Field Connect Helps Producers Monitor Soil Moisture

Melissa SandfortAgribusiness, Data Collection, John Deere, Soil Sampling

With water management becoming an increasingly important factor in crop production, John Deere introduces John Deere Field Connect to provide site specific water management data to facilitate the decision making process surrounding irrigation practices. With site specific information, producers are able to more efficiently utilize irrigation inputs resulting in fuel savings and additional yield potential. The Field Connect system continuously logs soil moisture data from probes installed in customer fields and transmits the data to a website that customers can access remotely.

John Deere Field Connect is a fully integrated system that includes three different probe options, solar panel, as well as both a satellite and cellular data connection. Field specific soil moisture data is transmitted to a secure website for viewing, and customers can program the system to receive alerts based on set parameters.

Field Connect graphs soil moisture readings at the individual sensor level (soil depth) and over the entire monitored soil profile, and shows water movement within the profile over time. The system can be customized to each field depending on the type of crops grown, soil type and water management objectives of each customer. Producers will be able to integrate the data from John Deere Field Connect with yield, soil type, fertility and other agronomic information to more effectively optimize the productivity of each field.