Miles away from the hustle-and-bustle of the high-tech Silicon Valley, an organic, family-run farm juxtaposes the hum of a solar-powered soil moisture monitoring laptop computer.
Between the rows of organic tomatoes at a farm in Gilroy, handheld computer systems monitor deficit irrigation data embraced through a partnership between local farmers and a governmental agency tasked with helping manage the water supply.
For organic heirloom tomato farmers Sherri and Mike Kennedy, the east Gilroy farm’s future not only depends on it; the present moment does. In light of consecutive droughts that have left southern Santa Clara County farmers like the Kennedy family embracing the latest digital technologies, they’re part of a movement afoot to minimize the impacts of the latest onset of water drought conditions through conservation tactics being employed through the Santa Clara Valley Water District Mobile Irrigation Lab.
“A solar panel powered this whole thing,” said Mike Kennedy, “It’s remarkable.”
According to California Horticulture Services owner Michael Johnson, farms like the Kennedys’—although relatively small—are just one example of how the 15 or so growers who participate in the project are working alongside partners like the water district “to inform folks about how growers really are using water as efficiently as possible and maybe introduce people to some of the technologies and practices they use to do that.”
At Sherri’s Farm, soil moisture measuring instruments like flow meters and soil moisture sensors monitor water levels and spit out the results in an easy-to-read graph, what Mike calls “helpful information.”
Ultimately, that same data could end up saving operations like Gilroy-based Sherri’s Farm money and boost stewardship of their precious water resource.
“I’m not going to bore you with that,” Mike admitted, “Those that irrigate—we have to be careful not to irrigate beyond the root structure of the plant for a lot of reasons.”
For growers like Kennedy and his wife, computer-generated data tells the growers time durations for irrigation cycling, calculating gallons-per-minute, acre-feet per day and more.
Embracing deficit irrigation, minimizing water use and providing a measurable check-and-balance system to farmwide water management isn’t just about saving money, however. For Sherrie’s Farm—which prides itself in “exceptional quality tomatoes”—it’s about the quality of the Gilroy-based fruit. They’ve been participating in the program for three years.
“We have found no difference—actually better quality crops,” Sherri said.
Aspiring for just the right brix—the common denominator when it comes to the fruit’s sweet flavor—is key. Growers like Mike and Sherri routinely monitor brix, or sweetness levels, to ensure a quality crop purveyed to small market chains throughout the greater Bay Area including New Leaf Markets. By providing their crop with just enough water—not too much or too little—they’re able to maximize brix levels by preventing overwatering and underwatering.
Not only that, the new high-tech digital soil moisture monitoring system installed on May 13-14 means the difference between early detection of a leak and a leak-gone-unnoticed. That’s not to say that the Kennedys don’t rely on traditional farming practices of handling the soil with an innate feel for soil moisture. The new approach relies on more than farmers’ instinct alone.
“What we’re getting is validation,” Sherri said. “Now, it’s more of a visual.”
Here’s one typical scenario: Sherrie’s Farm uses a moisture probe with electrodes marked off at every inch. To confirm what’s suspected by visual observation, the farmers are able—at the click of a button—to know in graph format what soil moisture is at any given depth. The end goal: uniform watering with no dry or wet spots, and less water use overall.
What the studies will show is just how uniform the watering is, not to mention, “If a plant needs water, you’re going to know in a hurry,” he said.
For Johnson, working with growers like the Kennedys on in-depth irrigation system evaluations doesn’t throw the hands-in-the-dirt approach out the door; it’s about choice.
“That’s where devices like this come in handy,” Johnson said. “A grower like this can go out into the field, press a button … I’m sticking a shovel in the ground to verify that, and they can make decisions.”
