Implementation of Low Cost, Automated, Mobile Monitoring Module by Means of IoT for Container Gardening in Urban Areas

In the global context, food and resource utilization have been significant interests in the enduring sustainable production. Sri Lanka being a country where agricultural sector contributes significantly to its economy and it is very crucial to identify the ability to increase the productivity to supply to the increasing Sri Lankan population, especially in the urban areas. The limited amount of space and climate variability have led to the emergence of urban agriculture. Despite leading busy lifestyles, the residents in urban areas not only expect the harvest but also the aesthetic value associated with their indoor plantation. This has turned urban gardens to be smart, autonomous, and efficient with the trend towards interconnected devices. The main objective of this study was to build a low cost, automated, mobile monitoring module for container gardening in urban areas. In construction the device, several sensors [Environmental humidity and temperature sensor, light sensor, Passive Infrared Sensors, soil temperature sensor, soil moisture sensor) and a base station connecting the cloud to the whole network were used. The system track plants on a mobile device which has the capability of providing real-time updates on crop conditions through the internet (Thinkspeak site). Moreover, automated planting helps to reduce human involvement in care of the plant. This is capable of tracking plants and can use the sensor data to ensure plants are able to maintain optimal growth conditions. This system built with NodeMCU ESP-32 has been designed and successfully examined during the study.