Other

Randal D A Locke

Daniel P Dunbar

Teresa M Locke

Disclosed is a novel combination of a conventional plant pot with one or more drain holes in its bottom or its side wall near its bottom and a perforated conduit or tube which is removably affixed to the side wall of the container and which extends from at or near the top of the basin to its bottom and which acts as an aerating root pruner which provides air and water communication between top of the basin and a drain hole and the planting soil between them. Also disclosed is a automatic watering device which includes a basin for holding a volume of water to be dispensed to a water using attachment for a volume of water, a water dispensing diaphragm fill valve attached to a source of water which regulates the volume of water maintained in the basin, which basin has a mounting rim near its open top for mounting a water using attachment on it and a seat for mounting the fill valve in the basin below a predetermined water line determined by the fill valve; and the fill valve has a port for dispensing water from it into the basin until the water reaches the water line.

Combination of container for growing plants and aerating root pruner

Disclosed is a retrofittable aerating root pruner (RARP) adapted to be detachably mounted on the inner face of the side wall of a plant container having drain ports at the bottom of the side wall thereof, which is an elongate rectangular flat or hemi-cylindrical sheet member with wings along both its long sides which fit snugly against the inner face of the side wall of the plant container when the RARP to form a conduit extending to the bottom of the plant container. The RARP is mounted at its upper end to the upper edge of the plant container and at its bottom end by an extension which projects through a drain port and mounts on the outer surface of the bottom of the plant container. The upper portion of the sheet member is solid to restrict the amount of water which can flow directly into the conduit and exit out the drain port and the remainder contains a plurality of apertures so that the conduit provides ambient air access to the planting medium along the length of the and thereby promotes enhanced aeration of and uniform distribution of water in the planting and creates an air root pruning effect on the roots of a plant growing in the plant container. An apertured cutter plate which fits in the RARP can be used to mechanically sever plant roots which penetrate the RARP.

Retrofitting aerating root pruner

Disclosed is an implantable aerating root pruner (IARP) formed from a pair of thin walled substantially identical rigid sheet members which are dismountably fitted together to form a stake-like conduit each of which sheet members has a plurality of apertures therein which creates a grate-like structure with a high ratio of total open area to total surface area, one end of each of which is tapered to form, when the sheet members are fitted together to form the IARP, an edge or point which facilitates insertion of the IARP into planting medium and the end portion of the other end of each thereof lacks the apertures and is adapted to project above the surface of the planting medium. The sheet members can be flat separate elements which form a box-like conduit or semi-cylindrical and joined together by hinges and which form a cylindrical conduit.

Growing community of inventors

Redway, CA, United States of America

Randal D A Locke