Water & Nutrient Management:
Soil Moisture-Based Irrigation Systems
Application of the System
Several tips are given in this video on sensor installation in different soil types as well as how to position sensors in turfgrass.
In rocky soils, extra care must be taken to be sure that air gaps do not exist around the sensor after installation.
The soil moisture threshold should be set near field capacity for the irrigated soil. Salinity, for example from fertigation, can impact soil moisture sensor performance.
Irrigation water savings of 30-50% or higher using soil moisture sensor irrigation control has been shown in research.
Presenters
Dr. Rafael Muñoz-Carpena specializes in surface, vadose, zone and groundwater hydrology; water quality modeling; water conservation in irrigaton system design and operation.
Dr. Michael D. Dukes specializes in irrigation and drainage engineering; water quantity and quality issues; crop consumptive use; Best Management Practices to reduce nonpoint source pollution.
This page was last updated on April 25, 2013.
Videos
- Welcome and Outline of Contents
- Timed Irrigation
- Bypass Timer Irrigation
- On-Demand Irrigation
- Irrigation Components
- Soil Moisture Sensors
- Irrigation Sensor Placement
- Application of the System
- Irrigation Sensor Families
- Neutron Probe
- Time Domain Reflectometry
- Capacitance Probe
- Combined Probe
- Frequency Domain Reflectometry (FDR)
- Amplitude Domain Reflectometry
- Phase Transmission
- Time Domain Transmission
- Tensiometer
- Gypsum Block
- Granular Matrix Sensors (GMS)
- Heat Dissipation
- Soil Psychrometer
