Root Phenotyping for Improved Resource Use Efficiency in Crops

Abstract

To ensure the conservation of natural resources and food security for future, utilization of different tools and techniques for improving resource use efficiency is mandatory. Roots are the key determinant for researcher and breeders for improving resource use efficiency. Crop root architecture improvements promise to increase water and nutrient resource utilization. The root phenotyping is challenging to discover root traits beneficial to crops and their incorporation into new cultivars through prebreeding. High precision and noninvasive methods are used mainly to measure the plant roots and structural traits. The nondestructive 2D techniques such as agar plates or rhizotrons have been integral to our understanding of root development while 3D imaging with a sophisticated platform that involves NMR and X-ray CT technologies are highly expensive and is evolving to meet the needs of field phenotyping. In this chapter, we summarize root response to resource deficient condition, needs of root phenotyping, methods of root phenotyping, integration of root traits into breeding program for improving resource use efficiency are discussed in detail.