An Appliance for Protecting Growing Fruit against the Attacks of Insects, Vermin, Birds, or other Destructive Agents.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 24th Mar., 1897
Complete Specification Left, 24th Dec., 1897-Accepted, 19th Feb., 1898
An Appliance for Protecting Growing Fruit against the Attacks of
Insects, Vermin, Birds, or other Destructive Agents.
I, EDWARD DARNLEY SMITH, Landscove Vicarage, Ashburton, in the County of
Devon, Clerk in Holy Orders, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be
as follows:
My invention consists of an appliance which encloses the fruit while ripening,
made of reticulated or perforated material which will allow the suns rays to pass
freely through but at the same time preserve the fruit from the attacks of insects,
vermin, birds, or other destructive agents. To facilitate the placing of the pro-
tector in position it may be made in halves fitting tightly together, or it may be
hinged, a hole being provided for the passage of the stalk.
Dated this 04th day of Mom 1907
An Appliance for Protecting Growing Fruit against the Attacks of
Insects, Vermin, Birds, or other Destructive Agents.
I, EDWARD DARNLEY SMITH, of Landscove Vicarage, Ashburton, Devon, Clerk
in Holy Orders, do hereby declare the nature of this invention, and in what manner
the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement:
The chief object of this invention is to provide means whereby fruit may be
protected whilst growing and during its ripening period; but the invention is also
applicable to the protection of flowers or blooms while being developed on plants
or trees, while being conveyed from place to place, or at other times, and generally
for the protection of any horticultural product to which it may be applicable. The
invention consists of an appliance within which the fruit for example may be en-
closed while ripening, such appliance being made of reticulated or perforated
material which allows the sun's rays to press freely through to the fruit within,
but at the same time preserves it from the attacks of insects, vermin, birds, or other
destructive agents. To facilitate the placing of the protecting appliance in posi-
tion it may be made in halves fitting more or less tightly together, or the halves
may be hinged together a hole being preferably provided in either case for the
passage of the stalk.
The accompanying sheet of drawings illustrates the invention, Figure 1 showing
one of my appliances suitable for the protection of a peach for example, and
Figure 2 a similar appliance suitable for the protection of a plum or a strawberry
for example

page_text: A is a net-work of wire or other suitable material forming a cage or receptacle,
preferably, but not necessarily approximating more or less closely to the general
shape of the fruit or other object it is intended to enclose. This net-work cage or
receptacle is made in two halves. to facilitate its application each half being pre-
ferably provided with a rim B, B one of which is adapted to fit more or less
tightly into the other as shown by the section at the upper part of Figure 1, so as
to hold the two, parts together, or the two halves may be connected together by
a hinge B2 (Figure 2) or by any other suitable device.
A hole C is left at a suitable part of the joint of the two halves of the cage or
receptacle for the passage through it of the stalk when the appliance is to be
used for fruit or other horticultural products still hanging to the tree or plant but
when the appliance is to be used for fruit or other products detached from the tree
or plant the said hole may be dispensed with.
In some cases it may be desirable to support the weight of the above described
appliance independently of the fruit or other product enclosed within it. To
facilitate this an eye D may be provided for the connection thereto of a string,
chain, or other device for suspending the appliance from a branch or other point
of attachment.
Instead of being made of net-work as illustrated, the cage or receptacle may
be made of any suitable material perforated with holes, for example celluloid or
xylonite may be advantageously employed for the purpose.
It is obvious that the size and shape of the appliance may be varied to suit the
particular purpose to which it is to be applied, the forms shown in the drawings
being given by way of illustration only.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is:
First. An appliance for protecting growing fruit or other horticultural products
which consists of a cage or receptacle composed of reticulated or perforated
material, substantially as described.
Second. An appliance for protecting growing fruit or other horticultural products,
which consists of a cage or receptacle composed of reticulated or perforated
material, made in halves adapted to fit more or less tightly into one another at
their edges, or to be hinged or otherwise connected together, so that the appliance
can be opened in order to pass it round the fruit or other product, and then closed.
so as to enclose the same, substantially as described.
Dated this 24th day of December 1897.
E. DARNLEY SMITH,
Per W. H. Beck,
115, Cannon Street, London, E.C., Agent.