First tests with thermal imaging camera

A normal digital image of the potential site for growing bananas at West Town Farm with thermal image alongside. White/red are hottest spots and blue/black are coolest spots.  Cattle can be seen in the distance at the top of the hill.

Button sensors

Measuring growing conditions more precisely

Temperature sensor - Easterbrooks, West Town Farm, Ide

Having selected a potential site for banana growing at West Town Farm, we're now investigating air and soil temperatures using iButton^® data loggers. The loggers themselves are tiny, but those measuring air temperatures need to be protected by radiation shields to ensure their readings aren't affected by direct sunlight. (We made these shields from ordinary kitchen funnels.)

There are seven sensors on the south-facing slope of Easterbrooks and two on a north-facing slope opposite, installed with the help of Dr Jonathan Bennie from Exeter University Environment & Sustainability Institute. The sensors will take readings every 30 minutes for up to 42 days.  We're looking forward to downloading the first batch of data and finding out what they tell us.