Root Zone Sensors for Irrigation Management in Intensive Agriculture

Alberto Pardossi; Luca Incrocci; Giorgio Incrocci; Fernando Malorgio; Piero Battista; Laura Bacci; Bernardo Rapi; Paolo Marzialetti; Jochen Hemming; Jos Balendonck

Key words：Dielectric soil moisture sensors; irrigation efficiency; irrigation scheduling; smart water application technology; soil matric potential; tensiometer; wireless sensor network

Abstract：Crop irrigation uses more than 70% of the world’s water, and thus, improving irrigation efficiency is decisive to sustain the food demand from a fast-growing world population. This objective may be accomplished by cultivating more water-efficient crop species and/or through the application of efficient irrigation systems, which includes the implementation of a suitable method for precise scheduling. At the farm level, irrigation is generally scheduled based on the grower’s experience or on the determination of soil water balance (weather-based method). An alternative approach entails the measurement of soil water status. Expensive and sophisticated root zone sensors (RZS), such as neutron probes, are available for the use of soil and plant scientists, while cheap and practical devices are needed for irrigation management in commercial crops. The paper illustrates the main features of RZS’ (for both soil moisture and salinity) marketed for the irrigation industry and discusses how such sensors may be integrated in a wireless network for computer-controlled irrigation and used for innovative irrigation strategies, such as deficit or dual-water irrigation. The paper also consider the main results of recent or current research works conducted by the authors in Tuscany (Italy) on the irrigation management of container-grown ornamental plants, which is an important agricultural sector in Italy.

《传感器》刊登“集约式农业灌溉管理的根带传感器”

作者: Alberto Pardossi; Luca Incrocci; Giorgio Incrocci; Fernando Malorgio; Piero Battista; Laura Bacci; Bernardo Rapi; Paolo Marzialetti; Jochen Hemming; Jos Balendonck

刊物：传感器

刊登日期：2009年4月21号

编目：第9期

页码：2809-2835页

关键词：土壤水分电介质传感器；灌溉效率；灌溉制度；智能水利技术；土壤水势；张力计；无线传感网络

摘要：世界上超过70%的供水被用来进行灌溉，因此提高灌溉效率对满足快速增长世界人口的食品需求有决定性作用。这个目标可以通过培养更多高效的作物物种和/或通过高效应用的灌溉系统来实现，灌溉系统中包括实施一种适当的精确调度方法。在农场条件下，灌溉通常基于种植者的经验或者决定于土壤水分平衡（气候方法）。另一种方法需要测量土壤水分状况。昂贵和复杂的根带传感器(RZS)，例如中子探测器，可供土壤和植物科学家使用，然而需要廉价和实用设备在经济作物的灌溉管理中。本文阐述了RZS灌溉工业市场的主要特点（针对土壤水分和盐分），并探讨了这种传感器如何集成于一个电脑控制灌溉的无线网络，以用来创新灌溉制度，例如：赤字或双水灌溉。本文还考虑作者最近在托斯卡纳（意大利）进行的容器培育观赏植物灌溉制度研究工作主要成果，容器培育观赏植物在意大利是一个重要的农业产业。

原文链接：http://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/9/4/2809