Plant growth medium

Claim 1

A PLANT GROWTH MEDIUM COMPRISING A STABLE WATERINSOLUBLE OPEN-CELLED FOAMED POLYMER CONTAINING AND INTIMATELY IMBEDDED THEREIN PLANT NUTRIENTS IN CHEMICAL COMBINATION WITH WATER-INSOLUBLE SYNTHETIC ION EXCHANGE RESINS, SAID ION EXCHANGE RESINS HAVING IONS OF PLANT MACRO- AND MICRONUTRIENTS EXCHANGED THEREON AND WHEREIN SAID NUTRIENTS ARE SUPPLIED IN AMOUNTS OF FROM 1 TO 15 PERCENT BY VOLUME OF THE ION EXCHANGE RESIN TO THE FINISHED FOAM AND TO PROVIDE APPROXIMATELY 1:1 RATIO IN MILLIEQUIVALENTS OF TOTAL CATIONS AND ANIONS AND WHERE THE COMPONENT MACRONUTRIENT CATIONS ARE SUPPLIED IN FROM 1-60 MILLIEQUIVALENT PERCENT AS K-CATION EXCHANGE RESIN, 1-90 MILLIEQUIVALENT PERCENT AS CA-CATION EXCHANGE RESIN, AND 1-60 MILLIEQUIVALENT PERCENT AS MG-CATION EXCHANGE RESIN, AND THE COMPONENT MACRONUTRIENT ANIONS ARE SUPPLIED IN FROM 1-60 MILLIEQUIVALENT PERCENT AS NO3-ANION EXCHANGE RESIN, 1-90 MILLIEQUIVALENT PERCENT AS SO4-ANION EXCHANGE RESIN AND 1-75 MILLIEQUIVALENT PERCENT AS ORTHOPHOSPHATE-ANION EXCHANGE RESIN, AND THE MICRONUTRIENTS ARE SUPPLIED IN AN AMOUNT OF FROM 0.01 TO 1.0 PERCENT BY WEIGHT OF THE TOTAL OF MACRO-AND MICRONUTRIENT CHARGED ION EXCHANGE RESINS EMPLOYED IN A MIXTURE OF 1-60 MILLIEQUIVALENT PERCENT FE-CATION EXCHANGE RESIN, 1-30 MILLIEQUIVALENT PERCENT MN-CATION EXCHANGE RESIN, 1-5 MILLIEQUIVALENT PERCENT CU-CATION EXCHANGE RESIN, 1-5 MILLIEQUIVALENT PERCENT ZN-CATION EXCHANGE RESIN, 1-30 MILLIEQUIVALENT PERCENT B4O7-ANION EXCHANGE RESIN AND 1-30 MILLI-EQUIVALENT PERCENT MOO4-ANION EXCHANGE RESIN.