The new soil moisture sensor uses Immersion Gold which protects the nickel from oxidation. Electroless nickel immersion gold (ENIG) has several advantages over more conventional (and cheaper) surface platings such as HASL (solder), including excellent surface planarity (particularly helpful for PCB's with large BGA packages), good oxidation resistance, and usability for untreated contact surfaces such as membrane switches and contact points.

A soil moisture sensor can read the amount of moisture present in the soil surrounding it. It's a low tech sensor, but ideal for monitoring an urban garden, or your pet plant's water level. This is a must have tool for a connected garden!

This sensor uses the two probes to pass current through the soil, and then it reads that resistance to get the moisture level. More water makes the soil conduct electricity more easily (less resistance), while dry soil conducts electricity poorly (more resistance).

This sensor will be helpful to remind you to water your indoor plants or to monitor the soil moisture in your garden. The IO Expansion Shield is the perfect shield to connect this senor to Arduino.