Patent attributes
This invention is a device for irrigating tree seedlings and other small plants, to ensure that said plants stay moist in the critical few weeks following their planting. The device uses a bag, approximately 1 gallon capacity, constructed of biodegradable plastic, such as cornstarch, which slowly degrades into the soil so as to not leave residue in the planting field. The bag has a top filling opening with an adhesive sealing flap, and contains a multi-layered disk which acts as a passive valve which permits the slow drip-release of water from the bag over a 2-3 week period following planting. The multi-layered disk is made of two layers of thin plastic, a layer of special laboratory filter paper, and a layer of adhesive-sided gasket material which attaches said disk to said biodegradable bag. The design of the hole patterns in the layers of the disk, and the assembly and precise compression of said layers during manufacture, result in a device that produces the desired slow-release flow characteristics.
