Paper Details

Two drip systems (manual and intelligent) were designed and installed, and garden eggs irrigated under each of them. For the intelligent system, sensors connected to Arduino Micro Controller were used to accomplish the task of irrigation scheduling, while in the manual, human being monitor the behavior of the plants, and irrigate based on the design scheduled. Preliminary soil test revealed that soil of the area is sandy loam with a pH of 6.80.Systems efficiencies were determined as88.40 and 89.3% respectively for manual and intelligent. The eggplant under the intelligent system responds and yield better (7 fruits per stand at a time, with an average weight of 6g per fruit).Total volume of water used throughout the growth period by each eggplant from the intelligent and manual systems was approximately 47 and 70 liters respectively. The irrigation water use efficiency (IWUE) determined for the intelligent and manual plots were respectively 89% and 44.3%. In all, the intelligent system saves more water than the manual, the intelligent system is therefore encouraged. Keywords: Arduino, Drip Irrigation, Micro-controller, Irrigation Scheduling, Irrigation water use.