I’ve been meaning to set up some kind of automated horticulture system to grow herbs and vegetables for a while. The primary motivation hasn’t been the fruit of my labor, as much as it has been to experiment with – and to learn how to use – sensors, actuators, and microcontrollers. Progress has been slow; I usually only get time to work on it on weekends, and I’ve made several mistakes on the way. The project also revealed many problems with sensors that aren’t typically documented, but have to be solved anyway.

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