Smart Agriculture: Secret to Increased Yield of Lemon Trees

As the afternoon sun scorched the earth, the smart orchard of HDLEMON in Tongnan District was filled with fragrance in August.

The current observation suggests the yield for the 200 Mu (nearly 13.3 hectares) smart orchard will increase from 1,000 kilograms to 1,200 kilograms, according to Luo Huayong, deputy general manager of Huida Group. The rate of first-grade fruit production will rise by 20% to 80%. 

Why can the smart orchard help improve the quality and quantity of lemons? The secret lies in the following smart devices and their applications.

Micro weather station - Accurately forecasting frost

Frost is the "enemy" of winter crops. Tongnan District was hit with frost early this year, but Huida's intelligent orchard remained safe and sound.

The lemon trees were kept warm thanks to CHONGC TECH in Liangjiang New Area, which equipped the orchard with smart facilities. The Micro Weather Station monitors the weather indicators around the orchard and sends early warnings to the management personnel before frost forms.

When the management personnel received the warning message, they clicked on the mobile phone to activate the anti-freezing facilities to warm the soil and protect the fruit.

All Huida's lemon trees did not suffer frostbite this year thanks to the smart system, paving the way for increased fruit production.

Soil monitor-Sensing the moisture content of the soil

Zhang Jinlong, R&D director of CHONGC TECH, said that the roots of many plants are inactive. If the water content in the shallow layer of soil is sufficient, they will no longer run deep. In order to produce first-class fruit, it is necessary to "train" the roots to penetrate deeply so they can absorb more nutrients and water and are less likely to lodge.

In the smart orchard, the soil monitor is shaped like a thin steel pipe, and the sensor is buried underground up to 1 meter deep. On top are solar panels and a data transmitter, which upload the moisture content of collected soil to the cloud platform, where management and maintenance personnel can irrigate in real-time and adjust "training" plans for lemon trees accordingly.

HD camera - Finding out pests

In May, lemon trees began to bear fruit. In warmer temperatures, various pests were seen frequently as a major factor affecting lemon quality.

The smart orchard places high requirements for pest control: On one hand, pests should be eliminated as soon as possible; on the other hand, pesticides should be limited to prevent environmental damage.

Several high-definition cameras are installed in the smart orchard, which can identify pest types using image recognition technology and count them algorithmically. Information is presented on a large smart screen indoors for management personnel to check the situation.

Smart trickle irrigation - Supplement with water and fertilizer at once

Chongqing experienced extreme weather with continuous hot days this July and August. Lemon trees that lack water and nutrients will be stunted, resulting in reduced yield and quality.

The intelligent trickle irrigation system allows the management personnel to water the lemon trees from an air-conditioned room by tapping their mobile phone screens. It is also possible to restock fertilizer with the trickle irrigation system after moistening the soil and then irrigate again to promote infiltration and better absorption of less fertilizer.

The orchard under trial got positive preliminary results. Huida plans to accelerate the orchard's intelligent transformation. Luo Huayong said that the company has another 1,000,000 square meters of orchards that will be transformed within one year.