Automatic Plant Watering Based on IoT-Based Light Intensity (Case Study: STMIK Kaputama Plantation)

Kangkung is one of the most popular vegetable commodities that requires sufficient water availability to support optimal growth. Manual watering often causes problems, such as water deficiency that leads to wilting or excessive watering that increases the risk of root rot. These issues are further influenced by environmental factors such as light intensity and soil moisture, which strongly affect the plant’s water requirements. This study aims to design and implement an automatic watering system based on the Internet of Things (IoT) to address these problems, with a case study in the STMIK Kaputama Garden. The system employs an LDR sensor to detect light intensity and an FC-28 soil moisture sensor as the main parameters. A NodeMCU ESP32 microcontroller acts as the controller, processing sensor data in real-time, operating the water pump via a relay module, and connecting to the Blynk application for remote monitoring and control through a smartphone. Experimental results show that the pump activates when light intensity exceeds 700 lux and soil moisture is below 40%, and automatically stops when soil moisture reaches 65%. The system has proven effective in maintaining soil moisture according to plant needs, conserving water, and simplifying plant care. Therefore, this research provides a practical and efficient solution to support modern technology-based agriculture.