Dataset Soil Moisture Fellbach Vineyard

We evaluated moss restoration as an under-vine ground cover in a temperate vineyard, comparing it with bare soil and cover crop (grass) over a 22-month field experiment. The study was conducted in a rainfed vineyard located on a slope south of Fellbach (48.80158° N, 9.28113° E), in southwestern Germany. Experimental treatments were established on 17 February 2022 within the vine rows at the study site. Three treatments were applied, each on a surface of 40 cm x 40 cm: moss restoration (moss), bare soil (bare), and cover crops (grass), each replicated four times. Continuous topsoil moisture data was recorded with time-domain-transmission sensors by TMS-4 dataloggers (TOMST, Czech Republic) installed in all plots on 14 April 2022. Each device measures volumetric topsoil moisture to ~14 cm depth and air/soil temperature at three heights (15 cm above ground, 2 cm above ground, and 6 cm below ground).The topsoil moisture measurements were used to analyse the initial response time (the time between the onset of precipitation and the first increase in topsoil moisture) and the peak response time (the time between the onset of precipitation and the maximum topsoil moisture). We additionally quantified mean topsoil moisture and drying rates and monitored treatment development during and after maintenance.