Making Irrigation Automation Systems Easy:  4 Stages That Take Farms from Data to Results

Adding automated irrigation to the farm can seem overwhelming. When tasks have always been completed manually (or previous attempts at automation have failed), bringing automation to the table will be uncomfortable and might even feel scary.

Yet, you know that with the increasing costs of labor and other resources, there is a need to do things differently. You want to maximize inputs to achieve the greatest level of efficiency and improve plant health to increase yields.

Automated irrigation can be your ally in doing more with less and advancements in technology have made implementation and day-to-day use easier, more affordable and more robust than ever.  

When automation is introduced in a staged approach that works with existing systems, it allows for acceptance, adoption and appreciation before moving on to the next steps. At Verdi, we help growers consider where they are today to determine the stage of automation that makes sense for their operation.

Stage 1: Make data-driven decisions using sensors and trends

An automated irrigation system has a number of components. Each does a specific job to ensure optimal moisture levels and water use. But tracking these measures is essential to optimizing them. Implementing soil moisture sensors and water-tracking tools is often the best place to start when no automation exists.

Growers will benefit from collecting data through monitoring even if they aren’t ready for a full automation package. Soil moisture monitoring and tracking water use can save money and ensure better plant health.

Because farmers don’t have time to be inundated with data that comes from moisture sensors and water monitors – or they have “non-connected sensors” where a person is running out into the field to take readings – connectivity matters when it comes to efficiency.

Said simply - individual readings and data no-one knows how to process won't yield great results. Your sensors need to be connected and you have to be able to be able to easily interpret data so that you can use it.

A provider like Verdi offers tools to automatically collect and interpret the data, then provide quick bites of information that can actually be applied rather than creating a pile of data waiting for a human to analyze it and determine next steps.

Stage 2: Automate your irrigation valves and pumps.

Implementation of automated valve control comes once there is an understanding of what is happening with water in the fields, orchards or vineyards.

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Farming decisions can be made from data that comes from field-level information and these decisions include when to turn valves on and off. Valves and other components also need regular inspection. An automated irrigation system should be able to control the valves while also tracking potential damage, blocks or other failures.

This level of automation saves money. There is no longer a need for a person to turn valves on and off or manually inspect lines. It also removes human error, like over-watering because remote control valves ensure irrigation happens when desired and stops when needed.

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Stage 3: Unlock data-driven automated irrigation schedules.

Once sensors are sending data autonomously, valves are automated and lines are monitored, farmers can seize the ability to create data-driven irrigation schedules that make use of farmer knowledge and experience while also keeping accurate records. This frees up time and effort spent on day-to-day or moment-by-moment details involved in irrigation.

When irrigation management is turned over to software, the grower still has control over what happens in the field, but now can let go of controlling valves, checking for leaks and gathering data. The farmer’s role changes from basic duties to giving the controlling units specific tasks. Devices like Verdi’s Block Controller and Micro-Block Controller, will follow the instructions the farmer has established.

For example, this may include keeping soil between the calculated Field Capacity Point and the Onset of Stress Point. Or, it may be establishing variable irrigation patterns in different blocks because the grower knows that, for example, their younger plantings, with shallower root systems, need more frequent irrigation than older plantings with deeper roots.

Stage 4: Optimize crop uniformity for increased quality and crop yield

With automated control, farmers can now get even more specific in targeting variability that occurs in vineyards and orchards at levels more finite than by block. With Verdi’s Micro-Block Controller along irrigation lines, blocks can be divided into the zones that need more attention and control. Therefore, a small zone that has struggled can be the target of increases fertigation without wasting resources on the plants that don’t need additional growing support.

Bringing these zones up in quality and yield results in better value for fruit and overall healthier plants. By incorporating variability in irrigation and fertigation, resources are better targeted within the block, plants mature at the same time and costs of management are reduced.

Book a free consultation Verdi team member to find out more about how a staged automated irrigation approach can help.

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