Irrigation and Fertilizer Controller System

Many people still believe that irrigation automation is just a programmable timer, but in realityIrrigation and fertilization controller systemrequires taking into account dozens of parameters: from soil electrical conductivity to the correlation between air temperature and the rate of NPK absorption.

Design errors and why they occur

In 2022, we encountered an overconsumption of fertilizers by 23% in a greenhouse complex near Krasnodar - the problem turned out to be in the calibration of EC sensors. The engineers relied on laboratory values, but did not take into account that at +35°C the electrical conductivity of the solution changes nonlinearly.

It is often forgotten thatirrigation controller systemmust compensate for the inertia of the soil. In loams, we sometimes add predictive watering 40 minutes before the scheduled application of fertilizers - otherwise the solution front simply does not have time to form.

The critical point is protocol compatibility. Once we had to redo the control cabinet because the Modbus modules did not see data from Russian humidity sensors. Now we always test a bunch of equipment before installation.

Real integration cases

ForShandong Linyao Intelligent Agriculture Technology Co.,LtdWe adapted Chinese controllers to Russian standards - we had to reflash the PLC to operate at -25°C. Their equipment performed well in the smart greenhouse project in Tatarstan.

The website https://www.lyzhihuinongye.ru has technical reports on the operation of filters with high-hardness water - we used this data when designing a system for vineyards in Crimea. The documentation on cascade valve control was particularly valuable.

Last month we tested their new controller model with real-time pH adjustment. So far it works stably only at EC up to 3.5 mS/cm - it’s enough for tomatoes, but for hydroponics of salads, improvements are already needed.

Automation pitfalls

The most unobvious thing is the interaction betweenirrigation systemand heating system. In one of the winter greenhouses, the top layer of the substrate dried out because the irrigation controller did not receive data on the operation of the heat guns.

A small detail that cost us two weeks of downtime: the Chinese connectors for soil moisture sensors did not maintain contact during vibrations from the fans. I had to solder it onto German terminals - a typical case for assembling from international components.

Dosing microelements is a separate headache. Chelated forms of iron can precipitate when simultaneously supplied with phosphorus - this is still decided by empirical selection of the application sequence.

Practical observations on setup

Forfertilizationin open ground, we abandoned rigid schedules - now we use adaptive algorithms based on precipitation forecasts. Reduced nitrogen leaching by 17% compared to standard programs.

An interesting effect was noticed when working with the company Shandong Lingyao LLC - their frequency converters for pumps make it possible to more accurately maintain pressure in the line, but require precise tuning of PID controllers. Without a TAU specialist, you can get self-oscillations of the system.

An important nuance: when switching to drip irrigation, many do not take into account thatirrigation controllershould compensate for clogged emitters - we set up a gradual increase in watering time by 2-3% per week.

Prospects and limitations

We are currently testing the integration of drone data withcontroller system— so far it is possible to automatically adjust irrigation only for crops with a pronounced NDVI index. For perennial grasses, accuracy is still lacking.

Equipment from https://www.lyzhihuinongye.ru performs well in turnkey projects. — their engineers competently design the piping of mixing tanks, but sometimes play it safe with materials (stainless steel instead of polypropylene in temperate climates).

The main challenge is to make the systems accessible to small farms. It may be worth developing simplified versions of controllers without redundant functions - but then the very idea of ​​precision farming is lost.