Patent ID: 7506859

Claim:
An elongate wooden post for embedment in the ground comprising: a first portion for embedment into the ground, said first portion having a longitudinal axis and a solid cross-sectional shape having a first cross-sectional area oriented perpendicular to said longitudinal axis; a second portion integrally formed with and extending from said first portion for extending along said longitudinal axis upwardly above the ground; at least one notch cut into said first at a predetermined location portion, said at least one notch comprising a predetermined concave arcuate shape extending radially inward a predetermined radial depth into said first portion to define a minimum cross-sectional area of said area of first portion, said minimum cross-sectional area being oriented perpendicular to said longitudinal axis and substantially smaller than said first cross-sectional area, interaction between said at least one notch and the ground creating a compressive interaction, variation in said predetermined radial depth enabling a post pull-out force to be selectively increased to a desired value resulting from increasing the compressive force interaction between said at least one notch and the ground wherein said desired value exceeds a pull-out force resulting from a shear force interaction between the post and the ground; and a protective cover formed from a non-perforated plastic heat-shrunk material covering the entirety of said first portion and an adjacent portion of said second portion to prevent deterioration of said wooden post, said material having a shrink ratio wherein said shrink ratio is equal to or greater than a ratio of said first cross-sectional area to said minimum cross-sectional area thereby enabling said cover to fully conform to the surface of said post and said at least one notch.