scholarly journals Within-Field Variability in Granular Matrix Sensor Data and its Implications for Irrigation Scheduling

2020 ◽  
Vol 36 (4) ◽  
pp. 437-449
Author(s):  
Tsz Him Lo ◽  
H C Pringle ◽  
Daran R Rudnick ◽  
Geng Bai ◽  
L Jason Krutz ◽  
...  

Highlights Within-field variability was larger for individual depths than for the profile average across multiple depths. Distributions of the profile average were approximately normal, with increasing variances as the soil was drying. Probability theory was applied to quantify the effect of sensor set number on irrigation scheduling. The benefit of additional sensors sets may decrease for longer irrigation cycles and for more heterogeneous fields. Abstract. Even when located within the same field, multiple units of the same soil moisture sensor rarely report identical values. Such within-field variability in soil moisture sensor data is caused by natural and manmade spatial heterogeneity and by inconsistencies in sensor construction and installation. To better describe this variability, daily soil water tension values from 14 to 23 sets of granular matrix sensors during the middle part of four soybean site-years in the Mississippi Delta were analyzed. The soil water tension data were found to follow approximately normal distributions, to exhibit moderately high temporal rank stability, and to show strong positive correlation between mean and variance. Based on these observations and the existing literature, a probabilistic conceptual framework was proposed for interpreting within-field variability in granular matrix sensor data. This framework was then applied to investigate the impact of sensor set number (i.e., number of replicates) and irrigation triggering threshold on the scheduling of single-day and multi-day irrigation cycles. If a producer’s primary goal of irrigation scheduling is to keep soil water adequate in a particular fraction of land on average, the potential benefit from increasing sensor set number may be smaller than traditionally expected. Improvement, expansion, and validation of this probabilistic framework are welcomed for developing a practical and robust approach to selecting the sensor set number and the irrigation triggering threshold for diverse soil moisture sensor types in diverse contexts. Keywords: Irrigation scheduling, Probability, Sensors, Soil moisture, Soil water tension, Variability, Watermark.

Author(s):  
A. Wahab ◽  
H. Talleyrand ◽  
M. A. Lugo-López

Grain and stover yields of RS 671 grain sorghum were measured at Barranquitas in an Oxisol and at Corozal in an Ultisol. Measurements were made of weather factors, soil moisture content and tension, plant growth, water deficits and rooting depths. At each site a plot was irrigated as often as necessary to maintain a soil water tension of less than 1 bar. Nonirrigated plots at Corozal were watered whenever necessary to prevent plants from wilting permanently. During a prolonged drought and at grain filling, sorghum extracted water in the Oxisol to a depth of 120 cm. Plants became water stressed after the soil water tension at a depth of 90 cm reached 15 bars. In the Ultisol, sorghum plants were unable to effectively extract available soil moisture at depths below 45 cm. Both plant growth and grain yield were greater in the Oxisol than in the Ultisol. The relative soil compaction of the Ultisol was greater than that of the Oxisol.


2007 ◽  
Vol 47 (2) ◽  
pp. 215 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. M. Pathan ◽  
L. Barton ◽  
T. D. Colmer

This study evaluated water application rates, leaching and quality of couch grass (Cynodon dactylon cv. Wintergreen) under a soil moisture sensor-controlled irrigation system, compared with plots under conventional irrigation scheduling as recommended for domestic lawns in Perth, Western Australia by the State’s water supplier. The cumulative volume of water applied during summer to the field plots of turfgrass with the sensor-controlled system was 25% less than that applied to plots with conventional irrigation scheduling. During 154 days over summer and autumn, about 4% of the applied water drained from lysimeters in sensor-controlled plots, and about 16% drained from lysimeters in plots with conventional irrigation scheduling. Even though losses of mineral nitrogen via leaching were extremely small (representing only 1.1% of the total nitrogen applied to conventionally irrigated plots), losses were significantly lower in the sensor-controlled plots. Total clippings produced were 18% lower in sensor-controlled plots. Turfgrass colour in sensor-controlled plots was reduced during summer, but colour remained acceptable under both treatments. The soil moisture sensor-controlled irrigation system enabled automatic implementation of irrigation events to match turfgrass water requirements.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sofia Melo Vasconcellos ◽  
Masato Kobiyama ◽  
Aline de Almeida Mota

Abstract. The objective of the present study was to determine the spatial behaviour of the Soil Water Index (SWI) by applying a distributed version of the Tank Model (D-Tank Model) to the Araponga river basin (5.26 ha) in southern Brazil and to verify its reliability through the comparison to soil moisture estimated with the measured water-tension values and the water retention curve. The study area has a monitoring system for rainfall, discharge (5-min interval), and soil-water tension (10-min interval). The simulation results showed that the D-Tank Model has a reliable performance. The correlation between SWI and HAND was reasonable (r = 0.6) meanwhile that between SWI and the Topographic Wetness Index was high (r = 0.88). The comparison between the spatially distributed values of the SWI and soil moisture confirmed the high potential of the SWI derived from the D-Tank Model to be applied for predictions related to hydrological and environmental sciences.


2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 1959-1965 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jitendra Kumar ◽  
Neelam Patel ◽  
T. B. S. Rajput

Soil moisture sensor is an instrument for quick measurements of soil moisture content in the crop root zone on real time basis. The main objective of this research was development and evaluation of an indigenous sensor for precise irrigation scheduling. The various parts of sensor developed were ceramic cup, acrylic pipe, level sensor, tee, reducer, gland, cork, and end cap. The designed system was successfully tested on okra crop and calibrated with frequency domain reflectometry (FDR) by three methods of irrigation, i.e. check basin, furrow and drip, respectively. The average depth of water depletion in modified tensiometer by these methods was 27 to 35 cm at 50% management allowable depletion (MAD) of field capacity. This depth was useful for the level sensor to be installed inside modified tensiometer for real time irrigation scheduling. The correlation coefficient (R2) between soil moisture content obtained from the developed sensor and FDR was 0.963. Sensor network was integrated with global system for mobile communication (GSM), short message service (SMS) and drip head work to develop an automated irrigation system. This would enable farmers to effectively monitor and control water application in the field by sending command through SMS and receiving pumping status through the mobile phone.


Author(s):  
Marcelo Dos Santos Targa ◽  
Emilson Pohl ◽  
Ana Aparecida da Silva Almeida

The objective of this study was to evaluate the water balance in a Red-Yellow Latosol covered by a regenerating rainforest for 30 years in the Una River Basin between April 2016 and March 2017. Field capacity (FC) and permanent wilting-point values (PWP) used to calculate the available water capacity (AWC) in the soil were determined by the soil moisture characteristic curve obtained in pots, which made it possible to determine the soil residual water content (g / g) from the measurement of water tension in 15 Watermark (TM) sensors installed at depths of 40, 60 and 120 cm. Precipitation during the period (1962 mm) was obtained from the automatic weather station located 300 m from the experimental area. Soil surface runoff was obtained from 5 collectors distributed in the experimental area. Precipitation was characterized by a maximum of 454 mm in January 2017 and no rain in July 2016. The actual evapotranspiration was 744 mm. There were 56 runoff events (SR) totaling 60 mm. The average soil water tension remained below 37 kPa in 67% of the studied period, a condition that kept the soil moisture content high. The soil water balance of the tropical forest area, up to 120 cm deep, kept soil water content near its maximum capacity (173 mm) 49% of the time and saturated 51% of the time, so that it generated deep drainage beyond 120 cm deep and 1023 mm deep.


Author(s):  
Meo Vincent Caya ◽  
Febus Reidj Cruz ◽  
Aljan Mark M. Alingasa ◽  
Justine Christopher A. Guinto ◽  
Mark Sandino S. Tongson ◽  
...  

2016 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
pp. 7
Author(s):  
Bartolomeu Felix Tangune ◽  
Geraldo Magela Pereira ◽  
Rovilson José de Souza ◽  
Rafael Frees Gatto

We evaluated the effect of different soil water tensions on the production of broccoli cultivated in a protected environment under drip irrigation in order to establish criteria for the adequate management of irrigation. A completely randomized block design was used, comprising six treatments and four replicates. The treatments included six soil water tensions (15, 30, 45, 60, 75 and 90 kPa). Soil water tension was monitored with granular matrix sensors installed at depths of 0.2 m (decision sensors) and 0.4 m (seepage control sensors). Total and marketable fresh weight of broccoli heads, average diameter of marketable heads, height of marketable heads, and total and marketable yield were greatest when the soil water tension at a depth of 0.2 m was 15 kPa, at which the mean values of the evaluated variables were 0.84 kg, 0.76 kg, 20.5 cm, 11.7 cm; 26.5 t ha?1, and 23.7 t ha?1, respectively. Treatments did not significantly affect efficiency of water use or height of marketable heads.


2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (No. 4) ◽  
pp. 195-199 ◽  
Author(s):  
Iftikhar Ahmed Saeed ◽  
Minjuan Wang ◽  
Yanzhao Ren ◽  
Qinglan Shi ◽  
Muhammad Hammad Malik ◽  
...  

Soil moisture (SM) varies greatly in the soil profile. We developed a low-cost sensor for SM monitoring at three vertical depths. The sensor function was based on dielectric theory to monitor SM. Three linear calibration models were established using different soils. The sensor for each depth showed acceptable statistics of validations. The linear fit coefficient of determination (R<sup>2</sup>) ranged from 0.95 to 0.99. Root mean square error (RMSE) ranged from 1.35 to 4.30. The sensor performed consistently for at least 4 months, and is suitable for continuous monitoring of in situ SM and irrigation scheduling.


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