Natural seedling guard a Fieldays innovation

Wintec journalism student Arnie Larsen with the innovation award for NaturGuard. Photo / Lucas Tainui

An innovative seedling guard that breaks down over two years has won a highly commended in a Fieldays innovation award.

NaturGuard is made from natural products and is biodegradable. Advance Landscape Systems came up with the idea after a team member noticed plants suffocating in a plastic sleeve.

The company undertook research to find a better, more sustainable way of getting plants growing without someone needing to remove the plastic sleeves. Sales manager Arnie Larsen said the goal is to get rid of plastic.

"It breaks down as the plants grow. It's made of a coconut husk, a waste product that they can't do anything else with and it has a latex coating which compresses it together."
NaturGuard comes in two sizes, with a mat for the bottom.

It is designed to protect the plant from weeds, small animals and, being a plant-based product, absorbs carbon dioxide from the atmosphere to further lower its carbon footprint.
The cost of a unit is slightly more than a plastic sleeve, with the mat and sleeve combo starting at $1.84 for the smaller size and $2.84 for the larger.

"It offsets the extra cost against the plastic shelter by not having to go into the field and take the plastic off," Larsen says.

The product has been so well received that the company is struggling to keep up with the demand from contractors.

"We've had contractors requesting in excess of 7000-10,000 units at a time and some smaller lifestyle owners wanting 200-300 units."