plant experiments
TRANSCRIPT
Plant Experiments Summary
2013 Wilting Point Study Conclusions: Plants wilted without water after between 7 days (Basil) and 33 days (Ficus). The time between wilting and death ranged from 80+ days (Aloe) to 4 days (Anthurium and Rosa). The fastest death of a plant without water was Basil (16 days). The average length of days until a plant died of lack of water was 24 days (Anthurium, Hydrangea, Rosa, Spathiphyllum, Solanum). Number of Plants: 18 Number of Species: 9 Number of Sensors: 18 FlowerPower Study Start Date: September, 2013 Study End Date: Mid-‐September, 2013 Weeks Total: 2 weeks Location: Wageningen UR, Bleiswijk, Netherlands Purpose: Determine the amount of time plants of a certain species can survive without water. Procedure:
-‐ Water plants thoroughly at the start of the study. -‐ Do not water again. -‐ Observe the decay and death of the plant over time.
Plant Distribution: Setup:
S:\PROJETS\CONNECTED_DEVICES\Hawaii\19_PlantExperiment\Wageningen\2013
Plant Name Indoor Wilting
GROUPS PER STUDYAloe 2
Anthurium 2Asplenium
Basil 2Begonia
ChrysanthemumsCyclamenDracaenaEcheveriaFicus 2
Hydrangea Macrophylla 2Kalanchoe
Phalaenopsis 2Rosa 2
Solanum Lycopersicum 2Spathiphyllum 2
YuccaTotal Plants 17
2013 Growth Thresholds Study Conclusions: This study was used to determine guidelines for the growth thresholds of all plants in the PlantDB. The plants in this study were considered ‘Model’ or ‘Ambassador’ plants whose thresholds served as templates for all the other plants. This study served to set the thresholds in fertilizer, light, and soil moisture for all the plants in the study. In combination with the theoretical work performed by Filip van Noort of the University of Wageningen Greenhouse Horticulture Research Institute in Bleiswijk/Zoetermeer in the Netherlands, this study was used to extrapolate thresholds towards all the plants in the PlantDB. This study also served as an empirical validation of the theoretical work performed by Dr. van Noort. Number of Plants: 559 Number of Species: 17 Number of Sensors: 150 FlowerPower Study Start Date: Mid-‐September, 2013 Study End Date: Mid-‐November, 2013 Weeks Total: 8 weeks Location: Wageningen UR, Bleiswijk, Netherlands Purpose: Determine the growth and death thresholds (for light, temperature, fertilizer and moisture) for different types of plants so as to extrapolate over as much of the PlantDB as possible. Procedure:
-‐ Three (3) environments were used, differing only in their light levels (humidity [80%] and temperature [20 °C +-‐ 3 °C] were controlled for) o Indoor standard light level in the North of Western Europe (0,6 DLI) o Filtered light (4 DLI) o High light (7 DLI)
-‐ Plants were placed in conditions of soil humidity, fertilizer, and light levels that were expected to damage and eventually kill the plant. Plant Distribution:
Setup:
Medium Light High Light Indoor
S:\PROJETS\CONNECTED_DEVICES\Hawaii\19_PlantExperiment\Wageningen\2013
Plant Name Indoor LightMedium-‐Light Greenhouse
Light
High-‐Light Greenhouse
LightIndoor Water
Medium-‐Light Greenhouse
Water
High-‐Light Greenhouse
Water
Medium-‐Light Greenhouse Fertilizer
High-‐Light Greenhouse Fertilizer
Total Groups Total PlantsHas One Plant in All 3 Light
Environments
Aloe 5 15 15 12 4 47 xAnthurium 5 5 15 3 25 xAsplenium 5 5 15 12 4 37 x
Basil 5 1 5 NO -‐ BasilBegonia 5 5 15 12 4 37 x
Chrysanthemums 5 5 15 12 4 37 xCyclamen 5 5 15 12 4 37 xDracaena 5 5 15 12 4 37 xEcheveria 11 1 11 NO -‐ EcheveriaFicus 5 5 15 12 4 37 x
Hydrangea Macrophylla 5 5 15 12 4 37 xKalanchoe 5 5 15 12 4 37 x
Phalaenopsis 5 15 12 3 32 xRosa 5 5 15 12 4 37 x
Solanum Lycopersicum 5 15 12 3 32 NO -‐ TomatoSpathiphyllum 5 5 15 12 4 37 x
Yucca 5 5 15 12 4 37 xTotal Plants 55 35 50 60 105 75 108 71
2014 Low Light Study Conclusions: The plants we tested survived remarkably well in even very low light environments. This validated the use of ‘Seasonality’ in the design of the alert system of PlantDr. Also found was that 4 DLI was sufficient to promote some growth in Olea and Citrus, asking the question of whether the DLI_MIN of 10 was too high for high light plants. As of the writing of this report, plants with the highest light needs still have a DLI_MIN of 10. Number of Plants: 132 Number of Species: 6 Number of Sensors: 60 FlowerPower Study Start Date: Beginning of July, 2014 Study End Date: Mid-‐December, 2014 Weeks Total: 24 weeks Location: Wageningen UR, Bleiswijk, Netherlands Purpose: Determine the ability of low light plants (chosen by popularity and expected resistance to low light) to survive in different low light environments. Procedure:
-‐ Three (3) environments were used, differing only in their light levels (humidity [80%] and temperature [20 °C +-‐ 3 °C] were controlled for) o Almost complete darkness (0,1 DLI) o Indoor standard light level in the North of Western Europe (0,6 DLI) o Filtered light (4 DLI)
-‐ Water and fertilizer were also controlled for, ensuring that the only variable at play was the light level.
Plant Distribution:
Setup:
Filtered Light Low Light Very Low Light
Plant Name Very Low Light (0,1 DLI) Indoor Light (0,6 DLI) Filtered Light (4 DLI) Total Plants by SpeciesFicus benjamina 10 10 10 30Yucca gloriosa 10 10 10 30
Zamioculcas zamiifolia 10 10 10 30Howea forsteriana 10 10 10 30
Citrus limon 0 0 6 6Olea europea 0 0 6 6
Total Plants by Environment 40 40 52 132
2015 Automatic Watering DV2 Prototype Study (Eco Mode Trials) Conclusions: This study showed that in real use cases the Kauai (FP2) and FlowerPower sensors (FP1) did not have the same VWC readings in the same medium. This study was also the first to show that while the pump was working, there was not necessarily a proportionate increase in %VWC seen by the FP2 sensor, resulting in overwatering (loss of water through the drainage system and into the ‘soucoupe’). The only successful solution attempted in this study to get a better ‘reading’ of the waterings was to move the sensor. This study highlighted problems with the battery consumption by the firmware, which was very high (dead battery in one month). Results of the Eco Mode trials showed that simply reducing the VWC_MIN thresholds did not equate to using less water (Eco_2 used more water in Tomato and Basil than Eco_1, with better health indicators for Eco_1). The primary hypothesis for this is that it’s better to have a slightly saturated medium to provide a binding agent for incoming water. A secondary hypothesis rests on the energy required by the plant to draw water from a dry medium: the drier the medium the more energy used by the plant to draw water up from the roots, resulting in lower plant health but also a smaller root structure with less capacity to draw over time – with less of a root structure and water drawing power, the medium is less able to hold water. Later studies (especially the Winter Study 2015 and Clement Terrier’s 1er Canal studies) would show that compacting the soil and taking into account the difference in soil features between a sodded plant and potting soil (when transplanting a plant into the pot) can also account for water loss and poor VWC% visibility from the FP2 sensor. Number of Plants: 36 Number of Species: 3 Number of Sensors: 36 Kauai & 48 FlowerPower Study Start Date: Beginning of July, 2015 Study End Date: Mid-‐August, 2015 Weeks Total: 8 weeks Location: Wageningen UR, Bleiswijk, Netherlands Purpose: Test the Firmware and Hardware of the Parrot Pot DV2 sensor and pump. Procedure:
-‐ All plants of the same species are from the same batch of seedlings -‐ Protocols are applied from the very beginning of the Study
Plant Distribution:
Setup:
Table Plant Protocol VWC_MIN VWC_CMD diff VWC_CMD # of PlantsNormal_1 17,5 5 22,5 4Eco_1 15 5 20 4Eco_2 12,5 5 17,5 4
Normal_1 17,5 5 22,5 4Eco_1 12,5 5 17,5 4Eco_2 12,5 5 22,5 4
Normal_1 22,5 5 27,5 4Eco_1 15 5 20 4Eco_2 10 5 15 4
3 Tomate
1 Basil
2 Hibiscus
2015 Automatic Watering DV2 Prototype Study #2 (Eco Mode Trials)
Conclusions: Using the same setups as the Prototype Study #1, this experiment confirmed the differences when reading %VWC in the same environment between FP1 and FP2 sensors. Improvements to the FW were confirmed re: battery consumption. It was understood during this study that the %VWC being used by the Kauai after calibration was in fact 5%VWC lower than what was aimed for when setting the thresholds – so one unexpected conclusion was an understanding of just how low the VWC_MIN of basil could be (5% -‐ 10%) while still growing healthy plants. The Eco Mode protocol used in this study differed from that used in the previous one (Prototype Study #1) in that basil plants were all grown using the Normal Protocol for one month and then half the plants were shifted to an Eco Mode Protocol – the result was a lower health score for the Eco Plants with no clear difference in water consumption (showing a failure for the supposed ‘Eco’ Mode). Number of Plants: 24 Number of Species: 1 Number of Sensors: 28 Kauai & 79 FlowerPower Study Start Date: Beginning of November, 2015 Study End Date: End of December, 2015 Weeks Total: 8 weeks Location: Wageningen UR, Bleiswijk, Netherlands Purpose:
-‐ Test the Firmware and Hardware of the Parrot Pot DV2 sensor and pump. Procedure:
-‐ The DV2 Prototype Pots that were still working after the first study conducted during the summer of 2015 were re-‐used in a second study -‐ Basil in a Normal protocol was used in all cases for the first half of the study (until the end of November) -‐ At the halfway point, half the Basil plants were converted to an Eco protocol
o Plants were divided into the two groups (Normal and Eco) on the basis of their general health as given by Wageningen staff Plant Distribution:
Setup:
Plant Protocol Number of plantsBasil Eco 12Basil Normal 12Evap Normal 4
2015 Automatic Watering Winter DV2 Study Conclusions: Les données des Kauai et des FlowerPowers ont été remontes au Webservice par un outil de Bruno Sautron qui tourne sur RaspberryPi et est écrit en NodeJS. Les problèmes de remonté des données vues sur le FB ont montré qu’il y avait des problèmes au niveau FW sur les uploads. Cette étude a aussi utilisé le système de clignotement des LEDS pour indiquer que tout allait bien (LED vert) ou qu’il y avait un problème (LED rouge). Ce système de clignotement des LEDs est la base du système de Parrot Pot sans Application. Six (6) Pots ont été remplacés : 5 pour problème de pompe KO, 1 pour problème de capteur KO. Parmi les problèmes de pompes KO, c’est la connexion sur la pompe qui est le point faible, susceptible de se casser par oxydation. Cette étude a encore confirmé le problème de cohérence entre les capteurs FP1 et FP2 – ils ne voient pas le même %VWC dans le même medium. Il a aussi reconfirmé le problème ou les FP2 ne voient pas l’eau pompé du réservoir & l’eau passe trop rapidement à travers le medium et dans la soucoupe (elle n’est pas diffue dans le medium, mais fuit rapidement). Number of Plants: 56 Number of Species: 6 Number of Sensors: 56 Kauai & 76 FlowerPower Study Start Date: Beginning of November, 2015 Study End Date: End of December, 2015 Weeks Total: 8 weeks Location: Wageningen UR, Bleiswijk, Netherlands Purpose:
-‐ Test the Firmware and Hardware of the Parrot Pot DV2. -‐ Test the Flower Power 2 iOS Application and the Flower Power 2 Webservice. -‐ Test the Flower Bridge Developer tool.
Procedure: -‐ All plants of the same species are from the same batch of seedlings -‐ Protocols are applied from the very beginning of the Study
Plant Distribution:
Setup:
Table Plant Protocol VWC_MIN VWC_CMD diff VWC_CMD # of PlantsNormal_1 17,5 5 22,5 4Normal_2 17,5 10 27,5 4Eco_1 10 5 15 4
Eco_1bis 10 10 20 4Eco_2 6 5 11 4
Eco_2bis 6 10 16 4
Normal_1 22,5 5 27,5 4Normal_2 22,5 10 32,5 4Eco_1 15 5 20 4Eco_2 8 5 13 4
Lemon Normal 20 5 25 4Ficus Normal 17,5 5 22,5 4Olive Normal 15 10 25 4
Spathiphyllum Normal 17,5 5 22,5 4
3
Basil
Tomato
1
2
2015 HotCold DV2 Temperature Study Conclusions: Number of Plants: 20 Number of Species: 5 Number of Sensors: 20 Kauai & 40 FlowerPower Study Start Date: Mid December, 2015 Study End Date: Mid January, 2015 Weeks Total: 4 weeks Location: Wageningen UR, Bleiswijk, Netherlands Purpose:
-‐ Test the Firmware and Hardware of the Parrot Pot DV2 under extreme temperature conditions. -‐ Test the Flower Power 2 iOS Application and the Flower Power 2 Webservice. -‐ Test the Flower Bridge Developer tool.
Procedure: -‐ Two environments are used
o One ‘Hot’ environment with an ambient temperature of 35 degrees Celsius o One ‘Cold’ environment with an ambient temperature of 10 degrees Celsius
-‐ Plants are all set to their ‘Normal’ protocol as defined by the Plant Distribution:
Setup:
Cold Environment Hot Environment
Environment Plant VWC_MIN VWC_DIFF VWC_CMD Number of PlantsHot Aloe 15 5 20 3Hot Ficus 17,5 5 22,5 4Hot Yucca 17,5 5 22,5 3Cold Abies 17,5 5 22,5 5Cold Buxus 17,5 5 22,5 5