News » 22.09.2025 - Drain measurements provided alongside irrigation data

Growficient sensors already provide insights into water content, EC levels, and dry-out. Because drain information is also a crucial part of an efficient irrigation strategy, drain data is now visible in the Growficient dashboard. Dennis Steentjes, Grower Success Manager at Growficient, explains how this helps sharpen growers irrigation strategy.

From indication to precision
In addition to light-based steering, drain is one of the most common methods growers use to manage irrigation. Dennis explains: "Most growers have a way to monitor their drain. Usually, this is done using weight-based measurements, collection trays, or drain tanks. These tanks can hold a certain amount of water. Once they're full, they empty automatically, so you know how many liters of drain you've collected since the last cycle."

While this gives you a general idea of your drain, it's still quite generic. Dennis continues:
"For example, you might see you've reached 30% drain by the end of the day, but not when that drain occurred. It's entirely possible that most of it happened in the morning, and very little in the afternoon. That kind of insight is missing. Drain sensors are placed much closer to the plant and typically measure every five minutes. That gives you far more accurate information about when drain occurs and which irrigation event triggered it."

Gaining control by combining data
When you combine drain sensor data with Growficient's other measurements, you gain visibility below the surface as well. Dennis: "You can more easily see correlations between drain, evaporation, dry-out, and EC. That gives you a much fuller picture of how your plants behave under different conditions, and at different stages of growth."

The screenshot below shows how this appears in the Growboard, Growficient's online dashboard. Dennis: "The light green bars show the amount of irrigation, the dark green bars the volume of drain. The green line indicates the cumulative drain percentage. The first graph shows a hot day, followed by two cloudy days. On those cloudy days, the drain in the final irrigation cycles is very high, which raises the question: should you have irrigated at all during those last rounds?"

Making irrigation decisions with confidence
Why is this kind of insight important? Dennis explains: "When you can see what's happening inside the plant, you know which levers to pull to support it optimally. That could mean adjusting the volume per irrigation, or changing the frequency. Fine-tuning those parameters improves the root zone, reduces nutrient deficiency and the risk of wilted plants, and ultimately leads to better growing results."

Insight into the rootzone is especially important in summer, but becomes even more valuable toward the end of the season. Dennis concludes: "If you're able to steer more precisely throughout the season, you'll grow more resilient plants that can handle unexpected weather. That helps you maintain consistent production and ensures your plants are still fit and strong heading into autumn. This means you can deliver consistent quality all the way to the final harvest."

First integrations with Wireless Value and WolkyTolky
The first integrations are now live. Dennis: "We started with Wireless Value and WolkyTolky. Their data can now be directly linked to the Growboard, so you can combine drain sensor data with insights from Growficient."

And that's just the beginning. More integrations are already in development. Dennis continues: "Our goal is to make things as easy as possible for growers. That's why we're working on connecting with climate computers as well. This will allow even more data to be integrated in the future, making insight-driven steering even more accessible."
 

Source: www.floraldaily.com

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