Field Soil Moisture Measurement Utilizing Irrometer

Activity No. 4

Name: Carl Christian T. Alquitas Subject: AE-10 Yr/Course: IV-BSAE

Rating:
Date Assigned: 02/21/2018 Date Submission: 02/26/2018

I. Introduction:
Soil moisture is essential in crop growth and development. Without moisture,
crop will not be able to perform any cellular activities and eventually die.
Measuring the amount of moisture present in the soil is very important since it
will be a basis on how much water is to be added on crops during watering.
There are several methods in determining the available soil moisture which
are the feel and appearance method includes the wet soils, dry soils, clay soils,
medium and coarse textured soils, the soil tensiometer method is calibrated against
the oven drying method before it could be used, the electrical resistance method is
one end of two lead wires are imbedded and molded in a porous block, made of gypsum
of plaster of paris and the last is the neutron scattering method and it is the
most accurate method of soil moisture measurement and also the most expensive
method of soil moisture measurement needs in calibration.
In this activity, the use of soil tensiometer or irrometer is being focused.
Measuring soil moisture is by reading its soil tension or in terms of pressure
(atm).
II. Objective:
1. To perform setup on determining soil moisture using the irrometer.
2. To determine the quantity soil moisture in the sampling sites using the
irrometer.
III. Materials and Methods:
Materials:
1. Irrometer (Potentiometer)
2. Distilled water
3. Soil Auger set
4. Water
5. Ballpen/Pencil
6. Record notebook
Procedure:
• Prepare all materials needed.
• On the field, select site where to install the irrometer, using soil auger
dig holes to a depth of 30 cm.
• Open the cup of the irrometer and then filled with distilled water.
• Install the irrometer in the 30 cm hole, then cover the hole with soil.
• Monitor the pressure on the pressure gauge.
• Record your observation.
• Determine the soil moisture level base from the pressure.
Use the following readings as a general guideline:
• 0-10 Centibars = Saturated soil
• 10-30 Centibars = Soil is adequately wet (except coarse sands, which are
beginning to lose water)
• 30-60 Centibars = Usual range for irrigation (most soils)
• 60-100 Centibars = Usual range for irrigation in heavy clay
• 100-200 Centibars = Soil is becoming dangerously dry for maximum production.
Proceed with caution!

IV. Results and Discussion:

Table 1: Tabulation of Field Soil Moisture Readings Using Irrometer
 In the table shown above, the pressure readings from the irrometer at Day 1
range from 44-48 atm(centibars) with corresponding available water depletion of 52-
56% and available soil moisture of 44-48%. Day 2 pressure readings showed a range
of 44-47 atm with corresponding available water depletion of 52-55% and available
soil moisture of 45-48%. Moreover, at Day 3, the pressure readings range from 45-48
atm with corresponding available water depletion of 53-56% and available soil
moisture of 44-47%. Lastly, at Day 4, the pressure readings range from 444-48 atm
with corresponding available water depletion of 52-56% and available soil moisture
of 44-48%.
Fig. 1: Graphical Representation of Available Water Depletion and
Available Soil Moisture of Four Consecutive Days

Fig. 2: Equivalent Available Water Depletion (%) of the

Pressure Reading in the Irrometer

VI. Conclusion:
Based on the results, the available water depletion and available soil
moisture of the sampling site has a range of 52-56% and 44-48%, respectively. The
gathered results denote that the sampling site should now be supplied with
irrigation at normal soil condition. Furthermore, the use of irrometer or
tensiometer in determining the available water depletion and available soil
moisture is very significant in growing crops specifically, the supply of water or
irrigation to crops.

VII. Reference:
http://www.mait.com.au/white-papers/soil-moisture-monitoring-how-and-why/