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Abstract
In order to compare the quality of the information supplied by two inexpensive and easily available soil
moisture sensors, the Watermark sensor (Irrometer; Riverside, CA-USA) a granular matrix sensor and the ECHO2-
10HS sensor (Decagon; Pullman, WA, USA) an FDR sensor; two trials were carried out using two pots, 46.13 liters
capacity, with different textured soils: Loamy sand and Loam. In each of the pots three Watermark sensors and three
ECH2O-10HS sensors were installed. The pots were placed on two scales both with load cells. All the sensors and
the load cells were connected to a Campbell CR1000 datalogger which stored the readings every 60 minutes. The
entire system was put into a controlled temperature chamber at 18 °C and the pots were sown with fescue grass. A
total of three filling-emptying cycles in the Sandy-Loam soil adding 10, 5 and 10 L of water each time and two
cycles in the Loam soil adding 20 and 15 L of water each time, were carried out. The pots were refilled topped up
with water when the soil remained at constant dried weight for more than three consecutive days. The total volume
of water was applied at once. All measurements were converted into VWC (m3/m3) and segmented linear regressions
were carried out for the sensor readings vs. soil VWC. Standard Deviation to the average was also studied. Both
sensors types showed a strong relationship to the soil VWC in both soils. The Watermark sensors showed a good
response between –10 and –65 cb, above that range they showed no response to water content variation, below that
range the sensor to sensor variation in the readings was high. The ECH2O appeared to be very sensitive to soil
heterogeneity and the sensor to sensor differences were high in low VWC values.
Introduction
Soil moisture sensors are one of the tools that farmers and consultants can use in order to accommodate the
irrigation dosage to the crop needs (Shock et al., 2004). They can be helpful both in calculating irrigation dosage and
choosing the right moment for irrigation whilst aiming at different strategies: maximize water use efficiency whilst
maintaining crop yield (Shock et al., 1998, 2002; Muñoz-Carpena et al., 2003, 2008), water management to prevent
soil salinization (Inoue et al., 2008) or leaching of nutrients (Stieber and Shock, 1995; Greenwood et al. 2010) or to
prevent excessive plant stress in a water deficit strategy (Fares and Alva, 2000; Oussama et al., 2008).
Many soil moisture sensors have been developed to cover this need and nowadays there are different
sensors/models based on different methods of measuring soil water content. Charleswood (2005) provides an
extensive revision of the different sensors commercially available, a more recent review, also from a practical point
of view, can be found on Greenwood et al. (2010). Some of these sensors can be adapted to an automated data
collection system, and so they can be used in real time decision processes. This study was designed to compare these
In this paper two relatively inexpensive and easily available sensors (Borhan, 2004; Chard, 2005) the
Watermark-200SS sensor (Irrometer, Riveside CA-USA) and the ECH2O-10HC sensor (Decagon; Pullman, WA,
USA), were compared in order to test the quality of the information that they provide.
The Watermark sensor consists of a pair of electrodes that are imbedded within a granular matrix chassis
that is in contact with the soil and constantly absorbs or releases water through diffusion from its surrounding. A
current is applied to the Watermark to obtain a resistance value. As the soil dries out the sensor moisture is reduced
and the electrical resistance between the electrodes is increased. The measured resistance is converted to water
suction units obtaining a readout of soil moisture water suction (Irrometer, 2005).
The ECH2O series sensors obtain Volumetric Water Content (VWC) by measuring the dielectric constant
of the media through the utilization of frequency domain technology (FDR). The ECH2O-10HS model incorporates
a high frequency oscillator, which allows the sensor to accurately measure soil moisture in any soil with minimal
The sensors were installed inside two cylindrical pots of 46.13 L capacity (height: 0.29 m; diameter: 0.45
m) each filled with a different soil in terms of texture: Sandy-Loam, 5.3% clay and 77.3% sand; and Loam, 19.1%
clay and 51.5% sand; with dry soil densities of 1450 and 1486 kg/m 3 respectively. Pots were filled in layers of 5 cm
compacting manually each of them. Stones with diameter greater than 4 mm were removed by using a sieve before
In each of the pots three Watermark sensors and three ECH2O-10HS sensors were installed at 10 cm from
the surface –about 1/3 of the height of the pot. This depth is considered to be the most representative of the average
soil moisture of the pot, (L. Bissey, from Decagon, personal communication)-. To avoid electrical disturbances
between the ECH2O sensors they were separated by 15 cm at least between each other, the Watermarks were placed
nearby separating them by, at least 5 cm from the ECH2O sensor. All sensors were at least 10 cm away from the pot
walls. Special precautions where taken when installing the sensors in order to assure the best contact possible with
the soil by avoiding the creation of air bubbles and assuring the best possible contact between the sensor and the soil
before adding a layer of soil over them. Sensor wires were settled horizontally and joined in one of the sides of the
pots, channeling all together towards The pots were placed on two weighing balances both with load cells (Garos;
Madrid, Spain). All the sensors and the load cells were connected to a datalogger (model CR1000, Campbell
Scientific International, Logan, UT, USA) which took measurements every 30 seconds, storing the averaged results
every 60 minutes.
The entire system was put into a controlled temperature chamber at 18°C and the pots were sown with
fescue grass. Cycles of 12 hours light 12 hours dark were settled. A pressure plate (model 950B5, Soil Moisture
Equipment Co. Santa Barbara, CA, USA) connected to a vacuum pump was positioned at the bottom of each pot.
The vacuum line was taken out of the pot through the same channel?? used for the sensors. Every 4 hours the pump
was activated at a suction of 75 kPa which served to drain any accumulated water at the bottom of the pots.
Drainage was conducted to a common recipient, total drainage after all the 5 cycles was of approximately 7 liters
and it was mainly obtained in the following 12 hours after irrigation. Since the scales were controlling the water loss
Readings from the Watermark sensors were converted from electrical resistance (ER in kΩ ) values into
Soil Matric Potential (SMP in kPa) using the formula propossed by Shock et al. (1998) SMP = (4.093 + 3.213*ER)/
(1-0.00973*ER - 0.01205*Ts) where Ts is the soil temperature. Ts was considered to be equivalent to the
temperature measured by the datalogger Panel Temperature probe (Betatherm 10K3A1A, with an estimated error of
± 0.1ºC for temperatures in the range of 0 to 40ºC; Campbell Scientific, 2009), temperature in the datalogger panel
is considered to be the same as in the pots due to the continuous use of fans in the chamber. The soil water
characteristic curve was obtained by the use of the van Genuchten (1980) model, and thus readings given by the
Watermarks were converted into VWC. Voltage readings from the ECH2O-10HS sensors were converted in VWC
using the formula provided by Decagon Devices in the sensor manual (2008) VWC (m3/m3) = 5.84 10 -7 * mV2 –
2.01 * 10-4 *mV – 5.82 * 10-2 this equation is valid for soils with less than 10 dS/m conductivity, both the soils used
were well below this limit. All these calculations were done automatically by the datalogger each time it took a
measurement.
Three cycles of filling-emptying in the Sandy-loam soil adding 10, 5 and 10 L of water each time and two
cycles of filling-emptying in Loam soil adding 20 and 15 L of water both times were carried out. Water was added
by using a system of 4 drippers (2,2 L/h each). The pots were refilled when the readings from the weighing balances
indicated that the soils had dried to constant dry weight for at least three consecutive days
Data of the weight of the pots was used to calculate VWC of the soil during the filling-emptying cycles.
These calculated VWC data were compared with data from the sensors. The software used for the calculations and
In order to compare the accuracy of the sensors, linear regressions between their readings and the weighing
scales were calculated. A segmented regression with a breakpoint was carried out for Watermarks and ECH 2O
In the ECH2O sensors installed in the Sandy-loam soil no breakpoint was detected and thus the model was
Additionally to the regressions, Standard Deviation of the sensors from the average was calculated for both
Since the Watermarks cannot measure below approximately –200cb (-0,2MPa), their measurements were
manually eliminated once the readings of each of the sensors were outside that limit. Data used for the Watermark
regressions comes from the average of at least two of the three sensors installed. Data used for the Watermarks
standard deviation comes from the data when all the three sensors were giving readouts. In the case of the ECH2O
there was no need to eliminate data since they cover the whole measured range, but, the first 12 hours after filling
the pot with water were erased to eliminate the effect of the water infiltration (showing a constant value in the
Watermark
Figures 1 and 2 show the data of the sensors compared to the Weighing Scales, the estimated curve using
the regression model is also included. The existence of the breakpoint beyond which the sensors show no response is
a known characteristic of the sensor (Shock, 1998). This, from an agronomic point of view, is of no importance
since the values beyond that limit (equivalent to -10cb (-0.01MPa) in soil tension) are almost equivalent to soil
saturation. The slopes in the desiccation pattern of the Watermarks versus the soil VWC changed when Watermark
readings were around 0.090 m3/m3 in Sandy-loam soil and around 0.240 m3/m3 in Loam soil, these values
correspond to around -70 cb in terms of Soil Matrix Potential. No further statistical study has been carried out but
this change in tendency could affect the usage of the sensors for irrigation purposes beyond this limit.
0,25
0,5
W. Scale vs Watermark
W. Scale vs Watermark
W. Scale vs Estimated
W. Scale vs Estimated
0,20
0,4
VWC (m3/m3) Watermark
0,15 0,3
0,10 0,2
0,05 0,1
0,00 0,0
0,00 0,05 0,10 0,15 0,20 0,25 0,0 0,1 0,2 0,3 0,4 0,5
3 3 3 3
VWC (m /m ) Weighing Scale VWC (m /m ) Weighing Scale
Figure 1 (left). Sandy-Loam soil, Watermark to Weighing Scale curve, both in VWC (m 3/m3) units. Regression
model was m= 0.589, b = 0.065, breakpoint = 0.096; R2 = 0.965
Figure 2 (right). Loam soil, Watermark to Weighing Scale curve, both in VWC (m3/m3) units. Regression model was
m= 0.641, b = 0.107, breakpoint = 0.318; R2 = 0.988
Regarding its precision, Watermark shows that as the soil dries out sensor to sensor differences between
readings increase (figures 3 and 4), the figures show that there is a point beyond which the variation in precision
increases rapidly until the sensors exceed their measuring range of -200 cb (-0,2MPa). This breakpoint is around
0.087 m3/m3 in the Sandy-loam soil and 0.244 m3/m3 in the Loam soil, which corresponds to about -70 Cb (-
0.07MPa) and about –65 Cb (-0.065MPa) respectively. The limit in their measuring range is also the explanation for
the increasing precision at the end of their curve in the Loam soil since all the measures converge to the same point,
in the Sandy-Loam soil the Watermarks exceeded rapidly their range before their measurements converged. Egbert
et al. (1992), using the old 200 Series Watermark concluded that those sensors could only be used as a relative indicator of
soil water status, Shock et al. (1998), indicated that the new Watermark series 200SS diminished the differences between
sensors, in this study we found that from the -10 to –65/-70 cb range –the lower limit depending on soil type- the sensors
0,030 0,030
0,020 0,020
0,015 0,015
0,010 0,010
0,005 0,005
0,000 0,000
0,00 0,05 0,10 0,15 0,20 0,25 0,0 0,1 0,2 0,3 0,4
3 3
VWC (m3/m3) VWC (m /m )
Figure 3 (left). Standard Deviation EH2O-10HS and Watermark sensors in Sandy-Loam soil
Figure 4 (right). Standard Deviation EH2O-10HS and Watermark sensors in Loam soil
ECH2O-10HS
Figures 5 and 6 show the data of the sensors compared to the Weighing Scales, the estimated curve using
the regression model is also included. The existence in the Loam Soil of the breakpoint beyond which the sensors
show no response could be considered as being complete saturation of the soil. The regressions show a strong
relationship with the data from the weighing scale with a very low y-intercept (b constant) for both soils. In the case
of the Loam soil there is an erratic behaviour in the curve of the sensor reading against the weighing scale, this could
be explained by soil heterogeneity according to L. Bissey, (personal communication). These results show, as other
authors suggest (Leib et al., 2003, Greenwood, 2009), that a calibration for the probes is necessary to know the real
values of the VWC but, as Leib et al. (2003) pointed out, since the general trend of the VWC measured by the
sensors is the same of the real VWC, it may not be necessary to do the calibration in order to set up thresholds to
0,25 0,5
0,20 0,4
0,15 0,3
0,10 0,2
0,05 0,1
0,00 0,0
0,00 0,05 0,10 0,15 0,20 0,25 0,0 0,1 0,2 0,3 0,4 0,5
3 3 3 3
VWC (m /m ) Weighing Scale VWC (m /m ) Weighing Scale
Figure 5. Sandy-Loam soil, EH2O-10HS to Weighing Scale curve, both in VWC (m 3/m3) units. Regression model
was VWCSensor = m*VWCWscale + b where, m= 0.757, b = 0.02; R2 = 0.978
Figure 6. Loam soil, EH2O-10HS to Weighing Scale curve, both in VWC (m3/m3) units. Regression model was m=
0.723, b = 0.014, breakpoint = 0.430; R2 = 0.977
Regarding its precision, ECH2O-10HS shows that, in the Sandy-Loam soil, as the soil dries out the
differences between readings from the sensors expressed as Standard Deviation decrease (figure 3). For the Loam
soil the precision seems to be almost constant regardless of the VWC of the soil (figure 4). These differences,
expressed as coefficient of variation (figures 7&8) show that the differences in the Sandy-Loam soil diminish from
11 to 5% until the VWC is 0.04 and then increase again up to around 10% as the soil gets drier. In the Loam soil the
differences are less than 5% for values of VWC over 0.150 and increase considerably up to 13% in the driest parts
of the range. The reason for the increasing lack of precision in the lower range can be found in the mathematical
expression of the Coefficient of Variation since the Standard Deviation is almost constant. Similar results of
variability, measured in terms of available field capacity, were found by Schmitz and Sourell (2000). In our study,
the variability between sensors can be interpreted as soil heterogeneity, the effect of the plant water usage or a
Coefficient of Variation
0,15
0,15
0,10
0,10
0,05
0,05
0,00
0,00
0,00 0,05 0,10 0,15 0,20 0,25
0,0 0,1 0,2 0,3 0,4
3 3
VWC (m /m )
VWC (m3/m3)
Figure 7 (left). Coefficient of Variation ECH2O-10HS and
Watermark Sensors. Sandy-Loam soil
Figure 8 (right). Coefficient of Variation ECH2O-10HS and Watermark Sensors. Loam soil
Conclusions
Watermark showed good behaviour in the -10 to -65 cb range, which is the optimum range of soil moisture
for many commercial crops. Values above that range did not respond to variations in soil water. Below that range
the sensor to sensor variation increased rapidly and the measurements lacked precision. More studies are needed to
understand better the desiccation curve of the Watermark sensor, especially the apparent change of tendencies
produced around -65 cb that could be important from the point of view of the use of the sensor to control irrigation
in some crops.
ECH2O-10HS showed a strong relationship for the full range of measurements on both soils. Nevertheless
the sensor showed a high sensitivity to soil heterogeneity and the sensor to sensor differences were high. A
calibration of the probes can be skipped since the general trend of the VWC measured by the sensors is the quite
Aknowledgements
We are grateful to the Regional Government of La Rioja for funding this research (Regional Projects PR-
18-08 and PR-18-09). We also thank the CIDA-SIDTA for its support and collaboration.
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