Shelters for enhancing the growth of trees by protecting tree trunks from damaging sunlight. The shelters include a longitudinal tubular structure having a top edge and a bottom edge. The shelters includes a conduit extending from the top edge to the bottom edge of the shelter. The longitudinal tubular structure may be formed from a polymeric material including a pigment selected to block at least a portion of electromagnetic radiation. The polymeric material including the pigment blocks at least about 30% of electromagnetic radiation at any wavelength from about 200 nm to about 2500 nm.

The invention provides highly nutritious microgreens in a manner that is highly efficient and easy-to-use even for consumers who are unfamiliar with growing plants. The invention provides plant growing apparatus, plant growing systems including water and plants, plant growing kits, and methods of growing plants. The invention reduces the frequency of watering and produces microgreen yields with surprisingly little water.

The invention provides highly nutritious microgreens in a manner that is highly efficient and easy-to-use even for consumers who are unfamiliar with growing plants. The invention provides plant growing apparatus, plant growing systems including water and plants, plant growing kits, and methods of growing plants. The invention reduces the frequency of watering and produces microgreen yields with surprisingly little water.

A system (100) for producing a plant (35), the system having an indoor environment, a plurality of plant holders (1) for growing and transporting a plant therein, a controller (105) for at least controlling temperature and humidity in the indoor environment. The plant holder has a semi-permeable foil (20) defining a non-planar boundary of an interior space and an exterior space, a reservoir (2), having an amount of liquid for feeding the plant. The reservoir (2) and the semi-permeable foil (20) are arranged to allow the plant to grow in the interior space. The semi-permeable foil (20) has permeation of water vapor.

A method is provided for protecting a plant from the effects of contact or exposure to salt and/or salt water, comprising placing, around or near the plant: a salt protection mat, comprising: a top layer; a center layer disposed beneath the top layer and comprising superabsorbent polymer particles; and a semipermeable bottom layer disposed beneath the center layer; wherein the top layer reduces or prevents evaporative water loss from the center layer; and wherein the semipermeable bottom layer permits water to seep out from the center layer.

The present invention is a shade apparatus with central hub an shade components.

A system and a method for a grass maintenance comprising an autonomous vehicle (100) arranged to operate autonomously to manipulate a grass surface, wherein the vehicle (100) includes one or more environmental sensors (208) arranged to detect environmental conditions associated with the grass surface; and one or more grass manipulation modules (210) arranged to manipulate the grass surface.

A plant protector includes four wall parts, which are connected to one another to form a tube shaped like the jacket of a prism. In this case, the wall parts are connected to one another up to one edge of the plant protector, so that the wall parts can pivot relative to one another in order to form the tube. The edges of the wall parts initially not connected to one another and adjoining the other edge of the plant protector are connected to one another using plug-in connections. The wall parts and the other components of the plant protector can consist of pressed wood fibers and/or wood shavings.

A method for planting crops that involves covering the planted seeds of the crop with an elongate sheet of mulch. The elongate sheet of mulch has lateral edges that determine its width. A combustible cord that is affixed to it between the lateral edges. The combustible cord may be formed within plies of the mulch or adhered thereto. The mulch is placed over the planted crop and held in place over the crop. This may be done by burying lateral edges of the mulch. When a user of the mulch wishes to remove the mulch, he will burn the combustible cord and that will separate the mulch along the cord.

This invention relates to a multilayer biodegradable film which is particularly suitable for the manufacture of packaging and is also characterised by appreciable optical transparency properties in addition to high level mechanical properties.