What can a smart irrigation system do?

A smart irrigation system makes watering your garden a breeze. But how exactly does this actually work?

The water needs of a garden or irrigation area depend on many factors. For example, temperature and sun intensity, soil structure, plant species and root depth, wind and humidity are important. And most of the time, the main source of water is still natural rain and not artificial irrigation. A smart irrigation system can communicate via the Internet and optimize water delivery based on measured parameters and via Internet control, thereby promoting the health of soil and plants.

Here are the key capabilities a smart irrigation system should have

1. App control and remote access: A smart irrigation system should be accessible via a smartphone app that allows the user to monitor status, change settings and receive notifications no matter where they are.
2. Customizable watering times: The system should support schedules that can be adjusted at any time to suit the individual needs of the garden and plants.
3. Weather integration: A key feature of smart irrigation systems is the consideration of weather forecasts to decide when and how much to water. If rain is imminent, irrigation is reduced or stopped completely.
4. Soil Moisture Sensors: Using sensors to measure soil moisture allows the system to accurately determine when the soil is dry and needs water. This prevents both overwatering and underwatering.
5. Water quantity control: It should provide the ability to precisely control the water quantity to avoid waste and protect the environment.
6. Energy efficiency: to be smart, devices must be connected to each other and constant communication costs a lot of energy. Therefore, they ideally work with solar charging and a long-lasting battery.
7. Compatibility with smart home systems: A good smart irrigation system should integrate with existing smart home systems so that it can work with other devices such as weather stations or voice assistants.
8. Adaptability to different types of plants and areas of a garden: Different plants and areas of the garden have different irrigation needs to which a smart system can be adapted.

How smart is MIYO?

The MIYO irrigation system in a garden is controlled by the MIYO Cube. This stores and processes all data locally and is connected to the Internet via a standard Ethernet connection, making it easily accessible from a variety of systems. Thus, the Cube is connected to the MIYO app on the smartphone, stores the garden status in the MIYO Cloud, receives weather data, and can be controlled by smart home systems or through the open API by self-created programs.

"For optimal irrigation, the garden is divided into irrigation zones. For each zone, any number of irrigation windows can be set up throughout the week. If a Sensor is used, the target area for soil moisture can be defined."

On the side of the garden, the Cube is connected via radio to the valves and sensors. It receives information from the Sensor about soil moisture, temperature, and sunlight intensity for the irrigation area. When irrigation is triggered due to the parameters or manually, the Cube opens the valves assigned to the irrigation area.

What advantages does MIYO bring?

• blooming garden: with MIYO, irrigation is very easy and can be quickly adapted to the needs of soil and plants. This allows a crucial factor for a blooming garden, irrigation, to always be kept optimal.
• Water savings: through the diverse settings, the integration of soil moisture measurement and weather forecasting, MIYO can significantly reduce water consumption. In phases with frequent rainfall, the savings exceed 50%.
• no battery consumption: the energy for sensors and devices is provided via solar charging. Conventional valves, e.g., from Gardena, consume at least 3 AA batteries per irrigation season. MIYO requires 3 AAA batteries for a lifespan of 5-10 years. The savings of about 12 to 30 batteries per Valve (!) over the lifespan of the devices is an important contribution to conserving resources and the environment.
• Irrigation zones: with MIYO, the garden can be divided into any number of irrigation circuits, all of which can be individually tailored to the needs of the plants. This ensures that plants with different water requirements are optimally and water-efficiently irrigated.

What can MIYO not do?

Every garden is different. The differences start with the soil and extend to microclimate, slope, orientation, and the plants. MIYO cannot make adjustments to these conditions, but with MIYO, the garden owner receives a powerful tool to efficiently and sustainably address one of the main questions, namely the water balance.

Switch and let your smart MIYO irrigation system do the work for you!