Planter boxes are filled with soil and plants, or potted plants are placed therein, to display same.

Background of the Invention Hitherto, planter boxes are usually secured adjacent windows via traditional fastening means. If the window frame is made of wood, screws or nails are used. If the window frame is made of bricks, a hole is first made in the bricks and then an anchor bolt is inserted into the hole to secure the planter box.

Some windows have an adjacent rail to which a planter box may be attached.

The applicant's Australian provisional patent application No. PQ8796 entitled"Window Planter Box Support Device"discloses a device for providing a support rail adjacent a window to which a planter box can be attached. A balcony rail is also suitable for this purpose.

Object of the Invention It is the object of the present invention to provide a planter box which can be easily and securely mounted to a support such as a support rail.

Summary of the Invention In a first aspect, the present invention provides a planter box having: an open top; a rear wall; at least one attachment member extending from the rear wall, each attachment member having a first portion facing the rear wall and spaced therefrom and a second portion connecting the first portion to the rear wall; and a plurality of holes in the first portion of the attachment member and the rear wall, wherein the attachment member is adapted for location over a support whereby one or more tie means can be inserted through the holes in the first portion of the attachment member and the rear wall with the support therebetween to secure the planter box to the support.

Preferably, the attachment member extends from a top edge of the rear wall. The planter box preferably includes a flange extending outwardly from a top edge of the front wall thereof. The front wall can be of any shape to provide the desired appearance. The

rear wall can be flat or curved. If the rear wall is curved, it preferably joins continuously with curved bottom and front walls of the box.

The planter box preferably includes an extension extending from a lower section of the rear wall in a direction away from the rear wall. Preferably, the extension is substantially perpendicular to the rear wall. The extension preferably extends from the rear wall to a distance substantially equal to the distance between the attachment member first portion and the rear wall. Alternatively, the extension can extend from the rear wall to a distance greater than the distance between the attachment member first portion and the rear wall. The extension is preferably integral with the planter box.

The planter box preferably further includes tie means, wherein the tie means are elongated ties having teeth formed on one end and a locking member at the other end, wherein the tie can be looped such that the locking member receives the toothed end and engages the teeth to automatically lock the tie in a desired loop diameter.

In one preferred form, the attachment member is adapted for location over a round cross section support rail. In this embodiment, the attachment member first portion is preferably parallel to the rear wall and extends at least halfway down the height of the rear wall. Preferably, the first portion is spaced from the rear wall by a distance slightly larger than the diameter of the support rail. The attachment member is preferably of a flexible material such that the same can be flexed toward the rear wall when the tie means is used to secure the planter box.

Alternatively, the first portion of the attachment means can include a first section adjacent the second portion, a second section adjacent the first section, and a third section adjacent the second section which is closer to the rear wall than the first section. The first section of the first portion is preferably spaced from the rear wall by a distance slightly larger than the diameter of the support rail. In one form, the second section is curved. In another form, the second section is substantially flat.

In the above embodiments, the attachment member second portion is preferably upwardly convex.

In an alternative form, the attachment member is adapted for location over a square cross section support rail. In this embodiment, the second portion preferably extends perpendicularly and away from the rear wall and the first portion extends perpendicularly and downwardly from the second portion. The first portion preferably comprises spaced parallel first and second walls which are parallel to the rear wall, the first wall being closer to the rear wall than the second wall, and wherein the attachment holes are formed

in the first wall. The first portion is preferably spaced from the rear wall by a distance slightly larger than the width of the support rail.

In another alternative form, the attachment member is adapted for attachment to a support adaptor, the support adaptor having a downwardly facing channel for engaging a support rail and at least one upwardly facing channel adjacent the downwardly facing channel, wherein the attachment member is adapted to be disposed over at least one external wall of the adaptor which defines the upwardly facing channel, the external wall having a plurality of holes for the tie means.

In an alternative embodiment, the length of the second portion is adjustable such that the distance between the rear wall and the first portion can be adjusted. For example, the second portion can include a first part attached to the rear wall and a second part attached to the first portion, the first and second parts having a plurality of adjustment holes such that locking means can be inserted through aligned holes of the first and second parts to fix the distance between the rear wall and the first portion. A similar modification can be made to the downwardly facing channel of the support adaptor such that the width of the downwardly facing channel can be adjusted to suit differently dimensioned support rails. For example, the downwardly facing channel can include a first part attached to a first upwardly facing channel and a second part attached to a second upwardly facing channel, with the first and second parts having spaced adjustment holes.

The present invention also provides two planter boxes according to the above, wherein the second portions of the planter boxes are attached to each other and the first portion of each planter box is defined by the rear wall of the other of said planter boxes.

Preferably, the distance between the rear walls of the planter boxes is adjustable via having a plurality of adjustment holes in the second portion of each planter box, locking means being insertable through aligned holes of the second portions to fix the distance between the rear walls of the planter boxes.

The attachment member is preferably formed integrally with the planter box. The planter box is preferably made from high density plastics, fiber glass or aluminium.

In another aspect, the present invention provides a method of attaching a planter box according to any one of the above embodiments to a support, the method comprising: locating the attachment member over the support; and inserting a tie means through the securement holes with the support therebetween to thereby secure the planter box to the support.

The support can be a round cross section or square cross section support rail.

Alternatively, the support can be a support adaptor having a downwardly facing channel and at least one upwardly facing channel adjacent the downwardly facing channel, wherein the attachment member is disposed over at least one external wall of the adaptor which defines the upwardly facing channel, the external wall having a plurality of holes for the tie means, the planter box being secured to the external wall.

Brief Description of the Drawings Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of examples only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a planter box according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 2 is an end view of the embodiment of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is an end view of a planter box according to an alternative embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 4 is an end view of a planter box according to another alternative embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 5 is an end view of a planter box according to another alternative embodiment of the present invention; Figs. 6 (a) to (e) are perspective views of differently shaped planter boxes according to the present invention; Fig. 7 is a perspective view of a multiple planter box adaptor; Figs. 8 (a) is a top view of a grate for a planter box according to the present invention; Figs. 8 (b) is a cross-sectional view of a planter box having the grate of Fig. 8 (a); Fig. 8 (c) is a cross-sectional view of a planter box according to another alternative embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 9 is a cross-sectional view of a planter box according to another alternative embodiment of the present invention; and Fig. 10 is a cross-sectional view of two planter boxes attached together according to another alternative embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiments Figs. 1 and 2 show a planter box 10 in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention suitable for location adjacent a support, such as a window or

balcony rail. The box 10 has an open top 12, a rear wall 14, a front wall 16, side walls 18 and a bottom 20. The box 10 has an integrally formed attachment member 22 which extends from a top edge 15 of the rear wall 14. The attachment member 22 has a first portion 24 parallel to and spaced from the rear wall 14 and a second portion 26 connecting the first portion 24 to the rear wall 14. The second portion 26 is upwardly convex to accommodate a round cross section rail 30 to which the planter box 10 is to be attached. The first portion 24 extends at least halfway down the height of the rear wall to assist in ensuring that the box 10 does not slip from the rail 30 during attachment thereof.

The box 10 also includes a number of securement holes 28 in the first portion 24 and the rear wall 14 which are located near the side walls 18. The box 10 also includes a flange 29 extending outwardly from a top edge 17 of the front wall 16 for handling of the box 10.

The first portion 24 is spaced from the rear wall 14 by a distance slightly larger than the diameter of the rail 30. The rail 30 is preferably the"Window Planter Box Support Device" (also called"Macattach System") that is the subject of the applicant's Australian provisional patent application No. PQ8796 which is designed to be used in conjunction with the box 10. It will be appreciated however that the box 10 can alternatively be attached to a rail adjacent a window (not shown) or a rail which forms part of a balcony.

To attach the planter box 10 to the rail 30, the attachment member 22 is located over the rail 30 and ties 32 are inserted through the securement holes 28 in the first portion 24 and the rear wall 14 with the rail 30 therebetween. The ties 32 can be"zip ties" or"cable ties", which are elongated ties having teeth formed on one end and a locking member at the other end. The ties can be looped such that the locking member receives the toothed end and engages the teeth to automatically lock the ties in a desired loop diameter. After locking the ties 32 into position, excess tie material can be trimmed off.

The ties 32 are desirably transparent to blend with the colour of the planter box 10 and surroundings.

In a preferred form, the attachment member 22 is flexible so it can be flexed toward the rear wall 14 as indicated by arrow 34 (see Fig. 2) when the ties 32 are used to secure the planter box 10. This assists in securing the box 10 to the rail 30. Suitable materials for the planter box 10 include high density plastics, fiber glass and aluminium.

When the box 10 is made from plastics or fiber glass, the box 10 (including attachment member 22) is moulded as a single piece. When the box 10 is made from aluminium, the box 10 (including attachment member 22) is cut as a blank and folded into shape.

The present invention thus provides a planter box which can be easily and securely mounted to a support, such as a support rail.

In an alternative embodiment shown in fig. 3, the first portion 24 of the engagement means 22 includes a first section 36 adjacent the second portion 26, a second curved section 38 adjacent the first section 36, and a third section 40 adjacent the second section 38 which is closer to the rear wall 14 than the first section 36. Another alternative embodiment is shown in fig. 4 which is similar to the embodiment of fig. 3, except the second section 38 is substantially flat rather than curved. In these embodiments, the first portion 24 is flexed away form the rear wall 14 when disposing the attachment member 22 over the rail 30. Shaping the first portion 24 in these embodiments as such assists in securing the box 10 to the rail 30 Fig. 5 shows a further alternative embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, planter box 10 has an extension 42 extending from a lower section 19 of the rear wall 14. The extension 42 extends perpendicularly to and away from the rear wall 14 to a distance substantially equal to the distance between the attachment member first portion 24 and the rear wall 14. The extension 42 is formed integrally with the planter box 10, by bending the sheet 44 forming the box 10 onto itself at 46. The sheet is then bent upwardly to form the rear wall and then bent rearwardly, downwardly and then onto itself again to form the first portion 24 of the attachment member 22. Thus, in this embodiment, the first portion 24 includes a front wall 24a and a rear wall 24b spaced by a cavity 25. The zip ties 32 can be looped around holes formed in the front wall 24a such that they are within the cavity 25 and are hidden and protected as shown in Fig. 5, or they can extend through holes in the front wall 24a and looped around holes (not shown) formed in the rear wall 24b. In this embodiment, the extension 42 can engage a structure, such as a wall, adjacent the rail 30a to which the planter box is to be attached to assist in maintaining the box 10 in the substantially upright position in use. The first and second sections 24 and 26 in this embodiment also form a square cross-section with the rear wall 14. The box 10 of this embodiment is preferably used with a correspondingly shaped and sized square cross-section rail 30a, which will also assist in preventing rotation of the box 10.

In an alternative embodiment (not shown), the extension extends from the rear wall to a distance greater than the distance between the attachment member first portion and the rear wall. In this embodiment, the longer extension can engage a structure which is offset rearwardly relative to the support rail to which the planter box is attached. In

other embodiments, the extension can also be trimmed to the desired length if it is longer than required.

Figs. 6 (a) to (e) are perspective views of differently shaped planter boxes according to the present invention. It can be seen that the front wall of the planter box can be of any shape to provide the desired appearance. The rear wall can also be curved as shown in Fig. 6 (e). In this embodiment, the rear wall joins continuously with curved bottom and front walls of the box. Similarly shaped or differently shaped planter boxes can be used side by side to obtain the desired appearance.

Fig. 7 is a perspective view of a multiple planter box support adaptor 50. The support adaptor 50 is shaped to include a downwardly facing channel 52 and two upwardly facing channels 54 disposed on either side of the channel 52. The upwardly facing channels 54 include an internal wall 53 and an external wall 55. The downwardly facing channel 52 can be disposed over a support rail, such as the rail 30 or 30a. The attachment member 22 of a planter box 10 can then be disposed over the external wall 55 of an upwardly facing channel 54, such that at least two planter boxes 10 can be secured to the rail 30 or 30a, one on each side thereof via the adaptor 50. The adaptor 50 has corresponding securement holes 56 formed in the internal and external walls 53,55 for securing the planter boxes 10 thereto with zip ties. The adaptor 50 can be formed longer than shown such that it can receive more than one planter box 10 on each side thereof.

The adaptor 50 can be formed from the same materials as the planter box 10.

In another embodiment of the support adaptor (not shown), the adaptor only includes a single upwardly facing channel and is used to space the planter box from the rail.

Figs. 8 (a) is a top view of a grate 60 for the planter box 10. The grate 60 includes a number of slots 62 spaced therealong and six legs 64 (fig. 8 (b)) at the corners thereof and at midportions of the sides thereof. The grate 60 is inserted into the planter box 10, as shown in Fig. 8 (b). The grate 60 is spaced from the box bottom wall 20 via the legs 64. The box 10 also includes drainage holes 66 in the side walls 18. The grid enables water to be retained in the bottom of the planter box 10 for watering of plants.

The drainage holes 66 allows for drainage of excess water from the planter box 10 to avoid overwatering. The grate 60 can be shaped for insertion into any embodiment of the planter boxes described above.

Fig. 8 (c) is a cross-sectional view of a planter box according to another alternative embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the planter box is made of rigid steel or plastic mesh. The inside surface of the planter box is lined with

very fine steel mesh or wire, plastic gauze or plastic or foil liner 70. At the bottom of the planter box, a layer of river pebbles or scoria 72 is placed, on top of which sits a very fine steel or wire or plastic gauze 74 upon which the soil would sit. Water will be contained within the layer of river pebbles or scoria. Water saving crystals can also be disposed throughout the soil to assist in the storage of water.

Fig. 9 is a cross-sectional view of a planter box 10 according to another alternative embodiment of the present invention. In this planter box 10, the length of the second portion 26 is adjustable such that the distance between the rear wall 14 and the first portion 24 can be adjusted. The second portion 26 includes a first part 26a attached to the rear wall 14 and a second part 26b attached to the first portion 24. The first and second parts 26a and 26b have a plurality of spaced adjustment holes 76. Locking means, for example bolts 78 and wing nuts 80, can then be inserted through any two aligned holes 76 of the first and second parts 26a, 26b to fix the distance between the rear wall 14 and the first portion 24. Thus, this planter box 10 can be adjusted for attachment to differently dimensioned support rails or supports.

Fig. 10 is a cross-sectional view of two planter boxes lOa and lOb attached together according to another alternative embodiment of the present invention. The second portions 26 of the planter boxes 10a, 10b are attached to each other and the first portion 24 of each planter box 10a, 10b is defined by the rear wall 14 of the other of said planter boxes 10a, 10b. The second portions 26 have a plurality of spaced adjustment holes 76, such that the second portions 26 can be adjustably attached to each other.

Locking means, such as bolts 78 and wing nuts 80, can then be inserted through aligned holes 76 of the second portions 26 to fix the distance between the rear walls 14 of the planter boxes 1 Oa, 1 Ob. Thus, the two planter boxes 1 Oa, 1 Ob can be attached to both sides of a support rail. Also, the distance between the rear walls 14 of the planter boxes 10a, 1 Ob can be adjusted such that they can be attached to differently dimensioned support rails. In an alternative embodiment (not shown), the second portions 26 can be integrally formed. Although the distance between the rear walls in such an embodiment is fixed, it is possible to form the two planter boxes from a single sheet of material.

Although preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described it will be apparent to persons skilled in the art that the invention may be embodied in other forms or that modifications can be made to the above embodiments.