Appeal No. 95-0972 Page 17
Application No. 07/650,453
In applying the above-noted test for obviousness, we
reach the conclusion that it would have been obvious to one of
ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made
to plant poplar or willow tree stem cuttings as taught by
Organic Gardening, "Taking Hardwood Cuttings" in an area along
a river bed so that the trees act as filter strips to remove
pollutants as suggested by the prior art shown in Figure 5 of
the application.6
In addition to the above-noted argument regarding the
application of Successful Farming, "Dollars from Filter
Strips," as prior art, the appellant argues (brief, p. 9) that
the limitation of claim 22 of "planting tree stems from the
Salicaceae family located to provide nutrient and contaminant
uptake interaction" is not suggested by the applied prior art.
We do not agree. As set forth above, Organic Gardening,
6Thus, we regard the examiner's application of the
teachings of the Abstract of "Nitrogen Fixing Research
Reports" to be mere surplusage. The examiner relied on
Abstract of "Nitrogen Fixing Research Reports" for teaching
planting stems 1.5-2.0 meters long (answer, p. 8). However,
this feature is not recited in claims 22 and 24.
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