APPF creates a digital phenotype library to build machine Learning algorithms for plant stress identification

At the ANU node of the APPF, we acquired a Phenospex PlantEye DualScan F500 in November 2019 which was installed into one of our Photon System Instruments Growth Capsules, shipping containers which serve as high-precision controlled environments for plant growth. To date, the PlantEye has been used in a research project with Australian tobacco species Nicotiana benthamiana. As part of the project, we grow N. benthamiana in a range of environmental conditions to create a diverse collection of plant phenotypes. The plants are scanned regularly with the PlantEye to capture morphological and spectral phenotypic responses over time. We opted for a DualScan system for this work because N. benthamiana has a complex “bushy” plant architecture and a single sensor would not have been able to sufficiently capture the 3D structure of the plant due to leaf occlusion....