Agricultural Frost Monitoring

Perrault Farms, an Eastern Washington grower, uses an automated frost monitoring system to save some cold hard cash!

Background:
Located in the heart of Central Washington is the Yakima Valley.  The fertile soil in the Yakima Valley has gained it recognition as a leading agricultural center, and earned it the nick name of "The Fruit Bowl of the Nation".  The valley's hot and dry summer and cool winters make it ideal for a large and highly varied farm base.  Apples, cherries, pears, grapes and many other fruits plus a wide variety of vegetables, seeds, field crops and cereal grains make the Yakima Valley one of the top agricultural producers in the nation.   Perrault Farms, which was established in 1968 is one of the leading farms in the Yakima Valley, producing organic hops with various orchard crops, including cherries, pears, and apples. 

Problem Statement:
Although the Yakima Valley enjoys an average of 290 days of sunshine a year, springtime temperatures are still cool to cold, and Perrault Farms uses propane fueled burners to provide supplemental heat to control frost damage to their cherry and pear orchards.  Burners were manually started and stopped based on periodic temperature "spot checks" conducted by farm staff, so data about where the heating was actually required and how long it was required was inconsistent.  The lack of consistent "real-time" orchard temperature data resulted in higher propane consumption plus additional labor costs.  Perrault Farms wanted easy access to automated, "real-time" orchard temperature data that would allow them to more accurately control their propane usage.

Solution Description:
To meet Perrault Farms' needs, MeasureTek provided them with a frost monitoring system that:

1. Automatically measures  real-time temperature data throughout the orchards
2. Makes that data available on internet accessible, computer display screens
3. Provides a voice alarm callback to alert them when temperatures drop below adjustable alarm levels
4. Provides a voice alarm call-in that allows farm staff to contact the measuring system via phone and obtain current temperature data

The solution uses Campbell Scientific CR1000 data loggers and wireless sensors combined with spread spectrum radio communications.  The Perrault Farms system monitors temperatures and weather throughout the farm with wireless sensors, updating the base computer display every 4 minutes.

Result:
The system achieved its initial goal, which was to measurably decrease propane usage and reduce associated labor costs.  According to Perrault Farms, after one winter season, "it is already paying for itself in fuel savings, labor and hopefully increased production.  Barring a crop disaster we will want to add to the system next year."  Perrault Farms gained an unexpected benefit from the system as well.  During the summer of its first year in service, Perrault Farms discovered that they could use the system in reverse to determine when to commence the use of overhead irrigation for sunburn control on their apple orchards!

For more information on this or other applications, please contact MeasureTek at (541) 924-8988 or visit our website at www.measuretek.com.