A Continuous Leaf Monitoring System for Precision Irrigation Management in Orchard Crops
Abstract
Studies have shown that measurement of plant water status (PWS) provides the key
information necessary to implement efficient irrigation management scheme in orchard and
vineyard crops. A pressure chamber is often used to measure PWS. However, this technique is
labor intensive, tedious and time-consuming. To address these issues, we developed a sensor suite
consisting of a thermal infrared (IR) sensor and relevant environmental parameters (ambient
temperature, photosynthetically active radiation (PAR), wind speed and relative humidity) and
tested it extensively in almond, walnut, and grape crops. The system was found to work well in all
three crops. However, this sensor suite was quite bulky and we noticed temporal drifts in the
calibration curve as the season progressed. To address these issues, we developed a continuous
leaf monitoring system that included same sensors as the sensor suite. We have deployed 22 such
leaf monitors in almond and walnut orchards in Nickels Soil Laboratory, Arbuckle, CA, USA and
interfaced them to a wireless mesh network so that data could be uploaded to the internet through
a gateway computer and accessed through the web. The system also included a controller capable
of actuating latching solenoid valves to manage precision irrigation in the orchard. Field data
collected from these experiments were used to calculate daily crop water stress index (CWSI). The
results showed that this system has the potential to be used as irrigation management tool as it
was able to provide daily CWSI values which followed similar pattern as the actual PWS values.
Keywords
References
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Details
Primary Language
English
Subjects
-
Journal Section
Research Article
Authors
Rajveer Dhıllon
This is me
Francisco Rojo
This is me
Jed Roach
This is me
Shrini Upadhyaya
This is me
Mike Delwıche
This is me
Publication Date
August 1, 2014
Submission Date
May 15, 2014
Acceptance Date
July 9, 2014
Published in Issue
Year 2014 Volume: 10 Number: 4