Aquaflex Soil Moisture Sensors provide soil moisture and soil temperature information on a continual basis. The Aquaflex Sensor is a 3m long tape which is laid into the root zone of the crop and measures a volume of 6 litres of soil.
Locally designed (at Lincoln University), manufactured and supported you can have confidence in both the Aquaflex Sensor and the support provided by Aquaflex NZ.
Aquaflex has become a vital part of many Farm Environmental plans and is well proven for both irrigation and effluent dispersal (industrial, dairy, vineyard etc) applications.
Soil Moisture is a critical factor in many farming application areas; it affects growth, quality and profit. Having visibility of soil moisture levels across the farm empowers farm managers to strategically plan irrigation and allocate resources to areas that need it most.
Refer to www.aquaflex.co.nz for more information and to download the Aquaflex Handbook which provides useful information on Soil Moisture and how to interpret Aquaflex data including notes on soil water-holding characteristics – some of which are summarised below:
Field capacity (FC)
The maximum amount of water the soil can hold against the force of gravity.
Permanent Wilting Point (PWP)
The water content where most plants will wilt and fail to recover.
Plant Available Water (PAW)
The full range of water that the plant can extract from the soil (i.e. the range between FC and PWP).
Readily Available Water (RAW)
The water that is easy for the plants to extract from the soil.
Refill Point (RP) (also called Stress Point)
The lower level of the RAW. Water below this level is difficult for the plant to access.
The above graph shows Soil Moisture Content in relation to Field Capacity and Refill Point. Drainage after three rainfall events is evident when Soil Moisture Content exceeds Field Capacity
