What if farmers could harness the moisture that falls during the winter season and use it when their crops are lacking water during the growing season — all with the touch of a button.
That’s just what the Automated Drainage Water Management project, backed by the AgTech Innovation Hub, set out to study last year.
“During the winter season and the spring we let go of about 12-15 inches of water and then come growing season we are short about 4 to 6 inches of water for the grain crops in Ohio,” said Vinayak S. Shedekar, Ph.D., assistant professor of Agricultural Water Management in The Ohio State University College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (CFAES).
Driving the research at two Ohio farms was the question: “Does an automated water management system optimize the management of the water better than a manual system?”
The multi-discipline research into monitoring for water budget components and crop physiological responses showed that the impact to crops could be “seen in real time,” Shedekar said. “Farmers can change something with the click of a button because of the automation, helping control input costs and overall production costs on the farm.”
The Automated Drainage Water Management project is an AgTech Innovation Hub success story.
The AgTech Innovation Hub is a partnership launched in 2022 between OFBF Heritage Partner, Nationwide, The Ohio State University CFAES and Ohio Farm Bureau that drives innovation in agricultural technology to create practical, data-driven solutions for farmers.
“Projects that come through the Hub are challenged to deliver real, measurable outcomes over the course of a single year,” said Bethany Rowles, Nationwide senior consultant, business program management and innovation director of the AgTech Innovation Hub. “This project absolutely delivered, and it was great to see how their success set them up for some really meaningful funding opportunities to continue their work outside the AgTech Innovation Hub.”
The system provides farmers with real-time data and predictive analytics to optimize water levels in their fields. Unlike traditional drainage water management systems that rely on manual operations, it uses automated systems to control water flow, ensuring the optimal levels for crop growth and helping reduce loss of nutrients through tile drainage.
“Put simply, ADWM allows farmers to more precisely bank unused water that can be used later during drier periods of the growing season,” said Brad Liggett, president of Nationwide Agribusiness. “It provides a practical solution for farmers to protect their livelihoods from the increasing threat of drought while making their operations more efficient.”
Throughout the study, researchers collected extensive data on soil moisture levels, crop performance and water flow dynamics, utilizing advanced analytics to refine the ADWM technology. By collaborating closely with local farmers, the team ensured the solutions developed were practical and tailored to meet the real-world challenges of drought-prone areas.
“An investment in ADWM today can help farmers and their fields be more certain in the face of increasing drought risks and future climatic variability,” said Dr. Steve Lyon, CFAES professor of hydrology and water resources.
The annual Overholt Drainage School run by Shedekar showcases advanced technologies for drainage design, installation and management. The next Overholt Drainage School will be held at Ohio State ATI on CFAES Wooster campus in March 2026.
Due to its success, the AgTech Innovation Hub funded four additional research projects in 2024 that span a wide range of innovative approaches to tackling some of agriculture’s biggest challenges.
Two of the projects focused on weather-related risks: one tapped into Ohio State University Extension professionals to help increase awareness of practices and structural decisions to cope with extreme weather, while the other is helping upgrade Ohio’s weather monitoring
system to provide more accurate data for farmers.
A third project looked at the potential benefits of using an independent contractor approach to labor in the agricultural community. The final project focused on the use of drones to detect possible issues in a controlled environment agriculture operation before catastrophic losses occur. These projects will be wrapped up by the end of 2025.
The network was established in fall 2015 on farms in Hardin and Hancock counties. Nearly 200 different tours and events took place on the three farms totaling nearly 4,000 visitors in its 10-year span.
Read More
For more information or to sign up for weather alerts, farm policyholders should contact their Nationwide agent or visit ofb.ag/nationwideweatheralert.
Read More
What if farmers could harness the moisture that falls during the winter season and use it when their crops are lacking water during the growing season — all with the touch of a button.
Read More
The weather app that comes preloaded on every smart phone might offer weather predictions, but that impersonal data can’t match…
Read More
The theme of this issue is weather, its impacts on agriculture, and how farmers can remain resilient.
Read More
The recent findings from Stone Lab and the NOAA forecast are encouraging and reflect the years of efforts farmers have put into water quality and stewardship.
Read More
Weather balloons take in information regarding the temperature and dew point within the column of the atmosphere to give forecasters a ‘snapshot’ of what the atmosphere looks like at a given time.
Read More
Sharp swings between wet and dry conditions are becoming a defining feature of Ohio’s climate.
Read More
A unique ‘rent-a-calf’ program allows Butler County 4-H and FFA kids who do not have the ability to take on a home dairy project to rent-a-calf from Mullen Dairy for the county fair.
Read More
Is your property and pocketbook ready for what Mother Nature has in store?
Read More
