Lysimeter Station Wagna
Installing lysimeters in summer 2004
 
In July/August 2004, two weighable monolithic lysimeters at the facility in Wagna were installed. The following pictures show the most important steps of the procedure of implementing weighable lysimeters that allow mechanized cultivation which was developed by UMS Munich, Institut für Kulturtechnik Petzenkirchen and
JOANNEUM RESEARCH Graz; the working process is described and crucial aspects are indicated ().
 

Figure 1: Vessel is pressed into
the soil
   • A lysimeter casing (1.13 m diameter, 2 m length)
made of stainless steel is covered at the top with a
thick steel plate and pressed carefully into the soil
by the shovel of an excavator.

• The container has to be pressed into soil straight
(check with a spirit level, see figure 1) and soil
inside must not be compressed—the length of a
metal staff in the vessel is therefore measured
and compared to the ground level.

• The process of pressing is done in several stages;
surrounding soil is removed and placed in horizons
on the site area to guarantee a backfilling.

Figure 1 shows the excavator knocking cautiously
on the vessel to press it into the gravelly subsoil.
Stones can block the casing at the bottom and have
either to be removed or pressed into the cylinder.		  
 
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last update: April 16, 2006