Journal of Scientific Research and Reports

Volume 30, Issue 4, Page 153-161, 2024; Article no.JSRR.113539

ISSN: 2320-0227

Optimizing Water Use for Okra

Cultivation: A Soil Moisture Sensor-
Based Approach
Jeet Raj a++*, Dhiraj Khalkho a#, M. P. Tripathi b†
and Yatnesh Bisen c‡
a Department of Soil and Water Engineering, SVCAET, FAE IGKV Raipur, India.
b Department of Soil and Water Engineering, BRSM, FAE IGKV Raipur, India.
c Dr. Panjabrao Deshmukh Krishi Vidyapeeth, Akola, Maharashtra, India.

Authors’ contributions

This work was carried out in collaboration among all authors. All authors read and approved the final
manuscript.

Article Information
DOI: 10.9734/JSRR/2024/v30i41900

Open Peer Review History:

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Received: 24/12/2023
Accepted: 26/02/2024
Original Research Article
Published: 01/03/2024

ABSTRACT

Indian agriculture relies on monsoons, a water source notorious for its unreliability. To ensure
sustainable production and productivity, the judicious and timely utilization of available water
becomes imperative, emphasizing the need to maximize soil moisture while minimizing water
losses. Drip irrigation stands out as a widely adopted and highly regarded water-conserving
technology. The potential of an automated drip system becomes evident as it holds the promise of
blessing farmers with higher yields despite the constraints of limited irrigation water. The necessity
for a soil moisture-based drip irrigation system becomes apparent, tailored to the specific moisture
and soil types of individual farms. A low-cost soil moisture sensor-based automated drip irrigation
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________
++
Senior Research Fellow;
#
Professor;
†
Professor and Dean;
‡
Assistant Professor;
*Corresponding author: E-mail: [email protected];

J. Sci. Res. Rep., vol. 30, no. 4, pp. 153-161, 2024

 Raj et al.; J. Sci. Res. Rep., vol. 30, no. 4, pp. 153-161, 2024; Article no.JSRR.113539

system emerges as the research objective, aiming to enhance efficiency and resource
management. Gravity, coupled with drip irrigation, emerges as the most suitable method. The
system operates in a closed-loop fashion, continuously monitoring and adjusting based on soil
moisture content and the crop's water requirements. In the agricultural landscape of Chhattisgarh,
where the total cultivable land spans 4.8 million hectares, with 0.51 million hectares dedicated to
cultivating okra crops, the Crop Water Requirement (CWR) for okra varies from 30 cm to 55 cm,
influenced by factors such as variety and crop seasons. The research yields insightful results,
showcasing maximum water use efficiency in the sensor-based treatment at 46.76 kg/ha/mm, while
the control irrigation exhibits a minimum efficiency of 26.66 kg/ha/mm.

Keywords: Sensor; soil moisture; okra; automation; drip irrigation.

1. INTRODUCTION higher productivity with greater resource-use

efficiency by applying water as per the temporal
Freshwater is a vital resource for both ecosystem and in-season variability. The soil moisture
health and human survival, and it is the natural sensor-based irrigation system facilitates
resource that is the most extracted at the global aggregation of data on soil and plant conditions
level. Excessive freshwater consumption can be and in conjunction with decision support
responsible for a scarcity in the circulation rate, advisories and control systems, applies real-time
which occurs when the freshwater demand irrigation based on crop need.
exceeds its availability [1].
2. MATERIALS AND METHODS
Agricultural production plays a key role in
guaranteeing food security, but consumes a The experiment took place in the experimental
large amount of freshwater resources [2]. plot of the Department of Soil and Water
Globally, agricultural irrigation accounts for Engineering at SV College of Agricultural
∼70% of the total freshwater withdrawal and 80– Engineering and Technology & Research
90% of human water consumption [3]. Owing to Station, Faculty of Agricultural Engineering, IGKV
population growth, richer diets and biofuel use Raipur (C.G.). The experiment's layout is
increase, food demands are projected to depicted in Fig. 1. It was conducted during the
increase substantially in the coming decades [4]. summer season of 2018, aiming to assess the
impact of a Sensor-based Drip Irrigation System
The potential solution lies in the availability of (Sensor-based treatment) on crop yield
sufficient water resources. With ample water, the attributing characters. The sensor was
intensity of cultivation could increase by 300% or strategically placed at depths of 5 cm, 10 cm,
more. Vast areas of waste or fallow lands could and 20 cm during the initial, vegetative, and
be brought under cultivation, addressing the maturity stages of crop growth, respectively. The
pressing issue of food shortages for the growing probe's wire lengths were set at 18 m, 15m, 12
global population. Jackson (1982) reported that m, 10 m, and 4 m. The gravity-fed drip irrigation
the ideal irrigation scheduling technique should system operated under the control of the sensor
use the plant as the indicator of the plant stress, system. This system included a 750-liter
since the plant response both the aerial and soil overhead tank connected to an electrical pump,
environments [5]. both managed by the sensor system. The drip
irrigation setup featured 20 m-long drip tubing,
To address the challenges of achieving higher positioned at a 50 cm distance with inline
productivity and resource-use efficiency, a emitters at 30 cm intervals. Throughout the
sensor-based irrigation system has been treatment, irrigation levels in each lateral were
introduced. This system adapts to temporal and regulated using lateral valves, and the water
in-season variability, aggregating data on soil pressure was monitored at 0.25 kg cm-2.
and plant conditions. In collaboration with
decision support advisories and control systems, The climate of Chhattisgarh is tropical. It is hot
it enables real-time irrigation based on the and humid because of its proximity to the Tropic
specific needs of the crops. of Cancer and its dependence on the monsoons
for rains. The maximum temperature during the
A sensor-based irrigation system has been experiment varied between 30.6oC to 45.5oC
demonstrated to address the challenges of from 5 February 2018 to 10 May 2018 whereas,

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the minimum temperature varied between 13.6oC generated and reflected within the head and
to 31oC. The maximum rainfall during the period output is calculated based on reflections per
of the experiment was 10 mm. The average second (frequency), which depends upon the
maximum relative humidity for different months dielectric permittivity of the medium surrounding
varied from 11% to 91 % while monthly average the probe.
minimum relative humidity varied between 5 to
55 %. The average values of open pan 2.2 Gravimetric Method
evaporation ranged from 2.3 to 4.6 mm, whereas
average sunshine values varied from 3.5 to 11.2 To measure soil moisture content by the
hours, maximum wind velocity during crop period gravimetric method, a subsample of a fresh,
was 9.8 km h-1 and the minimum was recorded sieved composite sample or a fresh soil core is
1.2 km h-1 [6]. weighed, oven dried until there is no further mass
loss, and then reweighted. The moisture content
2.1 TDR (Time Domain Reflectometry) is expressed as mass of water per mass of dry
soil.
TDR technology delivers very accurate
determination of soil moisture content. Data can 2.3 Soil Moisture Based Sensor System
be read from a handheld unit, logged or sent via
a telemetry network to a PC for analysis. TDR 2.3.1 Displays
sensors that measured the variation of soil water
content for estimation using water balance Single display 0.56" RED LED display was used
consisted of two parallel rods attached at the to show output of sensor system. An LED display
probe head (300 mm long × 3.2 mm diameter) was a flat panel display, which uses an array of
with 32 mm spacing. Voltage impulses are light-emitting diodes as pixels for a video display.

Fig. 1. Layout of Experiment Field

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2.3.2 Miniature circuit breakers – MCBs moisture content (VMC). VMC (%) is the product
of bulk density and gravimetric moisture content
Miniature circuit breakers protect installations (% wet basis).
against overload and short-circuit, warranting
reliability and safety for operations. For this 2.5 Calibration of Soil Moisture Sensors
project I used two different tripping mechanisms,
the delayed thermal tripping mechanism for Firstly, a 100-gm sample of dry soil was taken,
overload protection and the magnetic tripping and 20 gm of water (an amount equal to field
mechanism for short circuit protection. capacity) was added to it. After allowing it to
stand for one hour, the moisture content of the
2.3.3 Motor starter sample was measured using Alfa-mart and TDR-
sensor. Subsequently, the moisture content was
The MS132-32 manual motor starter. This device measured using the gravimetric method. The
was used to manually switch ON and OFF measured moisture content was 27% (VMC),
motors and to protect them reliably and without which is equal to the field capacity of the soil.
the need for a fuse from short-circuits, overload Our sensor system was calibrated using
and phase failures. CoDeSys software. The probe was inserted into
the same prepared sample. During this time, the
2.3.4 Control panels moisture content was set between 0% to 100%
using the scaling on the system software. The
The CP620 HMI control panels offer a wide same process was repeated with 10 different soil
range of features and functionalities for samples, validating the sensor system with the
maximum operability. ABB Control Panels are help of these readings.
distinguished by their robustness and easy
usability, providing all the relevant information Table 1. Experimental details
from production plants and machines at a single
touch. Crop Okra
Scientific name : Abelmoschus
2.3.5 Relay esculentus L.
Variety : Samrat
The MG6 relay was used for applications where Experiment Gross area : 100 m2
several independent circuits may be energized or Experiment Net area : 60 m2
de-energized upon the operation of a single Row to row spacing : 50 cm
primary relay contact or where the capacity of the Plant to plant spacing : 30 cm
primary relay contact is inadequate for the Tank capacity : 750 l
energy required. Tullu pump : 0.5 hp (0.7lps)
Delivery head : 4.05m
2.4 Soil Physiochemical Parameters
Measurement of soil moisture content is crucial
Field Capacity refers to the quantity of soil for scheduling irrigation and conducting water
moisture or water content retained in the soil balance analysis. Therefore, three different
after excess water has drained away, and the sensors were tested to identify one that could be
rate of downward movement has slowed. This is used consistently. Sensor calibration was
measured by determining the water content after performed using ten 100 gm of samples. Before
saturating a soil profile, covering it to prevent installing the sensors, some water was added to
evaporation, and monitoring moisture changes the soil samples. TDR and our Soil moisture
over time [7]. The oven-drying method is sensor were installed in the containers at an
employed to ascertain moisture content. After 5 angle of about 90o and at three different depths
to 6 days, when the moisture content stabilizes, a (5 cm, 10 cm, 20 cm) from the soil surface.
graph is plotted to visualize the resultant
moisture content. The resulting graph typically 2.6 Validation of the Sensor System
depicts a straight line, representing the field
capacity of the soil (as illustrated in Fig. 2 and 3). The validation of the sensor system was
conducted by implementing it in the cultivation of
Core cutter method was used to determine the okra crops. Sensor data validation is a crucial
bulk density. Bulk density is used to convert step carried out during the data acquisition and
gravimetric moisture content to volumetric data processing phases of the multi-soil moisture

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sensor system. This process involves validating m2. Out of the 72 m2, 12 m2 was designated for
the external conditions of the data and ensuring conventional drip irrigation (control), and the
its suitability for a specific purpose, aiming to remaining 60 m2 was allocated for the sensor-
achieve accurate and reliable results. This based drip irrigation system.
validation sequence may be applied not only in
data acquisition but also in data processing to 2.8 Irrigation Water Requirement
enhance the confidence level of the systems.
Ten random samples were selected to check the The okra crop's water needs were determined
validity of the sensor system. Additionally, the based on soil moisture content. A gravity-fed drip
sensor's response was compared to individual irrigation system, utilizing a 750-liter overhead
soil moisture sensors for precise validation of the tank with a height of 3.05m, was employed. A 0.5
system, as illustrated in Table 3. HP pump filled the tank, serving 10 lateral lines
spaced at 50 cm and 30 cm for plants and rows,
2.7 Experimental Crop respectively. The sensor system activates the
pump when the field's moisture content is low,
The crop chosen for the experiment was okra turning it off once the required water volume is in
(Abelmoschus esculentum L.), specifically the the tank to achieve the desired moisture level. A
Samrat variety. The plant and row spacing were floating switch in the tank stops the pump upon
50 cm and 30 cm, respectively. The total gross reaching the set volume, determined by the
area was 120 m2, with a net shown area of 72 gravitational drip system's water requirements.

Field Capacity of 0-15cm depth

Volumetric Moisture Content (%)

40.00
35.00 34.79
30.85
30.00 27.41 27.22 27.12 27.11
25.00
20.00
15.00
10.00
5.00
0.00
day 1 day 2 day 3 day 4 day 5 day 6

Fig 2. field capacity of 0-15 cm depth

Table 2. Soil properties
Particulars Values Method used
A. Physical properties
1. Mechanical composition
Sand (%) 19.05 International Pipette method
(Black,1995)
Silt (%) 56.42
Clay (%) 44.75
Texture class Clay loam
2. Field capacity 27%
3. Permanent wilting point(cm m-1) 10.74 Pressure plate apparatus method
4. Bulk density (g cm-3) 1.34 Soil core method
B. Chemical properties
1. pH 6.5 Glass electrode pH meter
(Piper,1967)
2. EC (ds/m at 25⁰C) 0.08 Solubridge method (Black, 1965)

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Field Capacity of 15-30 cm Depth

Volumetric Moisture Content (%)

40.00
35.00
31.34
30.00 29.36 27.85 27.51 27.19 27.12
25.00
20.00
moisture
15.00 content
10.00
5.00
0.00
day 1 day 2 day 3 day 4 day 5 day 6

Fig. 3. field capacity of 15-30 cm depth

The water needs of the okra (Abelmoschus u×πr2

IR = × No. of Plants×1000 (2)
esculentum L.) crop were determined based on 1000
soil moisture content. Employing a gravity-fed
drip irrigation system, a 750-liter overhead tank Where,
at a height of 3.05 m was used, filled by a 0.5 HP
pump. This treatment included 10 lateral lines IR = Irrigation water requirement (l)
spaced at 50 cm for plants and 30 cm for rows. r = wetted surface area (m2)
The sensor system activates the pump when the u= Water use from the root zone for one
field's moisture content is low and turns it off irrigation cycle (mm)
once the required water volume is reached in the
tank, achieving the desired moisture level. A 3. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
floating switch in the overhead tank stops the
pump when the set volume is achieved in the 3.1 Calibration & Validation of Sensor
gravitational drip system, with the switch height System
set based on the required irrigation water
volume [8]. 3.1.1 Soil moisture sensor
The formula used for calculating the required Soil moisture sensor with two probes was
volume of irrigation water as follows: inserted into the soil at different soil depth level.
2.8.1 Volume of Irrigation water As per moisture content sensor probe sends
analog output variation from 0.06 volts to 5 volts
M1i -M2i to the PLC (Programmable Logic Controller) unit
u= ∑ni=1 ×Ai × Di ……… (1)
100 which in terms read the analog data and converts
In which, into digital output in form of moisture content.
The complete setup is shown in Fig 5. The
u = water use from the root zone for one arrangement of the parameter data (input and
irrigation cycle (mm) output) is performed with Control Builder Plus
n = number of soil layer sampled in the root software. The parameter data directly influences
zone depth D the functionality of modules. For non-standard
M1i = Soil moisture percentage at the time of applications, it is necessary to adapt the
first sampling in the ith layer parameters to a system configuration.
M2i = Soil moisture percentage at the time of
second sampling in the ith layer 3.1.2 Calibration of soil moisture sensor
Ai = Apparent specific gravity of the ith layer
of the soil With the assistance of various soil moisture
Di = Depth of the ith layer of the soil (mm) calibrations, the soil moisture sensor was
Irrigation water requirement calibrated, and the results were compared, as

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shown in Fig. 4. The water requirement for the respectively. From the experiment, the apparent
okra crop using the moisture sensor was specific gravity value was found to be 1.34.
calculated based on the field capacity of the soil, Using Equation 1, the calculated water
apparent specific gravity of the soil, and the root- requirement was 1.60 cm in terms of depth and
zone depth of the crop. Equation 1 in the article 6.109×10-4 m3 in terms of volume. This
(Volume of Irrigation Water) explains this represented the water requirement for one plant
calculation. The field capacity was determined to per irrigation, amounting to 0.41 m3 for the entire
be 27% on a V.M.C. basis. M1i (Soil moisture field (670 plants) per irrigation. This information
percentage at the time of the first sampling in the was utilized to set up a leveller sensor inside the
ith layer) and M2i (Soil moisture percentage at the overhead tank. When this volume of water is
time of the second sampling in the ith layer) were reached in the tank, the sensor turns off the
taken as 80% and 50% of this value, pump to prevent further filling.

Volumetric Moisture Content

80
70
Moisture content (%)

60
50
40
30 alfamart sensor

20 gravimetric method
10 Sensor system
0

Fig. 4. Response of different moisture sensors after calibration

Fig. 5. Complete setup of sensor system

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Table 3. After calibration reply of sensor system

Gravimetric method Alfa-mart Sensor

S.NO TDR (%)
Wt. basis % VMC % sensor (%) system (%)
1 20 27 25 26.50 100
2 14 18.75 19 18.40 69
3 16 21.44 21 21.10 79
4 9 12.06 12 12 45
5 13 17.42 17 16.90 65
6 16 21.44 22 21 79
7 11 14.74 15 14.50 55
8 5 6.7 7 6.50 25
9 14 18.76 18 18.20 69
10 11 14.74 15 14.30 55

Table 4 Water use efficiency under different treatments

Treatments Yield Depth of water Water use

kg per hectare cm efficiency
(kg ha-1 mm-1)
Control irrigation L1 13425.3 48.5 27.68
L2 12933.2 48.5 26.66
Sensor based L3 12467.4 31.16 40.01
treatment L4 13471.7 31.16 43.23
L5 13894.4 31.16 44.59
L6 12749.5 31.16 40.92
L7 14571.5 31.16 46.76
L8 13698.8 31.16 43.96
L9 13654.4 31.16 43.82
L10 13963.1 31.16 44.81
L11 13674.4 31.16 43.88
L12 12618.3 31.16 40.50

3.1.3 Growth parameters and water use productivity, is widely acknowledged. This
efficiency technology not only enhances farm economics
but also ensures the realization of the full
The water applied (including rainfall) for the potential of crop productivity during droughts in
cultivation of the okra crop is detailed in Table 4. the rainy season. It facilitates the cultivation of
Daily irrigation was administered for both control post-monsoon crops under limited water
irrigation and sensor-based drip irrigation, resources. The combined influence of drip
adjusted according to moisture content. Field irrigation and the Sensor system on the yield and
water use efficiency under varying irrigation water-use efficiency of okra production needs to
levels is outlined in Table 4. Calculating the total be explored. The experiment aimed to integrate
water volume, Control irrigation utilized 4850 m3, and establish a low-cost sensor system for
and sensor-based drip irrigation utilized 3116.0 monitoring soil moisture content, along with the
m3 for okra production in a one-hectare area. calibration and validation of the sensor system in
The maximum water use efficiency was observed conjunction with a low-cost gravity-operated drip
in the Sensor-based treatment at 46.76 kg ha-1 irrigation system. Laboratory tests identified the
mm-1, while the minimum water use efficiency soil texture as clay loam, with a field capacity of
was noted in Control irrigation at 26.66 kg ha-1 27% and a bulk density of 1.34 g cc-1.
mm-1.
Alfa-mart sensor, TDR, and gravimetric method
4. CONCLUSIONS were employed to measure soil moisture content.
The soil moisture sensor system underwent
The positive impact of drip irrigation and the calibration within the VMC range of 80-50%,
utilization of a Sensor system in water representing the field capacity of the soil, using
conservation, leading to increased crop the gravimetric method. A two-probe soil

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