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Partnership helps Southwest Florida reduce water use on farm by 40 percent

Sakata Seed America Inc. shares the same water as urban residents in Southwest Florida. So, farm manager Cory Dombrowski wanted to see if he could irrigate more efficiently at the research farm east of Fort Myers. With the help of UF/IFAS Extension, Sakata is using 40 percent less water than it was two years ago.

Dombrowski met Craig Frey, a multi-county vegetable agent and director of UF/IFAS Extension in neighboring Hendry County. He knew Frey could lend him soil moisture sensors to test and assess if they could be an effective tool in improving his water management.

The soil moisture sensors Dombrowski and Frey used to go about two feet into the ground. They get average moisture readings for every four inches of soil and send that data to an app.


Frey and Dombrowski at Sakata Seed Inc. farm working with the soil moisture sensor.

Dombrowski has managed to reduce annual on-farm water use by 40 percent. "I noticed the root growth was better when we weren't over-watering the plants, especially when they were young," Dombrowski said.

With improved root systems, he noticed nutrients weren't leaching as much into the soil -- another plus. "So, we're saving on fertilizer," he said. "We're saving on water. We pump our water from wells, so we're saving electricity and diesel."

The sensors also cost less than they might under normal circumstances because Frey and industry partners at BMP Logic connected Dombrowski with the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) Best Management Practices Cost Share Program, which reimbursed Sakata 75 percent of the costs of the sensors Dombrowski bought.


The sensors get average moisture readings for every four inches of soil and send that data to an app.

When he received the sensors – first from FDACS, then from UF/IFAS -- Frey's first goal was to get them in the ground on farms and see what he and the growers could learn. As Frey has continued to expand the use of soil moisture sensors with growers, he noticed many agricultural producers over-irrigate.

"We keep the soil moisture wet because the downside of going dry is that you can lose a whole crop," he said. "By using soil moisture sensors, you can dial that down a bit more and be a lot more precise in your irrigation management."

Dombrowski sees Sakata and its water savings fitting in with the rest of Southwest Florida's desire to use water wisely.

For more information:
Brad Buck
UF/IFAS
Tel: +1 (656) 347-8422
[email protected]
www.ifas.ufl.edu

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