Automated system for the phytogenetic laboratory propagation of olea europaearemotely controled.

Abstract

: In Argentina, since 1990, the area planted with olive trees has grown signifi- cantly, due not only to the increase in the profitability of olive oil production due to the price of olive oil and the information cam- paigns on the benefits for human health of its consumption, but also to the support measu- res adopted by the government, especially tax incentives.The current cultivated area (90,000 ha) has placed our country among the top ten producers worldwide. The asexual reproduc- tion of plant species by direct implantation of cuttings (cuttings from an adult plant) has been known since ancient times. The olive tree multiplication technique improved from 1970 onwards, especially due to the process of rooting cuttings under nebulization. Hartman et al. of the University of California have pio- neered the adaptation of this technique. Ba- sed on the above mentioned background, the objective of this work is particularly oriented to define, design and build a laboratory pro- totype of an equipment to optimize the roo- ting phase, seeking to maximize the percen- tage of cuttings that form adventitious roots, implementing an environmental control sys- tem tuned for this purpose. The applied me- thodology corresponds to an experimental development, with emphasis on the selection of sensors: ambient relative humidity, leaf hu- midity, temperature of the implantation subs- trate and ambient temperature, as well as the selection of actuators to modify the substrate temperature, irrigation and heat extraction. Using Internet of Things (conceptsIoT), a te- lemetry system isintegrated, which will allow alerting about any type of failure or anomaly, commanding the set points of the controlled variables and monitoring the internal and external environmental variables. The results achieved to date are presented in the paper.