle 50 can be inserted base-first through one of the openings 29 A (in the joiner 20B at the upper end of the bottom pot 10A) and thence lowered into the pot 10A such that an upper part of the sidewall 52 forms a substantially size-for-size fit with the structure of the joiner 20B bounding the opening 29A when the base 51 of the ladle 50 lies against or adjacent to the floor 11 of the pot 10A. The ladle 50 further comprises, at its upper end, a pouring spout 53 and a handle 54 arranged opposite the spout 53. In addition, the ladle 50 comprises an opening 55, which passes through the side wall 52 on a side thereof which is opposite to that at which the spout 53 is arranged. The opening extends from the handle 54 to a position which is about halfway between the top and bottom ends of the ladle 50. When the liquid accumulated in the pot 10A reaches the level of the lower end of the opening 55, an amount thereof will flow, through the opening 55, into the ladle 50. The ladle 50 can thereafter be withdrawn from the bottom pot 10A (grasping of the handle 54 for this purpose being facilitated by the opening 55) and the water therein (which may reach a level as high as the bottom end of the opening 55) thereafter poured from the ladle 50, via the spout 53, into one of the containers 10B (through any of the openings 29 in the joiner 20A fitted to the top of that pot, whereby the water is recycled through the station 100. The ladle 50 can thereafter be placed back into the position shown in Figure 4 so that additional water accumulated in the pot 10A can be transferred into the ladle 50.

Referring to Figures 20 to 24, the system further includes dividers 60, each being receivable in a respective container 10A or 10B such that the interior of the container is divided into separate regions 61, in each of which the roots of a respective plant will be precluded from interfering with or encroaching on the roots of a plant in another of the regions, whereby competition for root space and nutrients between plants growing within the same pot is eliminated.

Each divider 60 comprises a cylindrical core 62 configured with grooves or slots 63 extending therealong and spaced at regular angular intervals therearound, the core 62 defining a central support member, and plates 64 radially inner edges of which are snugly received in respective ones of the slots 63 such that the plates 64 extend radially outwardly from the core 62 to the sidewall of the pot. The number of plates 64 coupled to the core 62 in the divider, and thus the number of regions, can be varied between two and six. The divider 60 is configured such that, where all six plates 64 are utilised, each of resulting six regions 61 directly underlies a respective one of the growing openings 29A of a joiner 20A or 20B fitted atop the pot 10A or 10B in which the divider 60 is arranged.

The dividers 60 are configured so as not to obstruct drainage of fluid, through the drain holes 16, in the stack.

The pots 10, joiners 20, rods 30, separators 40, ladle 50, core 62 and plates 64 are all moulded from plastic.

While various embodiments of the present invention have been described above, it should be understood that they have been presented by way of example only, and not by way of limitation. It will be apparent to a person skilled in the relevant art that various changes in form and detail can be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Thus, the present invention should not be limited by any of the above described exemplary embodiments.

Throughout this specification and the claims which follow, unless the context requires otherwise, the word "comprise", and variations such as "comprises" and "comprising", will be understood to imply the inclusion of a stated integer or step or group of integers or steps but not the exclusion of any other integer or step or group of integers or steps.

Claims

1. A stackable container system comprising containers, each of which has a bottom and an open top, and at least one support configured to hold one container atop another whereby the containers can be arranged in a stack.

2. A system according to claim 1, wherein the containers are separate from the support(s) and the or each support is releasably engageable with the bottom of one said container and the top of another whereby the containers can be arranged in said stack.

3. A system according to claim 2, wherein the or each support is configured with an upwardly opening recess shaped such that the bottom of the container which that support engages in the stack snugly fits in the recess.

4. A system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein at least one of the containers is configured with one or more drainage holes at a lower end thereof, such that liquid can drain, via the drainage hole(s), from an interior of an upper one of the containers in the stack to an interior of a lower one of the containers in the stack.

5. A system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the or each support is configured with at least one vegetation-growing opening therethrough, the opening(s) being arranged such that when the support holds one container atop another, vegetation being grown in the latter container can pass through the opening(s) so as to be exposed.

6. A system according to claim 5, configured such that the or each opening through the or each support overlies an interior of the container atop which that support holds a said container in said stack.

7. A system according to claim 6, configured such that the one or more openings through the or each support are positioned around a part of the support which overlies substantially the entirety of a periphery of said interior.

8. A system according to any one of claims 5 to 7, wherein the or each support is configured with plural said openings arranged at spaced positions therein.

9. A system according to any one of the preceding claims, including one or more dividers, the or each divider being receivable in a respective said container such that the interior of the container is divided into separate regions.

10. A system according to claim 9, wherein the or each divider comprises plates arrangeable in said interior at positions which are angularly spaced about a central upright axis of the interior such that each plate extends between said axis and a side wall of the container.

11. A system according to claim 10, wherein the or each divider further comprises a central support member with which the plates releasably engage at radially inner ends thereof so as to assume said positions in said interior.

12. A system according to claim 11, wherein the central support member comprises core configured with angularly spaced apart radially outwardly opening slots extending therealong, each slot receiving a radially inner edge of a respective one of said plates.

13. A system according to any one of claims 9 to 12, wherein the number of plates of the or each divider, and thus the number of said regions, is variable.

14. A system according to any one of claims 9 to 13 as dependent from claim 8, wherein the or each divider is configured such that each region underlies at least one respective said opening.

15. A system according to any one of claims 9 to 13 as dependent from claim 8, wherein the or each divider is configured such that each region underlies a respective said opening.

16. A system according to claims 4 and 8, or either one of claims 14 and 15 as dependent therefrom, wherein the or each container configured with one or more holes is configured with plural said holes arranged such that each is disposed at a respective one of said spaced positions in a support which receives a base of that container in said stack.

17. A system according to claim 16, including one or more separators, the or each separator being configured to support, in the interior of a respective said container configured with plural said holes, growing medium over a lower part of that interior, and configured to permit drainage, into that lower part, of liquid which seeps through the growing medium supported thereover, such that the liquid can flow through said holes with which the container is configured.

18. A system according to claim 17, wherein the or each separator comprises a partition configured with apertures permitting said drainage.

19. A system according to claim 17 or 18, wherein the or each container configured with plural said holes includes a water collection reservoir arranged such that liquid which has been permitted, by a said separator in the container, to drain into said lower part of the interior of the container accumulates in said reservoir, the reservoir having a side wall formed with openings therethrough at spaced positions therearound, the container being configured such that accumulated water which passes from the reservoir through each of those openings thence flows to a respective one of said holes arranged to receive water from the reservoir via that opening, the openings being arranged such that one or more of them is lower than the other(s) if the container is not level, and configured such that restrictions to passage of the accumulated water therethrough are, owing to surface tension of the water, formed at those openings, the restriction at the or each lower opening being greater than at the/each other opening, whereby there is defined a distributor, comprising said reservoir and the openings through said side wall thereof, which, in addition to outputting accumulated water to the hole(s) arranged to receive water via the lower opening(s), outputs an amount of the accumulated water to the hole(s) arranged to receive the water via said other opening(s).

20. A system according to claim 19, wherein the side wall of the or each reservoir is defined by a rib.

21. A system according to claim 19 or 20, wherein each of the openings through the or each reservoir side wall is upwardly divergent.

22. A system according to any one of claims 19 to 21, wherein each of the openings through the or each reservoir side wall is defined by a notch.

23. A system according to claim 21 or 22, wherein the opening through the or each reservoir side wall is V-shaped.

24. A system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the number of containers is at least three, whereby the number of supports is at least two.

25. A system according to any one of the preceding claims, further comprising at least one trellis member or stabiliser member connectable to supports in said stack to interconnect the supports.

26. A system according to any one of the preceding claims, including a base arranged to receive a lowermost one of the containers in the stack.

27. A system according to claim 26, wherein the base is defined by a said support.

28. A system according to claim 26 or 27, including at least one trellis member or stabiliser member connectable to the base and at least one support in said stack to interconnect the base and the support(s).

29. A system according to claim 25 or 28, comprising plural said members connectable to the base/support(s) in said stack at spaced positions therearound.

30. A system according to claim 25, 28 or 29, wherein the member(s) and the support(s)/base to which the or each member is connectable are configured to engage interlockingly.

31. A system according to any one of claims 25 and 28 to 30, wherein opposite ends of the or each member and/or the support(s)/base to which that member is connectable are configured with formations or connection points via which the member(s) and supports are interconnectable .

32. A system according to any one of claims 25 and 28 to 31, wherein opposite ends of the or each member and the support(s)/base to which that member is connectable are configured with mating connection points via which the member(s) and support(s)/base can be interconnected.

33. A system according to any one of claims 5 to 8, or any one of claims 9 to 32 as dependent therefrom, wherein the supports and containers are configured such that, in said stack, the opening(s) in one support are rotationally offset, about an upright axis, from the opening(s) in the or each support adjacent to it in said stack.

34. A system according to claim 33, configured such that said upright axis is a central axis of the stack.

35. A system according to any one of claims 5 to 8, or any one of claims 9 to 34 as dependent therefrom, further comprising a liquid collecting receptacle configured to extend through a said opening and into a said container against the top of which the support configured with that opening is received in said stack, so as to be supported in a position which is such that a volume of liquid which accumulates in that container accumulates in the receptacle, the receptacle being configured such that it can be withdrawn through the opening through which it extends such that said volume of liquid can be emptied therefrom.

36. A system according to claim 35, wherein the receptacle is a ladle.

37. A system according to claim 35 or 36, wherein the receptacle has an exterior cross-sectional configuration complementary to the configuration of the or each opening through which it is configured to extend, so as to form a mating fit with the support configured with that opening when it extends therethrough.

38. A system according to any one of claims 35 to 37, wherein the receptacle is configured with a liquid transfer opening which passes through an upper portion of a side wall thereof, whereby, when liquid in the container into which the receptacle extends reaches the level of a lower end of the liquid transfer opening, an amount thereof flows, through the liquid transfer opening, into the receptacle, such that said volume of liquid accumulates in the receptacle.

39. The stack formed from the containers and at least one said support of a system according to any one of the preceding claims.

40. The stack formed from the containers and at least one said support of a system according to any one of claims 35 to 38, in which said receptacle extends through a said opening and into the container against the top of which the support configured with that opening is received, so as to be supported in said position.

41. The stack of claim 40, wherein said container into which the receptacle extends is a lowermost container in said stack.

42. The stack formed from the containers and at least one said support of a system according to any one of claims 9 to 15, or any one of claims 16 to 41 as appended thereto, in which at least one said divider is arranged in a respective said container such that the interior of the container is divided into said separate said regions.

43. The stack from the containers and at least one said support of a system according to any one of claims 17 to 23, or any one of claims 24 to 38 as appended thereto, in which at least one said separator is arranged in a respective said container configured with plural said holes to support, in the interior of that container, growing medium over a lower part of that interior, and to permit drainage, into that lower part, of liquid which seeps through the growing medium supported thereover, such that the liquid can flow through said holes with which the container is configured.

44. The stack of any one of claims 39 to 43, including a said support which receives the bottom of a lowermost one of said containers to define a base of the stack.

45. A stack according to claim 44, wherein the support which receives the lowermost container is provided with ground-engaging rotatable elements whereby the stack is displaceable over the ground.

46. A stack according to claim 45, wherein the rolling elements are rotatable about axes each of which extends from an upright axis of the stack whereby the stack is rotatably displaceable about said axis over the ground.

47. A stack according to claim 46, wherein said upright axis is a central axis of the stack.