JPS6360970B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a method for growing plants. As a conventional means of growing plants, a) In-ground cultivation causes large losses due to the fertilizer being widely dispersed into the soil or washed away.

b When cultivating plants in containers such as flowerpots, drainage holes are generally formed at the bottom of the container to prevent root rot, resulting in poor water retention, so water must be replenished relatively frequently, for example once every two days. There is a need to. Furthermore, each time water is replenished, fertilizers flow out along with water from the drainage holes.

c. Reducing the frequency of water replenishment by soaking the lower part of containers such as flowerpots in water can cause root rot.

d. Burying the lower part of containers such as flowerpots in the ground to reduce the frequency of water replenishment is laborious and inevitably results in loss of fertilizer.

e Hydroponics uses flowing water or e.g.
If you do not change the water more frequently than once a day, it may cause root rot.

In view of the above, the present invention (1) can reduce the frequency of water supply to, for example, once every seven days or more, (2) does not cause loss of fertilizer, (3) does not cause root rot, etc. The purpose is to provide a unique plant growing method with the characteristics of Planting soil is stored inside a container made of a porous material, and by applying moisture to the outside of the container, the moisture on the outside of the container is transmitted in the form of water vapor from the outside to the inside of the porous wall of the container. This is to keep the planting soil inside the container moist.

An air-permeable and water-repellent open-pore porous material that allows water vapor to pass through freely but does not allow liquid water to pass through is made of water-repellent resin such as polyester, polyethylene, or polytetrafluoroethylene. Various types of continuous microporous porous materials (with a pore diameter of 0.1
~100μm) can be effectively used. Also, high-density felt or cloth made from water-repellent resin fibers can also be used.

Among them, polytetrafluoroethylene (hereinafter referred to as
Open-cell porous bodies made of PTFE (abbreviated as PTFE) are recommended as highly effective in carrying out the present invention.

To give an overview of the manufacturing method, it is approximately 80:20 (weight ratio) of PTFE powder and liquid lubricant (for example, liquid hydrocarbon such as solvent naphtha and white oil).
By extruding and/or rolling a mixture of
% or more) and extract or volatilize the liquid lubricant from the molded body (heating above the boiling point of the liquid lubricant)
The molded body was then heated to 327°C.
(The melting point of PTFE) At a temperature below, the film is stretched in at least one direction at a stretching rate of 10%/second or more per unit time. As a result, many micro nodules are connected to each other by many fibrils (fine fibers).
A continuous microporous porous body is obtained. and the corresponding
The PTFE porous material can be used as it is, that is, as an unburned porous material, or as a semi-combusted porous material that has been heat-set at an appropriate temperature of 327°C or less, or as a combusted porous material that has been heat-treated to a temperature of 327°C or higher. used as. In the present invention, any of unburned, semi-burned, and combusted forms can be used.

The various physical properties of the above-mentioned stretched porous PTFE material can be adjusted as desired over a wide range as described below by changing the stretching direction, stretching ratio/stretching ratio per unit time, stretching temperature, heat setting, or firing conditions. I can do it.

Porosity 40-95%, maximum pore diameter 0.1-15μm, density
0.15~1g/ ^cm3 , Gurley number 0.1~100
seconds, ethanol valve point 0.2~3Kg/ ^cm2 ,
Matrix tensile strength 514Kg/cm or more, wall thickness
0.01mm or more optional.

Due to the unique properties of PTFE, the surface is extremely slippery, and due to its excellent water repellency, the water permeability is 0 to 0.
It is small at 1cm ³ /min・dm ²・1maq. It also has excellent heat and chemical resistance.

The present invention utilizes the above-described air-permeable and water-repellent open-cell porous material to produce a container 1 in which all or part of the wall is made of the porous material. The container 1
If it is difficult to obtain shape retention as a container with a porous material alone, for example, a porous film may be used inside a rigid container made of plastic or metal with many internal and external through holes in the peripheral wall and bottom. Alternatively, use wire mesh, cloth, etc. as a reinforcing member and laminate a porous membrane on the surface with adhesive to the extent that the breathability of the membrane is not significantly lost, and then press the laminated material. It may be formed by forming the container 1 by other means.

Then, planting soil 2 (including sand, pebbles, gravel, artificial soil, etc.) is placed in the container 1 made of the porous material, and the container 1 is placed in a leaky outer container 4 containing water 3. For example, sponge pieces, felt pieces,
A water-impregnated object such as algae is housed, and by embedding the container 1 in the water-impregnated object and leaving it, water is constantly applied to the outer surface of the container 1.

In this way, water 3 as a liquid on the outside of the container 1 passes through the continuous pores of the porous material to the inside of the container 1 due to the water repellency of the porous material that constitutes the wall of the container 1. Although the water vapor 31 generated at the contact interface between the outer surface of the porous wall of the container 1 and the water easily penetrates into the inside of the container 1 through the continuous pores of the porous wall, the water vapor 31 is prevented from penetrating into the container 1. The water vapor 31 constantly provides the planting soil 2 in the container 1 with appropriate moisture necessary for plant growth. 5 indicates seeds of plants sown in planting soil 2.

Therefore, according to the present invention, (1) If a large amount of water is allowed to exist outside the container 1 containing the planting soil 2, water is replenished into the outer container 4 until the amount of water is extremely reduced. There is no need,
Water replenishment intervals can be extended.

(2) Also, the fertilizer mixed in the planting soil 2 leaks to the outside of the container 1 because the porous walls that make up the container 1 do not allow liquids or solids other than gases such as water vapor and air to pass through. This prevents the loss of fertilizer.

(3) Also, the planting soil 2 is always maintained in a moderately moist state and does not become excessively moist, so that root rot does not occur.

The intended purpose is well achieved.

In Fig. 1, the outer container 4 can be made of any material as long as it can accommodate the inner container 1 and contain an appropriate amount of water in the space between it and the inner container 1, and is water-proof. In order to prevent the water 3 from rotting due to long-term storage, the outer container 4, like the inner container 1, has all or part of its walls made of an air-permeable and water-repellent open-pore porous material. This allows oxygen from the outside air to dissolve into the water in the outer container through the porous wall of the outer container, resulting in the effect of preventing the water from spoiling. 6
is a spacer stand that keeps the outer bottom surface of the inner container 1 floating above the inner bottom surface of the outer container 4;
Alternatively, it may be formed integrally with the inner container 1.

Further, as shown in Fig. 3, the roots of the plants are wrapped together with fertilizer-containing planting soil 2 in an air permeable and water-repellent continuous porous membrane 1 (a porous membrane alone or a laminate with a reinforcing member). , it may be planted on the ground, and in this case as well, water in the ground enters the planting soil 2 inside the membrane through the membrane 1 in the form of water vapor to keep the planting soil 2 moderately moist. It also has the effect of preventing fertilizer loss.

Example 1 A plastic circular container with a diameter of approximately 20 cm, a depth of approximately 10 cm, and a wall thickness of approximately 1.5 mm has a diameter of approximately 2 mm on the peripheral and bottom walls.
The inner surface of the perforated container was lined with the following air-permeable and water-repellent continuous microporous porous membrane, and this was used as an inner container for storing planting soil.

Porous membrane = Manufactured according to the manufacturing method described in Japanese Patent Publication No. 51-18991 (Stretching process: 10% in an atmosphere of approximately 300°C)
Double stretching, combustion process: approximately 340°C for 5 minutes),
Thickness 0.04mm, average pore diameter approximately 8μm, porosity 90%, Gurley number 1 second, water permeability 0cm ³ /min・d
Continuous microporous porous membrane of polytetrafluoroethylene resin of ^m2・1maq.

Sufficiently dried humus was placed in the inner container, and five seeds of each of three types of sunflower, carrot, and salvia were sown.

Then, use a tray with a diameter of about 1 m as an outer container, and place the above inner container inside the tray with a height of about 5 cm.
When the sunflowers were placed in the container through a spacer stand of about 30 degrees, and the outer surface of the inner container was soaked in water by filling it with water, the sunflowers grew after 7 days and the carrots grew after 9 days.
After 14 days, the salvias germinated and grew steadily after that, and water supply to the cory was only needed once every 20 days, and root rot did not occur.

Comparative example: When sunflower, carrot, and salvia seeds were sown in a non-leak container with no drainage holes and seeded with humus and water, the sunflowers germinated after 4 days, the carrots after 6 days, and the salvia after 10 days. However, after 20 days, all of the plants developed root rot.

Example 2 A nylon tricot cloth with a thickness of about 0.44 mm was used as a reinforcing layer, and on one side of the reinforcing layer, a continuous microporous membrane made of the same polytetrafluoroethylene resin as used in Example 1 was attached via a polyester adhesive. I laminated it. Note that the adhesive is used thinly or in spots so that the air permeability of the porous membrane is not completely lost in the adhesive layer.

The above laminated sheet was then heat press molded to form a circular container with a diameter of approximately 20 cm and a depth of approximately 10 cm.
I made two large and small circular containers, each 30cm long and approximately 15cm deep (both have porous laminate on the inside).

A small container is used as an inner container for storing planting soil, and a mixture of thoroughly dried gravel with a particle size of approximately 0.3 to 1 mm and water-soluble fertilizer is placed in the container, and five seeds each of three types of sunflower, carrot, and salvia are placed in the container. I sowed it.

Then, the inner container was placed in the large container as an outer container via a spacer stand with a height of about 5 cm, water was poured between the inner container and the outer container, and the container was left to stand. Salvia germinated after 9 days and salvia after 16 days, and after that they grew steadily, and the water reservoir between the inner container and the outer container only needs to be replenished once every 7 days, and root rot and water spoilage are prevented. It did not occur.

Comparative Example When the planting soil (gravel) and water used in Example 2 were placed in a non-leak container without drainage holes, sunflower, carrot, and salvia seeds were sown and left to stand. After 5 days, salvia was 9
They germinated after a few days, but all of them developed root rot after 25 days.

The environmental conditions for Example 1, Comparative Example, and Example 2 and Comparative Example were an ambient temperature of 21°C and a relative humidity of 56%.
It is. Also, if seeds are sown in sufficiently dry humus or gravel without watering, the seeds will not germinate.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

The drawings show examples: Fig. 1 is a cross-sectional view of an example of the container, Fig. 2 is an explanatory diagram of the principle of water permeation, and Fig. 3 is a water-repellent and breathable continuous microporous structure in the roots of plants. This is a state diagram of the plant wrapped in a porous membrane and planted in the ground. 1 is a container made of a breathable and water-repellent open-pore porous material, 2 is planting soil, 3 is water, 4 is an outer container, 5
is the seed, 6 is the spacer stand.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. Inside a container whose walls are entirely or partially composed of an air-permeable and water-repellent open-pore porous material that allows water vapor to pass through freely but does not allow liquid water to pass through. By storing planting soil and applying moisture to the outside of the container, the moisture on the outside of the container is transmitted in the form of water vapor from the outside to the inside of the container's porous walls, moistening the planting soil inside the container. Characteristic plant growing methods. 2. The method for growing plants according to claim 1, wherein the continuous porous body is a stretched porous body of polytetrafluoroethylene.