Measuring Camellia Petal Color Using a Portable Color Sensor

Phillip Post,Mark Schlautman

doi:10.3390/horticulturae6030053

Abstract

The color of petals of flowering plants is often determined by comparing one or more of the petals to various Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) Colour Chart cards until a color match is found. However, these cards are susceptible to fading with age and can also provide inaccurate results if lighting is not optimal. The cards also rely on the human eye to determine a match, which introduces the possibility of human error. The objectives of this study were to determine camellia (Camellia japonica L.) petal color using the RHS Colour Chart, to determine camellia petal color with the NixTM Pro color sensor (Nix Sensor Ltd., Hamilton, Ontario, Canada), and to compare these measurements using different color measuring approaches. Color measurements of camellia flower petals using the NixTM Pro color sensor were compared to published CIELAB values from the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) Colour Chart. Forty-five petal color samples were collected from fifteen different camellia shrubs. The RHS Colour Chart was used for each of the petals, and the RHS identifications were recorded. Measurements using the NixTM Pro color sensor were compared to RHS-provided CIELAB values that corresponded with the recorded identification for each petal to determine accuracy. The NixTM Pro color sensor’s measurements were also compared to a mean of the values, multiple measurements on the same petal location, and multiple measurements on different petal locations to determine precision and variation. The Nix™ Pro color sensor’s readings were precise in petal color determination and provided more nuanced differences between petals of the same plant and plants of the same variety in each of the color categories. The RHS Colour Chart provided an accurate depiction of most petals, but it was difficult to use with petals that had wide color variation over the entire petal. The Nix™ Pro color sensor’s measurements appeared to have more variation in the b* color space. However, overall, the Nix™ Pro color sensor L*, a*, and b* values were highly correlated with the provided RHS values (p < 0.01), showing that the sensor can be used as an accurate and precise substitute for the RHS Colour Chart. The Nix™ Pro color sensor can be a useful, cost-effective tool to measure the petal color of camellia and other flowering plants and rectifies many of the problems associated with the RHS Colour Chart.

Highlights

Color is crucial to the survival and reproductive success of many flowering plants because it dictates whether or not insects will be attracted to and pollinate the plant [1]
The NixTM Pro color sensor can be a useful, cost-effective tool to measure the petal color of camellia and other flowering plants and rectifies many of the problems associated with the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) Colour Chart
Accuracy was measured by comparing the NixTM Pro color sensor L*, a*, and b* values of a petal to the provided corresponding L*, a*, and b* values of the RHS identification, and extraneous values were removed (Figure 4)

Summary

Introduction

Color is crucial to the survival and reproductive success of many flowering plants because it dictates whether or not insects will be attracted to and pollinate the plant [1]. Horticulturae 2020, 6, 53 in light reflection for increased levels of color, and this fact is compounded by the energy required to produce more pigment [1]. For this reason, flower petals tend to be translucent rather than an energy-intensive solid, opaque color, as the higher rate of visible light reflection has been shown not to attract more pollinators, petals that are too translucent would fail to attract pollinators [1]. Plants are in a constant act of balancing not attracting enough pollinators with spending too much energy on pigment production, causing variations in a petal’s color value between plants [1]

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Results

Conclusion