We describe the design and implementation of a large-scale wireless sensor
network for agriculture monitoring. As a part of validation we have deployed a pro-
totype of 64 sensors to monitor a commercial vineyard. The system provides di®erent
software modules ranging from ¯ltering raw data to a centralized and a distributed
data storage applications. The used protocols ensure reliable and robust communica-
tion and load-balancing energy consumption. A backend server provides a user-friendly
graphical interface o®ering two main functionalities: logging communication messages
of the employed protocols for diagnostic purposes and providing end-user support for
both on-demand and periodic data requests. We have also made a careful performance
evaluation of a scaled-down WSN in the laboratory. We highlight the e±ciency of
the system on a large scale deployment in comparison to the traditionally used solu-
tion based on individual weather station by deploying both systems in parallel and
comparing results. We demonstrate that wireless sensor networks provide better geo-
graphic coverage and an increased spatial resolution compared to traditional solutions.
They also enable precise measurements of soil conditions near the plants themselves,
increasing the quality of the information available to the farmer.