Determine Soil Moisture Research Articles

ЭВРИСТИЧЕСКИЙ И ПРИКЛАДНОЙ ПОТЕНЦИАЛ СОВМЕЩЕНИЯ МИКРОВОЛНОВОГО ВЛАЖНОСТНО-ТЕМПЕРАТУРНОГО ЗОНДИРОВАНИЯ ПОЧВЫ И ФОТОСЪЕМКИ В ФАЦИАЛЬНО-ДИФФЕРЕНЦИРОВАННЫХ АГРОГЕОСИСТЕМАХ

The paper is devoting the discussion of the biocenotic conditions, boundaries and advantages of additional equipment of an airmobile platform (UAV) with a microwave radiometric system for soil moisture and temperature sensing of inhomogeneous arable lands included in the turnover of moraine plain landscapes with photography. The necessity is theoretically justified and an algorithm is given for obtaining and using information on the projective coating of the leaf surface to calculate the corrections of the results of probing soil moisture with a microwave radiometer. Approaches to the rationalization of the survey, methods of statistical analysis of photography data that allow predicting the translocal vector of the dynamics of the weed component of the lands put into circulation are considered. Agro-industrial applications of joint microwave sensing and photographing on plantations of perennial industrial crops are given. The purpose of the work is to discuss the features of the conditions and to show the opportunities and prospects for the agronomic application of the results of combining microwave humidity–temperature sensing of the soil and digital photography in the development of fallow facially differentiated lands planned for the laying of plantations of perennial industrial crops. The following results were obtained. The analysis of the influence of vegetation cover on the results of remote determination of soil moisture using a bipolarization microwave radiometer of the L-band is carried out. A method for correcting radiometric data on soil moisture using additional photography data in the presence of surface vegetation is proposed. A field humidity map obtained as a result of a full-scale experiment with subsequent data processing is presented. The possibility of predictions controlled by agricultural production based on the combination of microwave humidity-temperature sensing of the soil and photographing in facially differentiated agrogeosystems of the repetition of the phytocenotic pattern of root facies heterogeneity is shown. Practical significance. The introduction of the obtained new algorithms for taking into account the shielding effect of vegetation cover on the soil surface during microwave radiometric sensing of the soil surface from a UAV into the technological processes of growing crops ensures the sustainable development of crop production technologies, increasing yields and obtaining additional profits for agricultural enterprises.

Evaluating soil evaporation and transpiration responses to alternate partial rootzone drying to minimise water losses

PurposePartial rootzone drying (PRD) typically alternates the dry and irrigated parts of the rootzone, but how plant physiology and soil evaporation respond to this alternation are poorly understood.MethodsDwarf tomatoes were grown in small split pots comprising two 250 cm3 compartments and fully irrigated (WW: 100% ETc) or subjected to three deficit irrigation treatments (75% ETc): homogeneous rootzone drying (HRD; irrigation evenly distributed); fixed PRD (PRD-F, irrigation applied to one fixed compartment); alternated PRD (PRD-A: as PRD-F but alternating the irrigated compartment every three days). Stem diameter and evapotranspiration were monitored during alternation cycles. The day after alternating the irrigated side of the root system, whole-plant gas exchange and leaf water potential were measured following step increments of vapour pressure deficit.ResultsAlternation did not affect stem diameter contractions or evapotranspiration, which were lower in HRD than in the two PRD treatments. However, soil evaporation was higher in HRD and PRD-A after alternation than in PRD-F. Following alternation, higher soil evaporation was counteracted by decreased transpiration compared with fixed PRD, despite similar overall soil water content. VPD increments did not change this pattern.ConclusionIrrigation placement determined soil moisture distribution, which in turn affected soil evaporation and whole plant gas exchange. Optimising the frequency of PRD alternation to maximise water savings while ensuring productive water use needs to consider how soil moisture distribution affects both soil evaporation and plant water use.

ON- FIELD WATER MANAGEMENT OF GOLDA SMALL SCALE IRRIGATION SCHEME: THE CASE OF ASSOSA, NORTH-WEST OF ETHIOPIA

Miss management of available water for irrigation, both at system and farm level has led to a range of problems and further aggravated water availability and has reduced the benefits of irrigation investments. To solve irrigation water management problem; appropriate irrigation scheduling practices could lead to increased yields and greater profit for farmers, significant water savings, reduced environmental impacts of irrigation and improved sustainability of irrigated agriculture. This study was conducted for evaluating on-field water management of Golda small scale irrigation scheme which is found at Assosa, North- west of Ethiopia. In this study both secondary and primary data sources were used. Soil samples were collected for the determination of soil moisture, field capacity, and permanent wilting point, soil pH, organic matter content, total nitrogen and available phosphorous. Infiltration rate of the soil, crop water requirement, irrigation requirement and irrigation scheduling were determined. Application efficiency, storage efficiency and distribution uniformity of the system was evaluated. The organic matter content and available phosphorous of the soil were lowbut total nitrogen was high. Farmers were applying the same irrigation interval in each growth stage of the irrigated crop but crops are required different amount of water at different irrigation interval within each growth stage. The Application efficiency, storage efficiency and distribution uniformity were determined and the values were 51.6%, 91.6% and 80.76% respectively. Generally, irrigation users did not have sense of ownership for the scheme; poor irrigation water management was a problem as I have observed.

Sistem Pemantauan Tingkat Kandungan Air Tanah dan Kendali Pompa Penyiraman Otomatis pada Tanaman Strawberry

The writing of this paper discusses the process of monitoring strawberry plants implemented in strawberry gardens which will later become a reference to be able to design a tool for monitoring strawberry plants through Internet of Things (IoT) technology. There are several tools used, one of which is Arduino IDE as programming software to connect the Esp 8266 MCU Node, DHT 22 Sensor. Soil moisture Sensor, and other electronic components. Some of these tools are programmed using Eagle Software as a hardware board printing to form a PCB (Printed Circuit Board) or printed circuit board and become an interconnected hardware device. The use of the Bylink Application as its control and monitoring.
 Empirically and according to several farmers in Ciwidey, Bandung Regency, strawberry is a plant that is susceptible to changes in temperature and climate. With this tool, it is hoped that it will make it easier for farmers to determine soil moisture, identify plants that have not been watered and have not been given anti-pests or vitamins, and that their use can be extended both on a small scale in plantations to large scale that is able to take advantage of several agricultural industries. In addition, this system can be a modern digital technology that is able to reduce the percentage of crop failure due to lack of air or exposure to pests and temperature changes so that growing strawberries is easier and more efficient.

Detection of Soil Moisture, Humidity, and Liquid Level Using CPW-Based Interdigital Capacitive Sensor

The measurement of soil moisture and air humidity is essential to many technological and environmental applications. Sensors provide information that is useful in order to effectively manage and control various processes. This study presents an energy-efficient, highly reliable, ultra-high frequency (UHF) capacitive sensor that can measure moisture/humidity, and liquid levels. As a sensitive part, an interdigital capacitor (IDC) is fed via a coplanar waveguide (CPW) for efficient power transfer. Aside from the sensitive part of the IDC, the structure of the sensor is insensitive to variations in surrounding permittivity, which reduces uncertainty in results and thus improves accuracy. The principle of sensing is based on a reactive phase variation of the input signal upon reflection, whereas its amplitude and phase are actively changing with variations in the dielectric constant of the test medium. Practical testing was conducted on the sensor to determine soil moisture, air humidity, and liquid level measurement. At a fixed UHF frequency of 915 MHz the sensor offers a capacitive sensitivity of 7.5 fF/%WC, 4.5 fF/%RH, and 13.4 fF/mm for soil moisture, air humidity, and water level detection respectively. This new sensor provides high reliability, good sensitivity, low power consumption, and can be implemented in a number of applications, including agriculture, oil, and gas industry, land and water treatment, medical equipment, and biotechnology.

Application of the artificial intelligence approach and remotely sensed imagery for soil moisture evaluation

AbstractThe current research attempts to present a modeling framework for determining soil moisture conditions by using remotely sensed imagery products. In this way, identifying various pixels with similar patterns from satellite images could be a reliable method to have an appropriate view over the soil moisture condition of a particular region. In this context, an artificial intelligence-based self-organizing map (SOM) method is employed to classify homogenous pixels over Phoenix, which is located in the south of Arizona, utilizing parameters extracted from satellite images. The central pixels of clusters are selected as the cluster indicator, with one from each cluster. Then, feed-forward neural networks (FFNNs) consisting of three layers of input, hidden, and output are trained by employing the extracted satellite images time series of the central pixels of the clusters. Finally, the soil moisture conditions of the representative pixels of the clusters are simulated by the trained models. The results reveal the suitability of SOM-based clustering to identify the specific points by which soil moisture can represent the soil moisture condition over the related regions. The proposed methodology and obtained results can be further used to provide a cost-effective method to determine the soil moisture condition of the region by reducing the costs of monitoring.HIGHLIGHTS An SOM is used to cluster homogenous pixels. The soil moisture conditions of the representative pixel for each cluster are simulated by using an ANN. The results reveal the suitability of the SOM clustering method to identify the specific points by which the soil moisture can represent the soil moisture condition.

Remote sensing and soil moisture data for water productivity determination

This work was initiated in 2019 within the FAO WEPS project framework (2018–2022), aiming to determine the Water Productivity (WP) of the Tunisian olive orchards combining two scales of measurements for soil moisture determination: one for the global analysis (remote sensing) and the other for the field scale application. The experiment was made in 2019 and 2020 in the Centre of Tunisia (Kairouan city, locality of Elhouereb), which is one of the largest irrigation area of Tunisia. WP was computed regarding the actual crop evapotranspiration (ETa) which was determined following the water balance method as: ETa=R+I–ΔS, where ΔS is the amount of water stored in the soil (0–60 cm) and (R) and (I) are the amounts of the seasonal rainfall and the irrigation volume, respectively. The annual ETa reached 293 mm for the rainfed orchard, 823 mm for the semi-intensive irrigated plantation and 819 mm for the intensive fertigated orchard. The WP defined as being the ratio of Yield (kg olives/tree)/ETa ranged between 0.29 kg/m3 (rainfed) and 0.77 kg/m3 (fertigated) depending on the cultivation system. Soil moisture was found to be correlated to the average backscatter coefficient (r = −0.34 for the rainfed and 0.91 for the irrigated orchards) which was determined from the radar images which were treated by using different applications (SNAP, ODK, QGIS.), This result shows the performance of the remote sensing tools for such application. To conclude: WP is at least two times higher in the irrigated orchards than in the rainfed grove; this indicates a great potential of WP improvement if the horticultural practices are well applied in the orchad (pruning, irrigation); so that, the WP can be used as a decision-making-tool for farmers and makers in the future.

Changes in soil temperature and moisture due to sugarcane straw removal in central-southern Brazil

Crop residues left in the field cover and protect the soil surface, and regulate key processes and functions, such as gas and water exchanges. However, the Brazilian sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum L.) sector has begun to use straw as feedstock to produce bioenergy. We conducted a field study to evaluate the effects of sugarcane straw removal in soil temperature and moisture changes at three sites (with different soil textures: Site 1 - clayey Oxisol, Site 2 - medium texture Oxisol, and Site 3 - sandy Ultisol) in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. The experimental design was randomized blocks with four rates of straw removal: i) no removal (NR); ii) moderate removal (MR); iii) substantial removal (SR), and iv) total removal (TR). Soil temperature was measured by sensors in the 0- to 5- and 5- to 10-cm soil layers. Undisturbed soil samples were collected from the 0- to 20- and 20- to 40-cm layers to determine soil moisture. Intensive straw removal (HR and TR) increased the soil temperature between 2 and 3 °C and the thermal amplitude between 5 and 9 °C in the 0- to 5-cm layer, compared to MR and NR. Soil moisture decreased between 0.03 and 0.07 g g–1 in the 0- to 20-cm layer with intensive straw removal. The sandy soil was more susceptible to straw removal. Therefore, straw maintenance on the soil surface plays an essential role in temperature regulation and preservation of higher soil moisture, especially in regions with severe water deficits and long periods of water stress.

Spatial Distribution of Soil Moisture Content and Tree Volume Estimation in International Institute of Tropical Agriculture Forest, Ibadan, Nigeria

The role of soil moisture in the survival and growth of trees cannot be over-emphasized and it contributes to the net productivity of the forest. However, information on the spatial distribution of the soil moisture content regarding the tree volume in forest ecosystems especially in Nigeria is limited. Therefore, this study combined spatial and ground data to determine soil moisture distribution and tree volume in the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) forest, Ibadan. Satellite images of 1989, 1999, 2009 and 2019 were obtained and processed using topographic and vegetation-based models to examine the soil moisture status of the forest. Satellite-based soil moisture obtained was validated with ground soil moisture data collected in 2019. Tree growth variables were obtained for tree volume computation using Newton’s formular. Forest soil moisture models employed in this study include Topographic Wetness Index (TWI), Temperature Dryness Vegetation Index (TDVI) and Modified Normalized Difference Wetness Index (MNDWI). Relationships between index-based and ground base Soil Moisture Content (SMC), as well as the correlation between soil moisture and tree volume, were examined. The study revealed strong relationships between tree volume and TDVI, SMC, TWI with R2 values of 0.91, 0.85, and 0.75, respectively. The regression values of 0.89 between in-situ soil data and TWI and 0.83 with TDVI ascertain the reliability of satellite data in soil moisture mapping. The decision of which index to apply between TWI and TDVI, therefore, depends on available data since both proved to be reliable. The TWI surface is considered to be a more suitable soil moisture prediction index, while MNDWI exhibited a weak relationship (R2 = 0.03) with ground data. The strong relationships between soil moisture and tree volume suggest tree volume can be predicted based on available soil moisture content. Any slight undesirable change in soil moisture could lead to severe forest conditions.

Development and Performance Evaluation of a Soil Moisture Sensor

This study was aimed at developing a soil moisture sensor to effectively monitor moisture level for optimum crop growth. The sensor was made using a programmed Arduino microcontroller. It is attached to a sensing panel with two probes made of nickel that measures the volumetric content of water in soil. The probes were non-corrosive and robust material suitable for use in wet surfaces. The developed sensor was tested and evaluated. The two legged Lead (probes) goes into the soil where water content was to be measured by passing current through the soil, and then reads the resistance to get the moisture level. Nine different soil classification samples (Sandy Clay, Fine Sandy Loam, Sandy Loam, Salty Loam, Loamy Sand, Coarse Sand, Fine Sand, Sandy Clay Loam and clay soils) at different depths (3, 6, 9, 12 and 14.3 cm) were used to analyse the moisture meter at three different portion of each soil sample. Results obtained indicates that there was a progressive increase in moisture levels the more the sensor was being dipped into the soil. Results obtained also shows that all the nine soil samples but one (Silt Loam Soil Sample) analysed were within acceptable range of accuracy (0.1 - 5.0 %). The moisture sensor whose cost was approximately #22,300:00 was found to be effective, high precision at less efforts and a suitable guide for farmer for determining soil moisture levels.Keywords- Moisture, Probe, Sensor, Soil Classification

USING OF LOW COST MOISTURE SENSORS IN LABORATORY EXPERIMENTS

<jats:p>Soil moisture is one of crucial parameters in modeling and analysis of groundwater flow. Measurement of soil water dynamics improves the understanding of processes and is vital for good groundwater flow model calibration. Determining soil moisture change during time by laboratory methods, as an integral part of practical classes, requires significant material and financial resources. Nowadays, relatively cheap sensors for measuring soil moisture are available. They could be combined with affordable data loggers to speed up the measurement procedure and to reduce cost price. In this paper, the possibility of using these sensors for measuring soil moisture and their usage for the educational experimental exercises in a field of hydraulic engineering was investigated. The paper first presents the procedure of sensor calibration for four different sensors used in two types of soil, and then their usage in a simple hydraulic engineering experiment.</jats:p>

Utilization of IoT for Soil Moisture and Temperature Monitoring System for Onion Growth

The use of IoT in precision agriculture is very important in the process of increasing crop production. The local supply of onions in Merauke Regency have not fulfilled the demand, thus the high price in the market. Most of the demand for onion are still fulfilled from outside the region, as the production of local farmers has not been optimal. The weather has been identified as one of the factors that affect the quality of onion production. This study aims to create an automatic monitoring system based on an Arduino microcontroller to measure soil moisture and temperature in onion patches. The method used is to design an automatic monitoring device to determine soil moisture and temperature so that it can provide information about the growth and maintenance of onion patches. The Arduino microcontroller is connected to a reading sensor that is integrated with component devices to maintain a stable temperature and soil moisture. All devices and components are designed to operate in a custom-made environment in the form of a greenhouse prototype. The results of this study indicate that the tool and system are capable of capturing the soil moisture and temperature, as well as maintaining the soil moisture and temperature within certain parameters, in cloudy, wet and hot weather conditions. Doi: 10.28991/esj-2021-SP1-07 Full Text: PDF

Quasi-3D mapping of soil moisture in agricultural fields using electrical conductivity sensing

Knowledge of real time spatial distribution of soil moisture has great potential to improve yield and profit in agricultural systems. Recent advances in non-invasive electromagnetic induction (EMI) techniques have created an opportunity to determine soil moisture content with high-resolution and minimal soil intrusion. So far, EMI has mainly been used for homogenous soil conditions, which are not common in agriculture and results are mainly validated by excavated pits or calibration models using soil samples on a transect. This study converts apparent electrical conductivity data recorded with a Dualem-1Hs EM-metre for two surveys of variable moisture conditions (dry and wet season) with 2475 and 2174 data points over 5.4 ha, in a field with a contrasting vertical soil profile into spatiotemporal management zones. A least square inversion algorithm was used to determine electrical conductivities for individual soil layers of 0–0.5 m, 0.5–0.8 m and 0.8–1.6 m. Soil samples from the depth of 0.5 m and 0.8 m were used for soil moisture calibrations. A laboratory experiment under controlled conditions developed electric conductivity vs volumetric water content relations with power law functions for required soil depth slices with R2 values between 0.98 and 0.99. Subsequently, EMI data were converted to volumetric water contents for each layer and predictions were spatially displayed. Median change between the measured apparent conductivity and inverted values range from 6 to 17 mS m-1 resulting in 3–7% difference in volumetric water prediction. These EMI based soil moisture predictions were compared with neutron moisture metre measurements, with Pearson R values of 0.74 and 0.95 for the wet and dry season surveys, respectively. The method is robust and offers a comparatively fast method to estimate the soil moisture status in fields and subsequently make informed management decisions.

Vegetation Effects on Soil Moisture Retrieval from Water Cloud Model Using PALSAR-2 for Oil Palm Trees

In oil palm crop, soil fertility is less important than the physical soil characteristics. It is important to have a balance and sufficient soil moisture to sustain high yields in oil palm plantations. However, conventional methods of soil moisture determination are laborious and time-consuming with limited coverage and accuracy. In this research, we evaluated synthetic aperture radar (SAR) and in-situ observations at an oil palm plantation to determine SAR signal sensitivity to oil palm crop by means of water cloud model (WCM) inversion for retrieving soil moisture from L-band HH and HV polarized data. The effects of vegetation on backscattering coefficients were evaluated by comparing Leaf Area Index (LAI), Leaf Water Area Index (LWAI) and Normalized Plant Water Content (NPWC). The results showed that HV polarization effectively simulated backscatter coefficient as compared to HH polarization where the best fit was obtained by taking the LAI as a vegetation descriptor. The HV polarization with the LAI indicator was able to retrieve soil moisture content with an accuracy of at least 80%.

Seedbed preparation of the upper soil layer

Increasing crop yields is the most important condition for intensifying agricultural production. High quality of various technological operations of soil preparation can significantly increase yields. It is especially important to prepare soil before seeding, it forms a habitat for plants, ensures uniform seeding in depth. Using heavy machines in agriculture, surface and subsurface soil layers undergo mechanical deformation with inevitable deterioration of its physical and biological properties. Density of surface and subsurface horizons increases, number of pores with a size of 0.2 … 10 microns decreases, which determine soil moisture content. Productivity of cultivated plants is influenced by effective fertility of not only surface layer, but also machines and tractors. Many studies have established that soil deformation during movement of cultivator hoe or wedge consists of two stages. At the first stage, soil particles located in close proximity to the hoe are displaced forward, forcing the layers in front to compress, when stresses in soil reach their limit values, a shift occurs at some distance from the toe of the hoe. At the second stage, soil begins to intensively move forward and upward and move along surface of working body. In this regard, resistance of soil to movement of individual parts of working body will be different. The article describes research that helps to determine ground unevenness. One of the possible measures to prevent compaction of the subsurface is presented - improving technology of preparing upper surface soil layer.

NOAA Image Data Acquisition to Determine Soil Moisture in Arequipa, Perú

In recent years, irrigations have been built on dry areas in Majes-Arequipa. Over time, the irrigations water forms moist areas in lower areas, which can have positive or negative consequences. Therefore, it is important to know in advance where the water from the new irrigation will appear. The limited availability of real-time satellite image data is still a hindrance to some applications. Data from environmental satellites National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) are available fee and license free. In order to receive data, users must obtain necessary equipment. In this work, we present a satellite data acquisition system with an RealTek (RTL) software-defined radio (SDR) receiver, two 137-138-MHz designed antennas, and Orbitron, SDRSharp, WXtolMG, and MATLAB softwares. We have designed two antennas: a turnstile crossed dipole antenna with Balun and a quadrifilar helicoidal antenna. The antennas' parameter measurements show very good correspondence with those obtained by simulation. The RTL SDR RTL2832U receiver, combined with our antennas and software, forms the system for recording, decoding, editing, and displaying automatic picture transmission (APT) signals. The results show that the satellite image receptions are sufficiently clear and descriptive for further analysis.

Effects of water stress on evapotranspiration of soybean

Based on the results of observations, it was specified that when decreasing soil moisture there is a disproportionate decrease in the average daily evapotranspiration (ET). Thus, in the range of soil moisture of 94-80% minimum moisture-holding capacity (MMHC) ET was 9,76 mm a day, and in the range of 70-62% MMHC - its value decreased by 3 times. When the soil moisture reached 58,5% MMHC, the value of ET did not exceed 0,5 mm a day, which is 20 times less than the initial one. It was determined that the decrease in soil moisture by 10% in the range of 90 - 70% MMHC occurs during 3 days, and from 70 to 60% MMHC and from 60 to 58% MMHC - during 8 days. When soil moisture is 70% MMHC and below, the actual evapotranspiration is less than ETo that proves the effect of water stress on soybeans ET. When calculating water stress coefficient (Ks), a mathematical model based on the dependence of Ks on soil moisture as a percentage of MMHC was obtained. The average absolute percentage error (MAPE) is 8,6%, which corresponds to the high accuracy of the obtained dependence. In the range of soil moisture from 58 to 80% MMHC, the water stress coefficient is calculated by the formula Ks =-0.0011·FC²+0.1925·FC-7,4541. When having soil moisture as 80% MMHC and above, Ks = 1. A comprehensive comparative assessment of existing methods for calculating waster stress coefficient Ks was taken and it was found out that the actual values of Ks when having soil moisture as 80-70 and 60-65% MMHC by 8-14 % and 72-32 %, respectively, less than Ks FAO 56, and by 35-40 % larger than those determined by Saxton method. It was proved the need of taking into account the reduction in evapotranspiration when calculating water balance under water stress of plants. The calculation of evapotranspiration (ETs) by the Penman-Monteith method, without taking into account the water stress coefficient, showed that the value of the actual and calculated water balance coincides only when soil moisture does not exceed 62% MMHC. With a further decrease in soil moisture, the estimated soil moisture was 20% less than the actual, which led to the errors in determining soil moisture after irrigation, because its actual value was almost 100% MMHC, and the estimated one was only 60% MMHC. It was proved that the determination of water balance by calculation methods without taking into account the water stress coefficient leads to significant errors.

Effect of different types of soil tillage for sunflower on some soil physical characteristics. Part I: soil moisture

Abstract The investigation was carried out during 2014–2016 in the land of General Toshevo town in the South Dobrudzha region on slightly leached chernozem soil type. The effect of the types of soil tillage for sunflower given bellow was followed: ploughing at 24–26 cm, chisel-plough at 24–26 cm, disking with disk harrow at 10–12 cm and direct sowing (no-tillage) on the soil moisture content. Based on bulk density, wilting point and the determined soil moisture content the plant-available water was calculated. The additional soil tilths of the areas subjected to ploughing, chisel-ploughing and disking with disc harrow included double spring pre-sowing cultivation with harrowing. To destroy the emerging weeds in the variant with direct sowing, a total herbicide was applied. The soil moisture content was evaluated during three main stages of sunflower development: emergence, flowering and technical maturity. The investigated parameter was determined for each of the studied layers – 0–10, 10–20, 20–30, 30–40 and 40–60 cm. In years with normal amounts of rainfalls, no significant differences in the soil moisture under the different ways of soil tillage were observed. Conventional ploughing and tillage without turning of the soil layer contributed to accumulation of more moisture and to higher moisture storage down the soil profile under heavy and intensive rainfalls. Tillage without turning of the soil layer, minimal and no tillage maintained more and better soil moisture in years with limited precipitation and in periods of drought.

Initial development of Dipteryx alata Vog consortium with cover plants

Cover plants, due to their high biomass production capacity, and plants provide the soil with several benefits such as nutrient cycling, greater water retention and storage capacity, reduced temperature, increased aggregation and microbiota, physical protection against compaction. The objective of this work was to verify the growth of the fruit species of the cerrado, Dipteryx alata Vogel, as a consortium strategy with green fertilizers, Arachis pintoi Krapov. & W.C.Greg./Callopogonium mucunoides Desv., Crotalaria juncea L, Dolichos lablab L., [Urochloa decumbens (Stapf) R.D.Webster] with nitrogen and [Urochloa decumbens (Stapf) R.D.Webster] without nitrogen (control). The experiment covered the period from 2013 to 2017, in Rio Verde, Goiás, installed in a randomized block design, with five treatments (cover plants) and four replications. The evaluations included the macro and micronutrient contents in D. alata, biomass production by cover plants, soil moisture and biometric determinations of D. alata. The use of U. decumbens with nitrogen, D. lablab and C. juncea showed better performances in maintaining soil moisture, growth and early fruiting of D. alata, making it advantageous to use these types of consortium in its establishment under conditions of the Cerrado.

Neutron beam preparation for soil moisture measurements: Nedis-PHITS and artificial neural networks study

The angular distribution of thermal neutrons scattered from the surface of a soil sample was used to determine soil moisture content. All simulations were performed assuming optimal dimensions of the designed collimator and AmO2-Be neutron source. Moreover, an assembly consisting of five Amersham X.l4 type capsular neutron sources was studied to obtain faster, more accurate data. The results showed promising agreement with previously published data and provided insights into potential applications for the construction of biological shielding of nuclear reactors.