Root System Phenotying of Soil-Grown Plants via RGB and Hyperspectral Imaging

Phenotyping root systems provide essential information for plant breeding, particularly aiming for better abiotic stress resistance. Rhizobox systems provide a field-near growth environment for in situ imaging of root systems in soil. A protocol for RGB and hyperspectral imaging of rhizobox-grown plants is presented that enables gathering of root structural (morphology, architecture) as well as functional (water content, decomposition) information. The protocol exemplifies the setup of a root phenotyping platform combining low-cost RGB with advanced short-wave infrared hyperspectral imaging. For both types of imaging approach, the essential steps of an image analysis pipeline are provided to retrieve biological information on breeding-relevant traits from the imaging datasets.