What if the soil could power agricultural sensors on its own?
Source: HD.com
Precision agriculture has advanced considerably in recent years, driven by sensors, data platforms, and automation systems capable of monitoring almost any agronomic variable imaginable. The biological process itself also produces hydrogen ions that ultimately combine with oxygen to generate water within the system, a feature that allows part of that moisture to be used for subsurface irrigation or even for thermal regulation of certain urban green spaces through water vapor circulation.
In other words, the system does not capture ambient humidity; it directly converts biological soil processes into usable energy and water resources." © Bioo The company's agricultural line, scheduled for commercial launch next year, is the result of more than three years of joint work with Bayer Crop Science at experimental facilities in Brenes, Seville, where Bioo has been able to validate a range of applications specifically designed for precision agriculture. With this technology, the company aims to build what Vidarte describes as "the dictionary of plant language." Unlike current systems, which interpret indirect variables such as moisture, temperature, or pH to infer the physiological state of a crop, this approach would detect signals directly associated with water stress, disease, fungal presence, or even fire risk.
+34 937 308 550 [email protected] https://www.biootech.com/es Publication date: Fri 26 Jun 2026 © HortiDaily.com / Marta del Moral Arroyo Related Articles → See More What if the soil could power agricultural sensors on its own? Using cork to aid growing Strawberry tip production in Morocco supports Northern European propagation needs The new frontier of automated seeding Biochar enriched with agricultural by-products: a potential soil amendment alternative of high agronomic value “Modern growers cannot afford inconsistency anymore” Bell pepper grower scales up with coir substrate Offering vegetative propagators a uniquely different experience "The soil has stopped responding": the invisible degradation of greenhouse soils Making climate targets achievable for horticultural businesses Related Articles What if the soil could power agricultural sensors on its own?
Why this matters: For operators, this is a water-management story. The useful signal is that direct substrate measurements can help cut drain loss materially without giving up yield or fruit quality, which is exactly the kind of controllable efficiency gain a facility can build on.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does substrate sensing matter in free-drain strawberry systems?
Because drain percentage tells a grower what already happened, while substrate moisture and EC data show root-zone conditions directly. That makes it easier to cut water loss without guessing.
What is the operator takeaway from this trial?
If the thresholds are understood well enough, growers can reduce drain water materially while protecting yield and fruit quality, which makes sensing an operational tool instead of a reporting tool.
