Which tool do you recommend I use to measure the moisture content of bio365 media?
bio365 soils release water across a wide range of tension, allowing for dry backs during crop establishment with low risk of wilting and providing options for fewer waterings and use of strategies to dry stress the plant, if desired during later growth stages.
We recommend using a tensiometer to guide decisions whilst setting up your growing system and establishing standard operating procedures (SOPs). Having established SOPs it is possible to establish moisture readings that correspond to desired tension thresholds allowing moisture meters to guide routine management.
Related Articles
What is the difference between a moisture meter and a tensiometer?
Moisture meters estimate the volumetric moisture content of a material based on the dielectric constant of the substrate. Tensiometers provide a measure the force required to obtain water from soil. Tension is a direct measure of the force a plant ...
What is a tensiometer?
A tensiometer is used to measure the force required to obtain water from soil: known as soil moisture tension, soil water suction, or soil matric potential. A porous ceramic cup or tube is buried in the soil at the depth of interest. This ceramic cup ...
What is a moisture meter?
There are two main types of sensors that measure the volumetric water content in soilless media: Time Domain Reflectometry (TDR) and Capacitance. Both types of sensors measure the dielectric constant of the substrate. The dielectric constant is 1 for ...
Does the presence of biochar in your media affect how I should measure soil moisture and other properties?
Biochar has an inherently high electrical conductivity. This conductivity may interfere with soil measurements. We have occasionally seen erroneous measurements with push in type pH and EC meters as well as TDR moisture meters. While infrequent, it ...
Do you recommend a specific type of water?
We do not, but it is important to understand the quality of water being used in horticulture. In particular, you should understand the alkalinity of you water and presence of any minerals. If you have a high ppm water source, we recommend treating ...