System for increasing the growth potential of hedge-row cultured perennial crop plants

Abstract

A system for growing and harvesting perennial, hedge-type, harvestable plants is provided which permits greater utilization of sunlight for photosynthesis, more efficient use of the land, and control of evapotranspiration through wind control. The plants are in rows, running in a substantially east-west direction, and are cut and harvested so that their "sun" surface(s) is not horizontal, but, rather, faces the direction of the sun's rays during the peak growing time of the day throughout the prime growing season of the year. The surface is generally cut to expose a maximum growing surface of the plant to sunlight and in this sense is analogous to solar collectors in solar home or hot water heating systems. The rows of plants are so spaced relative to adjacent rows to permit sunlight to fall on most of the planar surface of the hedge, but such that one row will not cast a dense shadow on a portion of another row. The rows are oriented in a generally east-west direction but specifically, the orientation may be varied to be non-parallel or even perpendicular to the prevailing wind direction in order to preserve water by reducing wind velocity and sheltering the major portion of the transpiring surface. A vehicle is provided for harvesting the upper portions of the plants so that the upper planar surfaces of the portions of the plants remaining after harvesting are at an angle which exposes a maximum surface area of the upper planar surfaces to sunlight during the peak growing time of the day throughout the following growing season.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.