IHS greenhouse gets ‘smart’ sprinkler

Submitted photo Agriculture and science teacher J.D. Cant, center, receives instructions on how to program a new automatic watering system in Imbler High School’s south greenhouse. Cant is receiving instructions from Dennis and Crystal Wagner, the owners of Valley Automated Watering Systems of Imbler.

Not this summer. Plants are flourishing in the greenhouse due to the robotic green thumbs of Dennis and Crystal Wagner of Imbler.

The Wagners have built a computerized sprinkler for IHS that meets the individual needs of each set of plants in the greenhouse. The sprinkler, built on an overhead track, is programmed to provide different sets of plants precise amounts of water each day.

J.D. Cant, Imbler agriculture and science teacher, gives the system two thumbs-up.

“This is the highest quality you can get,’’ Cant said.

The IHS teacher and FFA chapter adviser said plants have not been grown in the past at either of his school’s two greenhouses in the summer because he and his students were not regularly available to water them.

Not so this summer. Cant and his students are growing a wide variety of plants in the south greenhouse because of the Wagners’ sprinkler system, which was installed in the spring. The plants being grown include flowers for a wedding this summer for two former members of Imbler’s FFA chapter.

Cant said the automated sprinkler will allow IHS to grow plants more successfully during the school year because it will provide them with precisely the right amount of liquid. This is hard to do manually. Often people end up giving some plants too much water and others too little.

Cant said precise watering is particularly important when plants are in the early stages of growth.

The Wagners provided and installed the automated watering system at a major discount. They did so because it would provide a good test for their new system and because they were impressed with the school’s agriculture program.

“We were excited about working with J.D. because of his enthusiasm and because of the fact that the crops he grew were so varied that it would test our system and showcase how it could handle difficult and daily changes in programming,’’ Dennis Wagner said.

The Wagners will continually upgrade Imbler’s automated system.

Dennis Wagner said programming the system to provide varying amounts of water to plants is easy. The operator simply walks along with the control and enters straightforward commands for each crop he or she is watering.

The operator then enters the times he or she wants the watering done.

“It sounds simple because it is,’’ Wagner said.

Imbler Superintendent Doug Hislop describes the watering system as “a completed vision.’’

He explained that the Wagners’ machine is the answer to the question, “What if you could build a machine which would give each plant precisely the amount of water it needs?’’

The superintendent said he is excited about the learning opportunities students will receive by operating the automated watering system, installed this spring.

The students will be learning how to program its computer so it will provide the water needed and looking up information

on how much water plants need.

Hislop said he hopes the automated watering system can be used to help Cant’s classes grow vegetables for the Imbler School District’s food service program.