ONDO built an automated subsurface drip irrigation system for 150+ ha of almond and plum orchards across 3 farms
ONDO has successfully completed a large-scale irrigation automation project across three farms owned by the same agricultural producer, located at three different sites and covering more than 150 hectares of orchards in total. The installed systems cover a 100-hectare almond orchard in the village of Drachevo, Burgas Province; 25 hectares of plum orchards in the village of Voden, Yambol Province; and 25 hectares of almond orchards in the village of Kamen, Sliven Province.
Four ONDO Pro controllers and five separate irrigation infrastructures have been implemented to manage the automation, while valve control across the three farms is carried out through more than 50 wireless ONDO AIR Point modules. The systems enable fully remote operation and provide reliable control over irrigation and precision fertigation at each farm.
The turnkey project, delivered by the ONDO team, also included the construction of complete irrigation infrastructure with subsurface drip irrigation, designed according to the specific characteristics of each site. Two reservoirs with capacities of 1,000 m³ and 700 m³ were constructed at the farm in Drachevo, while a reservoir with a capacity of approximately 700 m³ was built at the farm in Voden.
Due to the lack of access to the public electricity grid, the main irrigation pumps at all three sites are powered by diesel generators. The ONDO Pro controllers, in turn, receive a continuous power supply from small solar power systems designed and installed by the ONDO team. Through integrated functionality, the controllers also manage the diesel generators and the connected pumps using variable-frequency control.
All sites are equipped with three-channel FertiON nutrient dosing solutions for the automation of precision fertigation, as well as automatic self-cleaning sand and screen filters for primary and secondary filtration.
The implementation presented significant engineering and irrigation challenges due to the rugged terrain, considerable elevation differences and rocky soils. The site in Kamen was particularly complex, as the elevation difference exceeds 110 metres, requiring highly precise hydraulic design.
At the Drachevo site, the main challenge was the scale of the project: 100 hectares of difficult-to-access, rugged terrain had to be covered by the wireless automation system, together with kilometres of newly constructed water distribution pipelines, all within a limited implementation period. Despite the rugged landscape and challenging topography, the wireless communication system provided stable coverage and reliable automated control of the irrigation process.
ONDO designed and implemented the entire project, including hydraulic sizing, the installation of primary and secondary pipelines, the mechanised installation of tens of km of subsurface drip irrigation lines, automation, commissioning and integration with soil sensors.
The systems can manage irrigation remotely and fully automatically according to predefined schedules, as well as on the basis of the soil’s water-holding capacity measured by soil-moisture sensors. The result is a reliable, energy-efficient and fully remotely controlled infrastructure that simplifies operations across the three farms and enables precise management of water resources, even under exceptionally difficult terrain conditions.
The Project in numbers:
* 20+ km of underground pipelines, ranging in diameter from 40 to 160 mm
* 220+ km of subsurface drip irrigation lines
* 50+ wireless valve control modules
* 4 ONDO Pro controllers
* 5 main irrigation pumps
* 55 solenoid valves
* 20 soil moisture sensors
We would like to thank our customer for their trust and for giving us the opportunity to help Bulgarian farmers become even more competitive, sustainable and successful.
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