In the scientific practice of precision irrigation and soil water resource management, a core challenge lies in the fact that traditional point sensors can only capture the instantaneous state of a certain “point” in the soil, while water absorption by crop roots, water infiltration, salt migration and drought occurrence are all continuous dynamic processes that take place on the vertical “profile”. To solve this problem, HONDE Company has launched a tubular soil moisture profile monitoring system. This product, with its unique design concept, connects discrete “points” into continuous “lines”, achieving non-destructive, long-term and in-situ continuous monitoring of soil moisture, temperature and salinity on vertical profiles, providing an unprecedented data insight dimension for agricultural, ecological and hydrological research.
I. Product Concept: The leap from “single-point snapshot” to “sectional image”
The HONDE tubular sensor system consists of a sturdy engineering plastic or ceramic tube (referred to as the “access tube”) and a height-adjustable multi-parameter probe. The probe can be lowered to different depths inside the pipe via a cable for measurement, or fixed at a specific depth for long-term continuous monitoring.
Core technical principle: The probe is usually based on frequency-domain reflection or time-domain reflection technology. It forms electromagnetic coupling with the surrounding soil through the pipe wall and non-destructively measures the volumetric water content, electrical conductivity and temperature of the soil outside the pipe.
Revolutionary advantage
Continuous profile data: It can measure continuous water/salinity/temperature profiles from the surface to deep layers (commonly 1 meter, 2 meters or deeper), accurately depicting the movement of water fronts, root water absorption depth and salinity accumulation layers.
Long-term in-situ monitoring: One-time installation, permanent measurement. The probe does not directly undergo physical or chemical reactions with the soil, avoiding the drift or damage caused by soil contraction, expansion or salt corrosion in traditional embedded sensors. The long-term stability of the data is extremely high.
Multi-point flexible access: One system can easily measure multiple depths on the same vertical profile, with high cost performance. Moreover, the probe technology can be upgraded or replaced in the future without the need to re-excavate the soil.
Ii. Core Application Scenarios and Scientific Value
Precision irrigation and root system water and fertilizer management
This is where its most direct value lies. The system guides irrigation to achieve a qualitative leap by revealing the dynamics of water in soil profiles:
Determine the timing and amount of irrigation: Not only to know “the surface is dry”, but also to know “whether the root layer is short of water” and “how deep the water has seeped”. It can precisely implement “water control and seedling retention” or “deep irrigation” to promote root penetration and enhance the crop’s stress resistance.
Optimize irrigation strategies: Clearly display the shape and depth of the wet front after drip irrigation or furrow irrigation, verify irrigation uniformity, optimize the flow rate and layout spacing of emitters, and avoid deep seepage or insufficient irrigation.
Water and fertilizer coupling management: Synchronously monitor the salt profile to prevent salt accumulation in the root zone caused by fertilization and evaluate the leaching efficiency.
2. Drought Early Warning and Eco-hydrology Research
Soil reservoir monitoring: Precisely quantify the storage and consumption of soil water in different soil layers, providing scientific data based on physical processes for regional drought assessment.
Ecological water consumption research: Monitoring the utilization of deep soil water by trees or deep-rooted crops, studying the hydraulic connection between vegetation and groundwater, and providing key basis for ecological water use and water resource allocation.
3. Monitoring of geological disasters and slope stability
In non-agricultural fields, this system is used to monitor the migration of water and changes in pore water pressure within slopes, roadbeds or DAMS, and it is an important precursor monitoring method for predicting geological disasters such as landslides and collapses.
4. Evaluation of the governance and improvement effects of saline-alkali land
By continuously monitoring the leaching, evaporation accumulation and seasonal dynamics of salt on the profile over a long period of time, the true effects of different improvement measures (such as gypsum application, concealed pipe salt drainage, and water-saving irrigation) can be quantitatively evaluated, guiding scientific improvement.
Iii. Technical Advantages and System Composition
High precision and low drift: By adopting advanced sensing technology, the moisture measurement accuracy can reach ±2% (volumetric water content), and the annual drift rate is extremely low, ensuring the scientific value of long-term data.
Sturdy and durable access pipe: Made of anti-corrosion and low thermal expansion coefficient materials, it ensures long-term stable existence in various types of soil without affecting farming.
Intelligent data acquisition and transmission: The probe can be connected to a multi-functional data collector, supporting solar power supply and 4G/NB-IoT wireless transmission, enabling remote control measurement and real-time data acquisition.
Professional data analysis software: The equipped software can visually display the spatiotemporal dynamic changes of moisture/salinity/temperature profiles, generate contour maps, and perform depth integration calculations (such as total root layer water storage).
Iv. Empirical Case: Data-Driven Deep Water Conservation
At a large-scale water-saving experiment station for winter wheat-summer corn rotation in the North China Plain, researchers installed the HONDE tubular profile monitoring system. Through monitoring for two consecutive growing seasons, they found that:
Under traditional irrigation, over 60% of the irrigation water seeps into deep layers below one meter where the root system has difficulty making use of it.
The main water absorption depth of wheat during the jointing stage is 40 to 60 centimeters, while corn can effectively utilize soil water at a depth of 80 to 100 centimeters during the grain-filling stage.
Based on these profile data, they formulated a precise irrigation system of “dynamic water replenishment according to the depth of the root layer”. As a result, under the premise of ensuring yield, the irrigation water consumption throughout the entire rotation cycle decreased by 32%, and the risk of nitrogen fertilizer leaching was also significantly reduced. The achievements of this project have provided solid scientific data support for the formulation of regional agricultural water-saving policies.
Conclusion
The movement of soil moisture is a silent yet crucial journey that takes place “underground”. The HONDE tubular soil moisture sensor, like a “CT scanner” aligned with the soil profile, makes this journey clear, measurable and manageable. It transcends the limitations of traditional point measurement and provides an irreplaceable tool for us to understand water transport in the soil-plant-atmosphere continuum and formulate truly scientific resource management strategies. From farmland that pursues “water conservation” to river basins that study “water balance”, and then to slopes that warn of “instability”, this product is safeguarding the safety and sustainable utilization of water and soil resources in a broader field with its unique profile monitoring capabilities, pushing precision agriculture and eco-hydrology research to a deeper dimension.
About HONDE: As a leader in professional soil and moisture monitoring technology, HONDE is committed to revealing the complex processes of the underground world through innovative sensing solutions. We believe that a profound understanding of the water, salt and heat dynamics of soil profiles is the scientific cornerstone for addressing food security, water shortages and environmental challenges.
For more soil sensor information, please contact Honde Technology Co., LTD.
WhatsApp: +86-15210548582
Email: info@hondetech.com
Company website: www.hondetechco.com
Post time: Dec-10-2025