Jülich Plant Science Seminars (JPSS) - Andreas Hund - " Field phenotyping: concepts to dissect yield into its components by means of imaging with high spatial and temporal resolution" - ETH Zurich – 2nd of December 2024
Title: Field phenotyping: concepts to dissect yield into its components by means of imaging with high spatial and temporal resolution
Speaker: PD Dr. Andreas Hund
Affiliation: Group of Crop Science - ETH Zurich
Abstract:
During the growing season, wheat is dynamically adjusting its yield components to adapt to previous yield-threatening events. For example, intense tillering compensates for low germination rates, more fertile florets compensate for low tillering, and higher grain weights compensate for floret infertility. Consequently, two genotypes with very different yield component compositions may result in similar yield. Sampling environmental trials for target traits such as yield only will suffer from such ambiguities, in particular if the aim is to map quantitative trait loci or train genomic prediction models. An alternative is to dissect yield in its components during the season by sampling a few environments only, but with many points in time. Repeated proximal RGB-imaging with a pixel size in the sub-millimetre range offer huge opportunities to segment and count plant organs such as leaves, stems and spikes. While this can be done using single images, even more information can be derived by combining images taken at different viewing angles. Such multi-view information will enable to further quantify organ volume, canopy structure and orientation. With repeated imaging, one can quantify phenological stages (e.g., full emergence, start stem elongation, heading, physiological maturity) and genotypic responses to stresses during the season. We will present lessons learned from 8 years of trait development and data collection in the field imaging platform FIP (https://kp.ethz.ch/FIP) of ETH Zurich, aiming to bring together different sensing concepts to follow large panels of more than 300 genotypes thought the growing season. The gathered traits can be analysed with different approaches, for example by using a phenomic prediction framework. Such phenomics approaches allow to parametrise genotype responses, like the response to extreme cold, temperature changes or drying soil and make them available for selection in a genomic prediction framework. The genetic correlations of the traits with yield and quality but also their internal correlations will inform breeders about opportunities for indirect selection. We will present the current state-of-the art of intense field phenotyping and critically discuss its potential for the practise.