GB2185374A - Plant drip feeder - Google Patents

Abstract

A plant drip feeder comprises a reservoir portion A (which may have the external form of a plant, leaf, flower or garden gnome) having a screw top B for filling and flow control purposes, a stop plunger F which is pushed in to the position shown during filling, and a depth stop C; and also comprises a hollow stake portion D having drip holes E. The feeder may be of coloured plastics material. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Stake drip This invention relates to a Stake-Drip for watering plants.

Plant watering devices are popularly used for their ability to sustain the life of potted plants during periods of gardeners absence. A common method of automatic plant watering is to place the potted plant, still in its container, over a heavily soaked absorbent mat, contained in a dish, which in the absence of flowing water is kept wet by linking it to a water reservoir using a wick. Continuous flow water sprinklers also exist, which are fed directly from the house mains water supply.

Whilst both the above methods function adequately, the former method tends to be messy in use and is restricted to potted plants kept indoors, since the method exposes itself to high evaporation. The latter method relies entirely on mains water supply being available during periods of gardeners absence; the system fails if water is unavailable due to either shortage or pipe bursting shut off, further householders are advised to isolate all services during periods of absence, such as at holiday time.

According to the present invention, a Stake Drip consisting of a cosmetically disguised water reservoir, having a stake shaped water outlet is forcibly driven into the soil near to the plant to be watered. The screwable filling spout, at the top of the device is designed so that when used with its lid, can be used to control the rate of water outflow from the device, into the soil. During periods of prolonged gardeners absence, slow drips may be enough to keep the plant alive. This device has the advantage of being useful for both potted and garden plants.

A specific embodiment of the invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 shows the overall perspectives of two typical stake drips; Figure 2 illustrates how a stake drip appears when in use; Figure 3 illustrates an assembly drawing detailing the basic parts of the device; Figure 4 shows a sectional detail taken from Fig. 3.

Referring to the drawing in Fig. 3, the water reservoir A forms the main body of the device whose hoilow interior has been detailed in the section shown in Fig. 4. The external appearance as seen in Fig. 1 is therefore purely cosmetic and is moulded and dyed to blend in with surroundings, when in use.

To fill the stake drip, the stop plunger is pushed fully into the body of the depth stop C. The stop plunger E acts as a plug at the bottom of the water reservoir A. The screwtop flow regulator B is then unscrewed to reveal the filling spout of the reservoir A.

The reservoir is then filled with water and/or liquid nutrients such as fertiliser, and the flow regulator replaced and fully screwed.

To operate the Stake Drip the stop plunger E is fully removed to the original position. The flow regulator is then partly unscrewed, until a suitable flow rate of water occurs through the drip holes F, shown in the stake D. The Stake Drip is then pushed into the soil adjacent to the plant roots where it can be left until the reservoir is empty.

1. The Stake Drip is a gravity powered automatic watering device of hollow construction, incorporating its own reservoir, which can be set by hand to drip feed both garden and potted plants directly into the soil surrounding the plant.

2. A stake drip as in Claim 1, which can be easily carried by one hand and manually driven into the soil without any tools.

3. A stake drip as in Claim 1 and Claim 2, constructed from a synthetic, non-perishable material, such as a dyed plastic, not dissolved by water or common plant fertilisers.

4. A stake drip as in Claim 3, having a shaped external appearance to blend in with garden foliage and furniture, such as plants, leaves, flowers or garden gnomes.

5. A stake drip as in Claim 4, constructed in a variety of sizes thus providing internal reservoirs of different capacity, for a range of self watering periods.

6. A stake drip substantially as described herein with reference to Figs. 1 and 3, of the accompanying drawings.

**WARNING** end of DESC field may overlap start of CLMS **.

Claims (6)

**WARNING** start of CLMS field may overlap end of DESC **. SPECIFICATION Stake drip This invention relates to a Stake-Drip for watering plants. Plant watering devices are popularly used for their ability to sustain the life of potted plants during periods of gardeners absence. A common method of automatic plant watering is to place the potted plant, still in its container, over a heavily soaked absorbent mat, contained in a dish, which in the absence of flowing water is kept wet by linking it to a water reservoir using a wick. Continuous flow water sprinklers also exist, which are fed directly from the house mains water supply. Whilst both the above methods function adequately, the former method tends to be messy in use and is restricted to potted plants kept indoors, since the method exposes itself to high evaporation. The latter method relies entirely on mains water supply being available during periods of gardeners absence; the system fails if water is unavailable due to either shortage or pipe bursting shut off, further householders are advised to isolate all services during periods of absence, such as at holiday time. According to the present invention, a Stake Drip consisting of a cosmetically disguised water reservoir, having a stake shaped water outlet is forcibly driven into the soil near to the plant to be watered. The screwable filling spout, at the top of the device is designed so that when used with its lid, can be used to control the rate of water outflow from the device, into the soil. During periods of prolonged gardeners absence, slow drips may be enough to keep the plant alive. This device has the advantage of being useful for both potted and garden plants. A specific embodiment of the invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 shows the overall perspectives of two typical stake drips; Figure 2 illustrates how a stake drip appears when in use; Figure 3 illustrates an assembly drawing detailing the basic parts of the device; Figure 4 shows a sectional detail taken from Fig. 3. Referring to the drawing in Fig. 3, the water reservoir A forms the main body of the device whose hoilow interior has been detailed in the section shown in Fig. 4. The external appearance as seen in Fig. 1 is therefore purely cosmetic and is moulded and dyed to blend in with surroundings, when in use. To fill the stake drip, the stop plunger is pushed fully into the body of the depth stop C. The stop plunger E acts as a plug at the bottom of the water reservoir A. The screwtop flow regulator B is then unscrewed to reveal the filling spout of the reservoir A. The reservoir is then filled with water and/or liquid nutrients such as fertiliser, and the flow regulator replaced and fully screwed. To operate the Stake Drip the stop plunger E is fully removed to the original position. The flow regulator is then partly unscrewed, until a suitable flow rate of water occurs through the drip holes F, shown in the stake D. The Stake Drip is then pushed into the soil adjacent to the plant roots where it can be left until the reservoir is empty. CLAIMS

1. The Stake Drip is a gravity powered automatic watering device of hollow construction, incorporating its own reservoir, which can be set by hand to drip feed both garden and potted plants directly into the soil surrounding the plant.

2. A stake drip as in Claim 1, which can be easily carried by one hand and manually driven into the soil without any tools.

3. A stake drip as in Claim 1 and Claim 2, constructed from a synthetic, non-perishable material, such as a dyed plastic, not dissolved by water or common plant fertilisers.

4. A stake drip as in Claim 3, having a shaped external appearance to blend in with garden foliage and furniture, such as plants, leaves, flowers or garden gnomes.

5. A stake drip as in Claim 4, constructed in a variety of sizes thus providing internal reservoirs of different capacity, for a range of self watering periods.

6. A stake drip substantially as described herein with reference to Figs. 1 and 3, of the accompanying drawings.