My inspiration
I love cooking and always wanted to have my own garden with different herbs. But there was one issue: I always screw up my plants. Tried many times – same result. They die faster than I realize I need to water them. So I started to think – how can I automate this process? So I can always have my herbs nearby without need to take care about them.
What the system is built with
So I've created a system based on Raspberry Pi 2, water pump, drop watering system and sensors:
- 3 soil humidity sensors (1 sensor for each pod. My system can serve up to 3 pods)
- 1 temperature/humidity sensor
- Ambient light sensor
Additionally you can install webcam (for time-lapse video of your plants growing) and Philips Hue Lamp (you will be able to control it remotely).
How it works:
System runs 24/7. Every 1 hour it checks sensors in the following order and acts based on this:
1. Soil Humidity sensors. If soil humidity is lower than 60% at least at 1 plant – system activates water pump for 5 seconds. There is a limitation – no more than 2 watering/days.
2. System checks air humidity and temperature. If temperature is lower than 15C –> it sends email notification “Consider to move plants inside your apartment”.
3. Light sensor. In case light level is lower than 60% during the day (from 9 AM till 9 PM) – system activates Wi-Fi lightning (I use Philips Hue lamp) with a soft sun-like light.
Additionally system logs all the results into .txt file, that I can access remotely at any point in time.
As a bonus I've enabled my old web-cam, so it takes pictures every 1 hour. Afterwards I'll be able to do great time-lapse video to see my herbs growing.
For more detail: Automatic Plant Watering system
