Irrigas - A new simple soil moisture sensor for irrigation scheduling

There are many different methods of irrigation scheduling, but often they are difficult and expensive. The new Irrigas soil moisture sensor, developed at Embrapa Vegetables National Research Center (Brazil) as an irrigation controlling system, has been tested in the Research Institute Geisenheim. Based on the results obtained from trials in greenhouse and open-air observations the new irrigation controlling system is considered as simple, inexpensive and effective. Tests of the Irrigas (R) indicated the need for starting irrigation at about -25 kPa, measured by tensiometer. Irrigas is an easy method of determining when the irrigation is required, even for farmers who are not able to read and write. If it can be relatively inexpensive, the device can be a promising irrigation-scheduling tool for poor and illiterate farmers. For commercial purposes, where crop plants at different stages of development require different amounts and frequencies of irrigation, the question of an apparatus with automatic and semi-automatic operation is worth considering. Tomato plants, which were grown on plots under irrigation scheduled with a tensiometer or Irrigas had similar height, leaf, flower, and fruit number.