How to have better cost-informed irrigation decisions

Growers invited to participate in research project!

Researchers at the University of South Australia have been working with Sentek for 10+ years on a technology that links farm accounts and in situ sensor and weather data to inform decisions about irrigation timing, duration, disease detection and budgeting. We have developed the tool in potatoes and viticulture and have now been awarded an Australia’s Economic Accelerator Ignite Grant to build the tool for additional agricultural industries.

We are interested in avocados given their shallow root system and sensitivity to both under- and over-watering. Even short-term water stress can lead to fruit drop, lower yields, or smaller fruit sizes. Importantly, avocado growers face increasing market pressure and climate unpredictability—high quality is demanded amidst longer dry periods, irregular rainfall, and heat stress and access to irrigation water is limited or costly in many avocado-growing regions, especially during droughts.

Growers are invited to participate in this research. Growers participating in this research will be at the forefront of testing and shaping a new digital tool designed to improve irrigation decision-making and boost on-farm profitability. The tool will support decision-making on when to irrigate, for how long, and how much, based on both your financial data and sensor data—helping reduce unnecessary water use and related costs. Participation would require for a period of 12 months:

• Initial discussion about operations, growing season, crop key variables, irrigation key variables, irrigation decision making, financial-related farming decisions.
• Access to paddock for Sentek sensor deployment at our cost and access to and instructions for related software.
• Access to or provision of financial data on key variable and fixed costs and yield income.
• Ongoing remote/in-person monitoring and discussion.
• Post-harvest summary and feedback on software.

Growers who participate will have access to sensors, software, technical experts and researchers who can help understand true irrigation costs across paddocks by linking irrigation activity to your farm accounting data, in addition to being afforded scenario models to assist in planning for different price, climate, or water allocation outcomes with a decision tool designed to support future-ready, resilient operations.

If this project is of interest, we welcome your contact and can provide further information any time.

Please contact Joanne Tingey-Holyoak, email joanne.tingey@unisa.edu.au pr call 0488 990 714 or contact Marc Intervera, email mintervera@sentek.com.au or call 0401 843 273.

Acknowledgement

This project has been approved by the UniSA Human Research Ethics Committee (Approval Number: 207117). The research will be undertaken according to the NHMRC National Statement on Ethical Conducted in Human Research.  The UniSA Human Research Ethics Committee monitors all research projects that it has approved.

This article appears as part of the 15 August 2025 issue of Guacamole, AAL’s enewsletter.

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