4th Water Institute Symposium

This is a big week for our South Florida water resource and irrigation team, as we’ll be convening in Gainesville with state and regional water reps, experts and researchers for the 4th Water Institute Symposium at the University of Florida.

A look back
Two years ago, and almost to the day, I made the same trek to Gainesville for this event. At the time, my objective was to meet Dr. Michael Dukes and decide if his program was a good fit for me.

From 2012: You had me at cavernous lab space!

I walked the campus, attended the Symposium, met the man himself, took a slew of photos and closed by helping the strawberry harvest team in Citra. The rest, as they say, is putting in work and long days.

#RedlandRaised: taken in the Redland this winter while working with Dr. Migliaccio

Flash forward to today and I’ll be attending this year's event as a registered participant; my collaborative work with Miami-Dade’s Urban Conservation Unit (U.C.U.) and with Dr. Kati Migliaccio is stronger than ever; and three videos I produced will be playing on loop in the exhibitors area during the event.

Swords out: It's a mobile smart irrigation app for turf!

#UFWIS14
What will we all be getting up to during the Symposium?

The U.C.U.: Laura Vasquez and Jesus Lomeli

Well, coming off our most viral video to date, the U.C.U. is rolling through for the water planning and water in Extension portion of the event. They will also tour the water-use research being conducted on campus, including the Florida-friendly demonstration plot study.

Dr. Migliaccio is wearing several hats for the Symposium. First she’ll present on the smart irrigation mobile apps she helped develop – a venture that has garnered national and global interest. Then she’ll follow that with moderator duty on the Water Initiative in Extension Panel - highlighting some on-going UF/IFAS Extension water initiatives.

Cisterns and alternative water sources for irrigation? We're on the case!

Meanwhile, I’ll be working the media angle: live-tweeting for the U.C.U., taking hundreds of pictures and shooting content for a cistern video series we’re working on, as well as an IrriGators Production that hopes to answer the question: why do we irrigate?

Meet the team: a high-res version of this short will loop at the Symposium 

Stay tuned
Watch this space for a report back about the Symposium and news on all the other projects mentioned above, including the unmentioned South Florida-based Landscape Irrigation Symposium that we’ll all be participating in and is just around the corner.

Smart irrigation in your pocket!

I recently produced a video for Miami-Dade’s Urban Conservation Unit (U.C.U.). This short piece introduces one of three recently released mobile device apps developed by our own Dr. Kati Migliaccio et al.

Out here in these streets

The U.C.U.'s Jesus Lomeli: just another day at the office 

Working with urban landscape irrigation systems in Miami-Dade at the residential, commercial and homeowner association (HOA) level allows for some insight into our area’s tendencies and practices. First, turf is everywhere.

The rolling hills of South Florida

Second, where the nearby ocean is not a factor, groundwater from a pump is the irrigation method of choice.

The exception: a well-water system with a digital on-site weather-based timer

And third, among both well and potable water systems alike, mechanical timers and indexing valves remain popular.

Hydro-indexing valve: neither smart, nor aesthetically pleasing

So when the U.C.U. gears up every morning to evaluate sprinkler systems, note ghastly design and maintenance, and spread the word about water-use efficiency, this is the context in which we operate.

Indeed: five mechanical timers water a high-rise in Key Biscayne

And generally the message boils down to recommending homeowners and/or managers upgrade to a digital system to usurp control of their irrigation run times, and where possible, install smart irrigation technology - digital control enhanced by a soil moisture sensor or on-site weather sensor.

Doing work: a wireless soil moisture sensor in action

Enter the app

The SmartIrrigation Turf app allows users to water their turf landscape as if a weather-based timer is operating their irrigation system. How? It combines irrigation system inputs like system location and zone soil and sprinkler head type with real-time local weather information to generate watering recommendations. Did I mention it’s free?

Tested and approved

I’ve been testing this app since early summer. I set up the Landscape Unit research plots (a site in Gainesville with rotors, drip line and multi-stream nozzles) as a system, and the app never fails to send me recommendations to increase/decrease run times, or warn me when rain is likely.

In fact, ryegrass was just planted there this week to add some color over winter and I’ll be relying on the app to alert me to turn off the turf establishment watering program when rain is afoot.

Practical and effective

For our ends, this smart turf app will prove invaluable as a teaching tool for clients still on the fence about going digital or smart with their irrigation systems. Almost everyone today, from children to grandparents, is well-versed with engaging media on mobile devices.


Jesus schools a tech

An app that can simplify the same technology used in smart irrigation timers and successfully communicate with users through a medium they value and understand can only help in our mission to promote outdoor water-use efficiency and water conservation.

See the video here or below, then learn more about the SmartIrrigation Turf app here. 

Now available for free at both the Android and iOs app stores!