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This article presents a description of the design, development, and implementation of web-based software and dedicated hardware which allows for the remote monitoring and control of a drip irrigation system. The hardware consists of in-field stations which are strategically distributed in the field and equipped with different sensors and communication devices; a weather station and drip irrigation system complete the setup. The web-based software makes it possible to remotely access and process the information gathered by all the stations and the irrigation controller. The proposed system was implemented in a young olive orchard, located in the province of San Juan, an arid region of Argentina. The system was installed and evaluated during the seasons 2014–2015 and 2015–2016. Four regulated irrigation strategies were proposed in the olive orchard to test its behavior. In this pilot experiment, the precision irrigation system was a useful tool for precisely managing the irrigation process, applying only the required amount of water (precise irrigation). Regulated deficit irrigation experiments, on the other hand, have demonstrated the sensitivity of olives to water restriction. The precision irrigation system made it possible to control soil moisture levels, avoiding water stress in the control treatment.

The proper management of irrigation systems is a key factor to achieve an efficient use of water and an adequate crop production. The use of new automatic control and communication technologies, offers a set of tools for data gathering and analysis, and assists agronomists and farmers to take better decisions in order to develop a sustainable agriculture, able to maintain its productivity and to be useful to the society in the long term. This work presents the implementation and set-up of a Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system designed to supervise and control a drip irrigation system. The irrigation system is installed in a young olive orchard, located in San Juan, an arid region fully dependent on irrigation. The main task of the system is to gather and display the information coming from the field devices (soil moisture sensors, weather station, water flow-meters and programmablelogic-controller (PLC) for commanding the irrigation system) and automatically control the irrigation. The main screen of the SCADA software presents current information related to the process and, in other tabs, gives a detailed report of data. The gathered information is saved to a data base that can be accessed by different users, allowing the participation of other users, such as irrigation advisers, laboratories, quality control, maintenance, etc. Information can be accedes locally, through internet or by other means. Results of this experience show that it is possible to apply new technological tools to manage the irrigation process as a way to improve its efficiency.

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