Sentek are the world leaders in soil moisture monitoring. Some of these robust systems have been in place in TGS clients’ fields for over 10 years. The systems are extremely flexible with variations available in sensor number, sensor type, sensor height, cable or remote data collection. The systems work with any irrigation system.

Soil moisture monitoring is critical to optimum production and plant health in any crop. The EnviroScan® system allows us to plot plant water use down to minutes if required. We can then

determine at what soil moisture level the plant extracts maximum moisture representing full growth potential. When water extraction declines the plant is under stress, which can be seen in the data well before visual symptoms appear. Leaching losses from overfull profiles can also be detected and avoided, eliminating fertiliser wastage and environmental concerns.

Lesser know is the link between soil moisture and plant health. Calcium is an ion with low phloem mobility, meaning the plant cannot move it around in the sap. A weakening of the transpiration stream will therefore result in plants producing leaves and roots low in calcium and susceptible to fungal and nematode attack.

Download options include, desktop cables, laptop cables, CDMA and GSM modems. The EnviroScan® software is highly flexible offering many options for interpretive charts. TGS offers Farmbis subsidized EnviroScan software training courses.

Above is a separate curve showing moisture levels at 20 cm and 50cm depth. Sharp  falls represent drainage. Diurnal fluctuation increasing in the hotter part of the day indicate plant water use.

A summed curve which is individual sensors at various heights combined. Stress points that we need to hold the profile above and full points which should not be exceeded can be set on the curve following collections of sufficient data.