Abstract
Rhizotrons allow the examination of spatial and temporal in situ root development. Permanent rhizotron installations provide 2-D images of whole root profiles, but their immobility limits the number of soil-plant systems that can be studied. Our objectives were to develop a portable rhizotron and color scanning system for studying the development of whole root systems. Potato root development was monitored in an irrigated experiment at Othello, WA. Covered, rectangular hollow boxes with a transparent glass face were installed perpendicular to planted potato rows, and a seed piece was planted in the soil adjacent to the glass. Rooting in the hill furrow topography was measured 2 to 4 week intervals. Images of roots growing along the glass face were captured with five scans with a portable, color scanner and a portable computer. Image thresholding discriminated roots from soil using primary color values, color intensity differences, color proportions, or overall intensity. Seasonal patterns of computed root lengths by image analysis were comparable to manual tracing. Primary roots extended to 15 cm from the seed piece prior to shoot emergence, 21 days after planting. Lateral roots began to develop shortly thereafter. Potato roots extended to depths of 60 cm by 4 to 6 weeks after planting, and maximum root density in the hill and furrow was observed by tuber initiation to early tuber bulking. Temporal and spatial trends were similar to previous results using destructive sampling. The method has promise for studying the root growth and development of field-grown plants.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
G H 1937 A device for the observation of root growth in the soil. Nature (London) 139, 966–967.
Bohm W 1974 Methods of Studying Root Systems. Springer-Verlag, New York.
Bolton R P, Pan W L and Lundquist E J 1993 Analysis of computerized rhizotron images created with portable scanners. In Agronomy Abstracts, p. 67. ASA, Madison, WI.
Box J E Jr., Smucker A J M and Ritchie J T 1989 Minirhizotron installation techniques for investigating root responses to drought and oxygen stresses. Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J. 53, 115–118.
Bragg P L, Govi G and Cannell R Q 1983 A comparison of methods, including angled and vertical mimrhizotrons, for studying root growth and distribution in a spring oat crop. Plant Soil 73, 435–440.
Brown D A and Upchurch D R 1987 Minirhizotrons: A summary of methods and instruments in current use. In Minirhizotron Observation Tubes: Methods and Applications for Measuring Rhizosphere Dynamics. Ed. H Taylor, pp. 15–30. ASA Spec. Publ. 50. ASA, Madison, WI.
Cheng W, Coleman D C and Box J E Jr 1991 Measuring root turnover using the minirhizotron technique. Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment 34, 261–267.
Doty J, Kennedy A C and Pan W L 1995 A rapid bioassay for inhibitory rhizobacteria using digital image analysis. Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J. 55, 1699–1701.
Glinski D S, Karnok K J and Carrow R N 1993 Comparison of reporting methods for root growth data from transparent-interface measurements. Crop Sci. 33, 310–314.
Heeraman D A and Juma N G 1993 A comparison of minirhizotron, core and monolith methods for quantifying barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) and fababean (Vica faba L.) root distribution. Plant Soil 148, 25–41.
Huck M G and Taylor H M 1982 The rhizotron as a tool for root research. Adv. Agron. 35, 1–35.
Majdi H, Smucker A J M and Persson H 1992 A comparison between minirhizotron and monolith sampling methods for measuring root growth of maize (Zea mays L.). Plant Soil 147, 127–134.
McMichael B L and Taylor H M 1987 Applications and limitations of rhizotrons and minirhizotrons. In Minirhizotron Observation Tubes: Methods and Applications for Measuring Rhizosphere Dynamics. Ed. H Taylor. pp. 1–13. ASA Spec. Publ. 50. ASA, CSSA and SSSA, Madison, WI.
Meisner C A and Karnok K J 1992 Peanut root response to drought stress. Agron. J. 84, 155–165.
Pan W L and Hiller L K 1992 Growth and development of potato root types: Implications for placement and timing strategies in fertility management. In Proceedings of the Thirty-first Annual Washington State Potato Conference. pp. 105–111. Moses Lake, WA.
Pan W L and Bolton R P 1991 Root quantification by edge discrimination using a desktop scanner. Agron J. 83, 104–152.
Parker C J, Carr M V K, Jarvis N J, Puplampu B O and Lee V H 1991 An evaluation of the minirhizotron technique for estimating root distribution in potatoes. J. Agric. Sci. 116, 341–350.
Samson B K and Sinclair T R 1994 Soil core and rmnirhizotron comparison for the determination of root length density. Plant Soil 161, 225–232.
Smit A L, Groenwold J and Vos J 1994 The Wageningen Rhizolab — facility to study soil-root-shoot atmosphere interactions in crops. II. Methods of root observations. Plant Soil 161,289–298.
Smucker A M J 1992 Root Absorption Efficiencies. In The Plant Root Environment, 1992 Abstracts of the Southern Region Information exchange Group (SSGEIG-25). Eds. W Busscher and P Porter, p. 16, USDA-ARS, Coastal Plains Research Center, Florence, SC.
Smucker A J M, Ferguson J C, DeBruyn W P, Belford R K and Ritchie J T, 1987 Image Analysis of Video-Recorded Plant Root Systems. In Minirhizotron Observation Tubes: Methods and Applications for Measuring Rhizosphere Dynamics. Ed. H Taylor, pp. 67–80. ASA Spec. Publ. 50. ASA, CSSA and SSSA, Madison, WI.
Taylor H M, Huck M G, Klepper B and Lund Z F 1970 Measurement of soil-grown roots in a rhizotron. Agron. J. 76, 1015–1017.
Taylor H M and Klepper B 1974 Water relations of cotton. I. Root growth and water use as related to top growth and soil water content. Agron. J. 66, 584–588.
Upchurch D R and Ritchie J T 1983 Battery-operated color video camera for root observations in mini-rhizotrons. Agron. J. 76, 1015–1017.
Vos J and Groenwold J 1983 Estimation of root densities by observation tubes and endoscope. Plant Soil 74, 295–300.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1998 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Pan, W.B., Bolton, R.P., Lundquist, E.J., Hiller, L.K. (1998). Portable rhizotron and color scanner system for monitoring root development. In: Box, J.E. (eds) Root Demographics and Their Efficiencies in Sustainable Agriculture, Grasslands and Forest Ecosystems. Developments in Plant and Soil Sciences, vol 82. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-5270-9_64
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-5270-9_64
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-94-010-6218-3
Online ISBN: 978-94-011-5270-9
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive