DevicesSoilPulse Probe

SoilPulse Probe.
The soil sensor for every farm.

Five readings from the soil, taken sector by sector on your own farm, and turned into advice on the phone you already own. Now in field trials in Ghana.

Join the field trial See it in 3D
The SoilPulse Probe: a grey reader with a green screen, connected by cable to a black soil probe with five stainless steel rods

What it measures

Five readings.
One picture of your soil.

Together they show whether your soil has the water, the balance and the food your crop needs.

  • Moisture

    How much water the soil is holding, so you water before plants feel stress and spot beds that stay waterlogged.

  • pH

    How acidic the soil is. Below about 5.5, nutrients lock up and roots suffer, and lime brings it back.

  • EC

    Electrical conductivity: the dissolved salts and nutrients in the soil water. Too low means hungry soil, too high means salt build-up.

  • Temperature

    How warm the soil is, which drives germination, root growth and soil life. Mulch and cover crops keep it in check.

  • NPK

    Nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, the three nutrients crops need most, followed as a trend through the season.

How to read each number

On the spot

Every reading, right there on the screen.

No waiting for a lab. Push the probe into the soil and moisture, temperature, pH, EC, nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium appear on the reader in seconds.

Close-up of the SoilPulse reader screen showing moisture 47.6 percent, temperature 32.2 degrees, pH 5.9, EC 172, nitrogen 0, phosphorus 40 and potassium 32 milligrams per kilogram

In 3D

Turn it over.
See every side.

A 3D model of the field prototype, rebuilt from photographs. Proportions are approximate.

In the field

  • A hand holds the SoilPulse reader above dry soil while the wired probe sits in the ground
    In the field

    Pushed into the soil

    The probe goes straight into the ground and the reading appears on the screen in hand.

  • Two members of the SoilPulse team in branded T-shirts check a reading on the device in a lettuce field
    In the field

    Read together

    Readings are taken with the farmer, so the numbers mean something from the start.

  • A SoilPulse team member reads the device while standing between rows of lettuce
    In the field

    Between the rows

    One sector at a time, across the whole plot.

  • A SoilPulse team member holds up the reader and probe in a vegetable field
    In the field

    Built to be carried

    The reader and probe travel from bed to bed.

  • An early SoilPulse prototype screen wired to a circuit board, showing moisture, temperature, pH, EC and nutrient readings
    On the bench

    Where it started

    An early prototype showing moisture, temperature, pH, EC and NPK on one screen.

How it works

From the soil to your phone.

The probe does the measuring. The app does the explaining.

  1. 01

    Place it sector by sector

    The probe goes into the soil in one sector of your farm at a time, so every reading belongs to the right patch of ground.

  2. 02

    Read it on the spot

    All five readings show on the reader’s screen in seconds, and are logged so change shows up as a trend.

  3. 03

    Advice reaches your phone

    Readings become your soil health score and plain advice, in your language, in the app or by SMS.

Watch how readings travel

In the app

A trend, not a snapshot.

One reading can mislead. The same plot reads differently at dawn and in the afternoon, or the day after rain. Logging readings over time shows where your soil is heading before you act.

Part of the field kit

The soil, the crop and the plot, in one visit.

With our partner DeepLeaf, a single farm visit can combine Probe readings with a photo diagnosis of the crop and dated, geolocated images of the plot. A 360° camera is being added to the kit. The result is advice for the farmer and proof of where the crop was grown.

Read about the partnership
  • Soil readingsMoisture, pH, EC, temperature and NPK from the SoilPulse Probe.
  • Crop diagnosisDisease, pests and nutrient deficiency read from a photo by DeepLeaf.
  • Images of the plotDated and geolocated, captured on the same visit.
  • One recordAdvice for the farmer, and evidence for buyers who need to know where cocoa came from.

At a glance

SoilPulse Probe.

Measures
Soil moisture, pH, electrical conductivity (EC), temperature, and nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium (NPK)
Probe
Five stainless steel sensing rods in a sealed housing, pushed straight into the soil
Reader
A built-in screen that shows every reading on the spot
Connection
Probe wired to the reader, with a USB lead
Advice
In the SoilPulse app, and by SMS
Languages
English, Twi, Ewe, Ga and Hausa
Stage
Prototype. Two units are in field trials on a farm in Ghana
What’s next SoilPulse Mini The same five readings in one small sealed head that stays in the ground. A concept in development.

Field trials

Bring the Probe to your farm.

We are working with a small number of farms during field trials. Tell us about yours.

Join the field trial Explore features →