METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR GRIPPING LUMPS IN HONEYCOMB PLATES, IN PARTICULAR FOR TRANSPLANTATION OF LUMP PLANTS IN HORTICULTURAL OR MARKET CROPS

摘要

P For the gripping of a clod in a cell 1 of a honeycomb seedling or breeding plate as used in horticultural or vegetable farming, a gripping head 3 is used comprising a support element 12 mounted mobile in vertical translation and carrying the upper ends of gripping elements 13. Thanks to the fact that the lower ends of the gripping elements are engaged in the upper part of the cell in the position close to said ends, the lower ends of the gripping elements penetrate into the upper part of the cell even when the latter is poorly centered with respect to the gripping elements, for example due to the play of the cellular plate on its carrier. The subsequent spacing of the lower ends of the gripping elements in the upper part of the cell, before the gripping elements are inserted into the root ball, then provides a centering of the cell of the plate relative to the gripping elements. / P