Journal article
Automated computation of leaf area index from fruit trees using improved image processing algorithms applied to canopy cover digital photograpies
M Mora, F Avila, M Carrasco-Benavides, G Maldonado, J Olguín-Cáceres, S Fuentes
Computers and Electronics in Agriculture | ELSEVIER SCI LTD | Published : 2016
Abstract
Leaf area index (LAI) is a critical parameter in plant physiology for models related to growth, photosynthetic activity and evapotranspiration. It is also important for farm management purposes, since it can be used to assess the vigor of trees within a season with implications in water and fertilizer management. Among the diverse methodologies to estimate LAI, those based on cover photography are of great interest, since they are non-destructive, easy to implement, cost effective and have been demonstrated to be accurate for a range of tree species. However, these methods could have an important source of error in the LAI estimation due to the inclusion within the analysis of non-leaf mater..
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Awarded by Comisión Nacional de Investigación Científica y Tecnológica
Funding Acknowledgements
The research leading to this report was supported by the Chilean government through the National Commission for Scientific and Technological Research - CONICYT (Proyecto Insercion de Capital Humano Avanzado en la Academia - PAI (2012) No 7912010010). The following persons provided invaluable assistance in field measurements and data processing: Pablo Diaz, Enrique Cornejo, Karina Gonzalez, Margarita Parraguez, Jorge Jaramillo, Mario Moya, Victor Encalada, Miguel Oyarce and Alex Zuniga. We also especially thank Edison Gajardo and Alejandro Bonta who provided the experimental site and Patrick Matzler for reviewing the mansuscript.