Plant Morphological Features Research Articles

Estimating Bermudagrass Aboveground Biomass Using Stereovision and Vegetation Coverage

Accurate information about the amount of standing biomass is important in pasture management for monitoring forage growth patterns, minimizing the risk of overgrazing, and ensuring the necessary feed requirements of livestock. The morphological features of plants, like crop height and density, have been proven to be prominent predictors of crop yield. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of stereovision-based crop height and vegetation coverage measurements in predicting the aboveground biomass yield of bermudagrass (Cynodon dactylon) in a pasture. Data were collected from 136 experimental plots within a 0.81 ha bermudagrass pasture using an RGB-depth camera mounted on a ground rover. The crop height was determined based on the disparity between images captured by two stereo cameras of the depth camera. The vegetation coverage was extracted from the RGB images using a machine learning algorithm by segmenting vegetative and non-vegetative pixels. After camera measurements, the plots were harvested and sub-sampled to measure the wet and dry biomass yields for each plot. The wet biomass yield prediction function based on crop height and vegetation coverage was generated using a linear regression analysis. The results indicated that the combination of crop height and vegetation coverage showed a promising correlation with aboveground wet biomass yield. However, the prediction function based only on the crop height showed less residuals at the extremes compared to the combined prediction function (crop height and vegetation coverage) and was thus declared the recommended approach (R2 = 0.91; SeY= 1824 kg-wet/ha). The crop height-based prediction function was used to estimate the dry biomass yield using the mean dry matter fraction.

Population dynamics and seed productivity of Dactylorhiza maculata (Orchidaceae) population in the Komi Republic (European Russia) as a response to the effects of weather factors

Conservation of biodiversity is the most important problem at present time. One of its important tasks is a preserving of selected species and groups of plants. The Orchidaceae family, despite its high species diversity, is one of the most threatened groups of flowering plants in the world, which is caused by peculiarities of their biology and ornamental properties. One of the priorities in the study and conservation of Orchidaceae is long-term monitoring studies. This paper presents results of a nine-year study of the population of a rare orchid, Dactylorhiza maculata, in the Komi Republic (north-east of European Russia). The morphological features of plants and seeds, the number and structure of population and the reproductive success have been studied. It was revealed that the height of the Dactylorhiza maculata shoots is influenced by the weather conditions of the current growing season, while the number of leaves and flowers is influenced by the conditions of the previous year. The number of reproductive shoots in the Dactylorhiza maculata population is positively correlated with the temperature in July of the previous growing season. The fruit set varied between 26.0% and 73.7% during various study years. A significant positive correlation was found between the seed size and the precipitation amount at the mid-July of the current growing season. The average seed number was 3865 per fruit (by changing between 2557 and 4808 seeds in various study years). The real seed productivity was 32 761 seeds (with changes from 17 830 seeds to 41 548 seeds). A positive correlation was observed between the size of flowers and the number of seeds per fruit; these parameters positively correlate with the precipitation amount at the beginning of the growing season. The presence of juvenile individuals (from 10.8% to 24.2%) in all study years indicates the successful seed reproduction in the studied Dactylorhiza maculata population.

Exploring the mycobiota of bromeliads phytotelmata in Brazilian Campos Rupestres.

The phytotelmata is a water-filled tank on a terrestrial plant, and it plays an important role in bromeliad growth and ecosystem functioning. Even though previous studies have contributed to elucidate the composition of the prokaryotic component of this aquatic ecosystem, its mycobiota (fungal community) is still poorly known. In the present work, ITS2 amplicon deep sequencing was used to examine the fungal communities inhabiting the phytotelmata of two bromeliads species that coexist in a sun-exposed rupestrian field of Southeastern Brazil, namely Aechmea nudicaulis (AN) and Vriesea minarum (VM). Ascomycota was the most abundant phylum in both bromeliads (57.1 and 89.1% in AN and VM respectively, on average), while the others were present in low abundance (< 2%). Mortierellomycota and Glomeromycota were exclusively observed in AN. Beta-diversity analysis showed that samples from each bromeliad significantly clustered together. In conclusion, despite the considerable within-group variation, the results suggested that each bromeliad harbor a distinct fungi community, what could be associated with the physicochemical characteristics of the phytotelmata (mainly total nitrogen, total organic carbon, and total carbon) and plant morphological features.

К оценке декоративности видов Spiraea при интродукции (Республика Коми)

The article presents the results of the study of plant species of Spiraea L. when cultivated in the Botanical Garden of the Institute of Biology. The studied taxa of nine Spiraea species are represented by plants of the generative period aged 10-40 years or more. Observations of the objects were carried out in 2013-2020. The description of the habitus and morphological features of plants: shoots, leaves, inflorescences and flowers are given. The average terms and duration of flowering of introduced plants are established. The comparative assessment of the decorative qualities of species samples was carried out using three different methods. The studied plants are characterized by a long flowering period – up to 50 days. A wide variety of decorative qualities allows us to attribute most of them to the group of highly decorative species. The most decorative species include plants Spiraea chamaedryfolia, S. media and S. trilobata. Plants of nine studied Spiraea species can be recommended for landscaping of the northern region. Keywords: SPIRAEA L., SPECIES, INTRODUCTION, SHRUBS, FLOWERING, DECORATIVE QUALITIES

Enhanced genome-wide association reveals the role of YABBY11-NGATHA-LIKE1 in leaf serration development of Populus.

Leaf margins are complex plant morphological features that contribute to leaf shape diversity, which affects plant structure, yield, and adaptation. Although several leaf margin regulators have been identified to date, the genetic basis of their natural variation has not been fully elucidated. In this study, we profiled two distinct leaf morphology types (serrated and smooth) using the persistent homology mathematical framework (PHMF) in two poplar species (Populus tomentosa and Populus simonii, respectively). A combined genome-wide association study (GWAS) and expression quantitative trait nucleotide (eQTN) mapping were applied to create a leaf morphology control module using data from P. tomentosa and P. simonii populations. Natural variation in leaf margins was associated with YABBY11 (YAB11) transcript abundance in poplar. In P. tomentosa, PtoYAB11 carries a premature stop codon (PtoYAB11PSC), resulting in the loss of its positive regulation of NGATHA-LIKE1 (PtoNGAL-1) and RIBULOSE BISPHOSPHATE CARBOXYLASE LARGE SUBUNIT (PtoRBCL). Overexpression of PtoYAB11PSC promoted serrated leaf margins, enlarged leaves, enhanced photosynthesis, and increased biomass. Overexpression of PsiYAB11 in P. tomentosa promoted smooth leaf margins, higher stomatal density, and greater light damage repair ability. In poplar, YAB11-NGAL1 is sensitive to environmental conditions, acts as a positive regulator of leaf margin serration, and may also link environmental signaling to leaf morphological plasticity.

Effects of irrigation characteristics and plant morphological features on interception of sprinkler water by maize plants

Effects of irrigation characteristics and plant morphological features on interception of sprinkler water by maize plants

SlypNet: Spikelet-based yield prediction of wheat using advanced plant phenotyping and computer vision techniques.

The application of computer vision in agriculture has already contributed immensely to restructuring the existing field practices starting from the sowing to the harvesting. Among the different plant parts, the economic part, the yield, has the highest importance and becomes the ultimate goal for the farming community. It depends on many genetic and environmental factors, so this curiosity about knowing the yield brought several precise pre-harvest prediction methods using different ways. Out of those techniques, non-invasive yield prediction techniques using computer vision have been proved to be the most efficient and trusted platform. This study developed a novel methodology, called SlypNet, using advanced deep learning networks, i.e., Mask R-CNN and U-Net, which can extract various plant morphological features like spike and spikelet from the visual image of the wheat plant and provide a high-throughput yield estimate with great precision. Mask R-CNN outperformed previous networks in spike detection by its precise detection performance with a mean average precision (mAP) of 97.57%, a F1 score of 0.67, and an MCC of 0.91 by overcoming several natural field constraints like overlapping and background interference, variable resolution, and high bushiness of plants. The spikelet detection module’s accuracy and consistency were tested with about 99% validation accuracy of the model and the least error, i.e., a mean square error of 1.3 from a set of typical and complex views of wheat spikes. Spikelet yield cumulatively showed the probable production capability of each plant. Our method presents an integrated deep learning platform of spikelet-based yield prediction comprising spike and spikelet detection, leading to higher precision over the existing methods.

THE GENETIC NATURE OF MUTATIONAL CHANGES ARISING IN THE FORM-FORMATION PROCESS OF WHEAT

Increasing the yield of wheat by improving its genotype is one of the most pressing problems of agriculture and the economy. Currently, the usage of traditional breeding methods and the results of genetic investigations, such as conduction of saturating crosses, remote hybridization and experimental mutagenesis, increases the efficiency of producing genetically modified and enriched forms of wheat. In field and under controlled laboratory conditions, the effect of a surfactant on the heritable characteristics of 10 varieties of spring soft wheat was studied. After processing of wheat seeds with an aqueous surfactant solution (0.1%), we could observe the inherited changes, which are manifested in the appearance in M1, M2, F2 and BC1 of tall, potent plants with productive bushiness and various morphological characteristics that differ from the original varieties. The effect of surfactants is manifested on the morphological features of plants: bushiness, crankiness of the stem, anthocyanin stain color. During the process of meiosis, the spindle of the division of the metaphase plate, the coalescence of chr omosomes in MI, and the presence of empty (sterile) cells in AI and AII meiosis were observed. The signs of altered forms are stably transmitted in the M2 generation.

MORPHOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF SUPERIOR PURPLE AND LOCAL RED CORNS

Before crossing plants, it's critical to understand their morphological characteristics. Differences in plant morphological features distinguish the advantages of each plant. The objective of this study was to determine the morphological characteristics of superior purple and local red corn cultivated at the height of 22 meters above sea level, as well as their adaptability. Kalukubula Village, Sigi Biromaru District, Sigi Regency, Central Sulawesi was the site of this study. The research took place between October 2020 and February 2021. A Randomized Block Design was used in this investigation, with two corn kinds as treatments: The experiment was repeated 16 times with purple superior corn and red corn, yielding 32 experimental units. The quantitative data was examined using ovarian analysis (ANOVA) followed by a 5% Tukey HSD test to assess the difference between the two corns. Plant height, number of leaves, leaf length, stem diameter, age of male flower appearance, harvest age, fruit diameter with husk, length of cob, number of seeds per fruit, the weight of kernel per fruit, and dry kernels production of tons/ha were all found to have a higher growth rate than purple corn kernels. The qualitative characters of superior purple corn kernels include: leaf veins and leaf bases are purple, stems are purplish-green, female flowers are white with anger, the husk is purplish-green, and kernels are purple-black. Local red corn include white leaf veins, light green leaf bases, purple stems, light green female flowers, purple husk, and red kernels.

Estimation of Cold Stress, Plant Age, and Number of Leaves in Watermelon Plants Using Image Analysis.

Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) is a widely consumed, nutritious fruit, rich in water and sugars. In most crops, abiotic stresses caused by changes in temperature, moisture, etc., are a significant challenge during production. Due to the temperature sensitivity of watermelon plants, temperatures must be closely monitored and controlled when the crop is cultivated in controlled environments. Studies have found direct responses to these stresses include reductions in leaf size, number of leaves, and plant size. Stress diagnosis based on plant morphological features (e.g., shape, color, and texture) is important for phenomics studies. The purpose of this study is to classify watermelon plants exposed to low-temperature stress conditions from the normal ones using features extracted using image analysis. In addition, an attempt was made to develop a model for estimating the number of leaves and plant age (in weeks) using the extracted features. A model was developed that can classify normal and low-temperature stress watermelon plants with 100% accuracy. The R2, RMSE, and mean absolute difference (MAD) of the predictive model for the number of leaves were 0.94, 0.87, and 0.88, respectively, and the R2 and RMSE of the model for estimating the plant age were 0.92 and 0.29 weeks, respectively. The models developed in this study can be utilized in high-throughput phenotyping systems for growth monitoring and analysis of phenotypic traits during watermelon cultivation.

Classification of Potato Varieties Drought Stress Tolerance Using Supervised Learning

The presented study was aimed at investigating the variability for drought tolerance among potato cultivars. To achieve this, the stability of drought tolerance of potato cultivars under different water regime conditions was inspected during 11 years of consecutive experiments. The data on 50 potato cultivars’ responses to drought stress, based on the morphological features of plants, i.e., leaf and stem mass and size of the assimilation area, have been collected. The tuber yield, as well as calculated plant tolerance indexes and Climatic Water Balance for each growing season, were analyzed. The studied cultivars were later assigned into one of three tolerance groups for soil drought. The highest linear relationship was found between the mass of leaves and stems and the tuber yield but was found too weak to raise any conclusions. Thus, the ensemble learning models have been evaluated and returned better performance results, and the final classifier is the implementation of extreme gradient boosting. The final classifier of the 96.7% accuracy, which used several measured potato parameters (Relative yield decrease, Stem mass, Maturity, Assimilation area, Leaves mass, Yield per plant, calculated Climatic water balance, and indices: MSTI and DSI) that could distinguish the different tolerance groups were evaluated in the study.

Biometry in plant systematic of European and Mediterranean Gymnosperms, a review

The morphological features of plants, which were the basis of taxonomic solutions in the past, are now sometimes less appreciated due to the intensive development of genetic methods. The present review looks at the results of the research on the taxonomy of plants carried out by the team led by A. Boratyński. The team characterized the taxonomic and geographical differentiation of some species of the genera Abies, Juniperus, Pinus, Cupressus, Cedrus, as well as several others. Many of these studies were carried out in the Mediterranean area due to its importance for biodiversity. The results allowed unravelling taxonomic ambiguities, emphasizing the importance of geographic barriers in shaping variability, e.g., the Strait of Gibraltar or the Aegean Sea, and highlighting the role of mountain ranges as refuges, e.g., the Taurus and Anti-Taurus Mountains. All of the results obtained with biometrics were confirmed by genetic methods by different authors. Detailed research allowed the publication of a new name, Juniperus thurifera subsp. africana (Maire) Romo &amp; Boratyński, stat. nov., and restoration of species status for the dubious taxon Juniperus canariensis. The review shows that relying on the research of a large number of correctly sampled populations and correctly selected differentiated characteristics of plants allows the generation of reliable results.

Sowing Mixtures of Native Plant Species: Are There Any Differences between Hydroseeding and Regular Seeding?

Hydroseeding is a convenient, low-cost way to plant seeds. Traditionally, fast-growing commercial species that are cheap to obtain are preferred in hydroseeding, while native species have limited use. Nowadays, the use of native species is often desired in revegetation projects. However, there is a paucity of information about hydroseeding native species in Northern areas of Europe. Therefore, we aimed to determine whether hydroseeding has any effects on native plant cover formation, species richness and abundance, the development of plant morphological features, or aboveground biomass. A total of 40 native plant species in Lithuania were sowed using hydroseeding and regular seeding. The experimental plots were assessed for two years. The results show a relatively small and short positive effect of hydroseeding on plant cover formation. No significant differences were found in species richness between the sowing treatments. However, a comparison of species composition revealed significant differences between the sowing treatments that were more associated with species abundance than species diversity. Hydroseeding was favoured by legume species, such as Onobrychis viciifolia, Ononis arvensis, Lotus corniculatus, and Trifolium medium, while Festuca rubra favoured the regular seeding treatment. Overall, our findings emphasize that legume species that display more competitive growth traits should be included in the seed mixture in lower proportions when hydroseeding is applied.

CRISPR/Cas9-Mediated Targeted Mutagenesis of CYP93E2 Modulates the Triterpene Saponin Biosynthesis in Medicago truncatula.

In the Medicago genus, triterpene saponins are a group of bioactive compounds extensively studied for their different biological and pharmaceutical properties. In this work, the CRISPR/Cas9-based approach with two single-site guide RNAs was used in Medicago truncatula (barrel medic) to knock-out the CYP93E2 and CYP72A61 genes, which are responsible for the biosynthesis of soyasapogenol B, the most abundant soyasapogenol in Medicago spp. No transgenic plants carrying mutations in the target CYP72A61 gene were recovered while fifty-two putative CYP93E2 mutant plant lines were obtained following Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation. Among these, the fifty-one sequenced plant lines give an editing efficiency of 84%. Sequencing revealed that these lines had various mutation patterns at the target sites. Four T0 mutant plant lines were further selected and examined for their sapogenin content and plant growth performance under greenhouse conditions. The results showed that all tested CYP93E2 knock-out mutants did not produce soyasapogenols in the leaves, stems and roots, and diverted the metabolic flux toward the production of valuable hemolytic sapogenins. No adverse influence was observed on the plant morphological features of CYP93E2 mutants under greenhouse conditions. In addition, differential expression of saponin pathway genes was observed in CYP93E2 mutants in comparison to the control. Our results provide new and interesting insights into the application of CRISPR/Cas9 for metabolic engineering of high-value compounds of plant origin and will be useful to investigate the physiological functions of saponins in planta.

The arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus Rhizophagus intraradices reduces the root rot caused by Fusarium pseudograminearum in wheat

Root colonization with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) improves plant tolerance against soil-borne pathogens. The purpose of the present study was to explore the efficacy of the AMF Rhizophagus intraradices (N.C. Schenck & G.S. Sm.) as a biocontrol agent against Fusarium pseudograminearum (O'Donnell and Aoki) in wheat plants grown under greenhouse conditions. Parameters here analyzed included disease severity, plant morphological features, mycorrhizal structures within roots, and oxidative stress levels. AMF inoculation significantly counteracted on the negative effects of the pathogen F. pseudograminearum on plant parameters such as aerial and root biomass, number of spikes and plant height. These results suggest that AMF inoculation considerably reduced the F. pseudograminearum population density (75.7%) and disease severity (39%) compared to control. In addition, when compared with pathogen-infected plants, AMF-inoculated plants exhibited significant increases in the activity of antioxidant enzymes, along with a decrease in the levels of lipid peroxidation. This is the first work to show R. intraradices plays a significant role in wheat tolerance to F. pseudograminearum infection by maintaining the redox balance and competing for root sites to colonize.

Morphological Features of Plants on Ash Settling Ponds. Case Study.

Owing to variable water conditions, chemical conditions of water or ash substrate, ash settling ponds belong to anthropogenic objects which do not easily undergo plant succession. However, there are plants exhibiting biological traits allowing colonisation of a substrate characterised by variability in terms of acidity and heavy metal content. The aim of the study was to determine differences in morphology of plants colonising spontaneous surfaces of ash settling ponds with variability moisture level. We identified also differences in morphology of the plants. Identified: Agrostis stolonifera, Atriplex patula, Juncus bufonius, Phragmites australis, Poa pratensis and Ranunculus sceleratus. The obtained results broaden the knowledge on the bioremediation of degraded areas, indicate species that inhabit the surface of ash settlers. Lower water level in ash settling pond I created more favourable conditions for growth of the aboveground parts of plants, and higher waterlevel in ash settling pond II contributed to a more intensive development of the root part of plants. Considering the generative factors and measurement values of the aboveground part of plants, the best adapted species were Juncus bufonius and Atriplex patula. Due to changing water level in ash settling ponds, the species to be monitored is Phragmites australis—most deeply colonising the surface of ash settling ponds.

Morphophysiology, Productivity and Quality of Soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merr.) cv. Merlin in Response to Row Spacing and Seeding Systems

The appropriate row spacing and sowing density of soybeans are the basic non-input and pro-environmental agrotechnical factors. The optimal spacing of plants in the field can be crucial in terms of reducing competition between plants for water, nutrients and light, which is particularly important for photosynthesis and maximizes the use of environmental resources. The field experiment was carried out in the years 2017–2019 at the Experimental Station for Cultivar Assessment in Przecław, Poland, on Merlin cv. soybean plants. The experimental factors were: row spacing of 15 and 30 cm and the sowing density of 70, 90 and 110 pcs. m−2. During the research, the influence of row spacing and sowing density on yielding, seed quality, plant morphological features, nodulation and physiological processes in plants was assessed. The obtained soybean seed yield was not influenced by the experimental factors, but only by the weather conditions prevailing in the research years. The smaller row spacing and sowing density of 15/70 and 30/70 resulted in an increase in the parameters of the yield structure, the number and dry weight of root nodules, as well as the parameters of chlorophyll fluorescence (Fv/Fm, Fv/F0 and PI). Greater plant density per area unit resulted in low yield structure parameters, lower number and dry weight of nodules, poorer parameters of chlorophyll fluorescence and higher protein content in seeds. With the increased sowing density, the plants were higher, the 1st. pod was placed higher and an LAI value was also higher.

Deconstructive approach in the presentation of botanical knowledge in educational materials for students

The article discusses the latest trends in the field of presentation of natural science information for students, which have developed in the postmodern era. It is shown that botanical illustrations presented in postmodern alphabets do not reflect the morphological features of plants. When depicting plants, the author uses the technique of deconstructing images presented in ancient botanical atlases. Fragments of botanical illustrations are placed against the background of everyday scenes of the 19th century, including those of a fantasy nature. The structural components of the botanical educational book, its content and ironic author's comments are considered. The description of plants is pseudo-academic: the texts are surreal, they combine fiction and truth, fantasy and the specifics of the action. It is concluded that the irony of the comments does not contribute to the formation of the foundations of the natural science worldview.

ХУДОЖНИКИ НА СЛУЖБЕ У БОТАНИКОВ: КОНФЛИКТ И ПОИСКИ ВЗАИМОПОНИМАНИЯ В XVI–XVII ВЕКАХ

The article explores the communication and mutual influence of botanists and artists who lived in Germany, Switzerland and Holland from the second half of the XVIth to the beginning of the XVIIth century. The choice of the areal and period of study is due to the active communication among scientists on the reform of scientific knowledge, in particular botany. The new demands of scientists, who expected artists to help them visualize the morphological features of plants, clashed with a painting tradition that changed slowly and gradually. Eventually, by the early the XVIIth century, an understanding was achieved. Botanical illustrations acquired its main artistic features: clarity of contour, minimum chiaroscuro and muted colour. At the same time, painters who worked in the genre of flower still life in Holland at the beginning of the XVIIth century were also significantly influenced by botanists. Several features appeared in the early Dutch still life: gathering of plants blooming in different months into one bouquet, collage method, composing a bouquet like a "table" of the Kunstkammer, uniform illumination, absence of space depth and crossing of objects, exotic, rare and expensive flowers, especially tulips.

The Long-Term Effect of Petroleum-Derived Substances and Their Bioremediation on the Host Plant (Vicia faba L.) and a Herbivore (Sitona spp.)

The present study assessed distant-in-time effects of soil contamination with petroleum-derived substances (PDSs) (petrol, diesel fuel and used engine oil) and their bioremediation using ZB-01 biopreparation on the growth of broad bean, content of nutrients and heavy metals in plants, and feeding by imagines and larvae of Sitona spp. The results showed that even after 5 years from the moment of soil contamination by engine oil and diesel fuel, they negatively impacted the growth of broad bean plants. PDSs significantly modified the content of nutrients and generally increased the content of heavy metals in plant organs. These substances also negatively affected the feeding of adult Sitona spp., causing a reduction in the percentage of plants damaged by beetles, and a decrease in the surface of consumed areas on leaves. The ZB-01 biopreparation had a generally positive effect on the morphological features of plants, and its effect on the content of nutrients and heavy metals was variable, depending on the type of contaminant, the analyzed metals or nutrients, and the involved part of the plant. The biopreparation also inhibited the adverse effect of PDSs on the feeding by imago of Sitona spp.