Oakland-based Edyn has developed a device to help people track how much they water their garden, lawn or crops.
"It tracks the soil moisture, soil nutrition, temperature, humidity and light," said Jason Aramburu, Edyn founder and CEO.
The device, which cost about $100, is used by placing it into the soil. It connects to the user's home WiFi network to relay critical soil information to their smartphone.
"So you can view what's going on in your soil from anywhere in the world," Aramburu said.
The device can tell which plants will grow best in the soil, but can also reveal if the soil is too dry or too wet.
"The system will alert you if you've over watered as well," Aramburu said.
The device is currently marketed to serious gardeners and small farmers. Larger farms have also contacted Aramburu about the device.
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"They could see that a certain block of their field is not getting enough water and they can adjust their irrigation system accordingly, or they can see that they're over watering certain parts of their field," Aramburu said.
San Jose State University Meteorology and Climate Science Professor Dr. Eugene Cordero thinks drought solutions could be the next frontier for Silicon Valley developers.
"So we're going to have to figure out how to deal with less water and farmers in the Central Valley will be drawn to technology," Cordero said. "I really do think it's quite a good industry."
Edyn is shipping to some of its 5,000 KickStarter investors now and will be sold at Home Depot stores nationwide by mid-May.
