Comparative UAV and field phenotyping to assess yield and nitrogen use efficiency in hibrid and conventional barley

Abstract

With the commercialization and increasing availability of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) multiple rotor copters have expanded rapidly in plant phenotyping studies with their ability to provide clear, high resolution images. As such, the traditional bottleneck of plant phenotyping has shifted from data collection to data processing. Fortunately, the necessarily controlled and repetitive design of plant phenotyping allows for the development of semi-automatic computer processing tools that may sufficiently reduce the time spent in data extraction. Here we present a comparison of UAV and field based high throughput plant phenotyping (HTPP) using the free, open-source image analysis software FIJI (Fiji is just ImageJ) using RGB (conventional digital cameras), multispectral and thermal aerial imagery in combination with a matching suite of ground sensors in a study of two hybrids and one conventional barely variety with ten different nitrogen treatments, combining different fertilization levels and application schedules. A detailed correlation network for physiological traits and exploration of the data comparing between treatments and varieties provided insights into crop performance under different management scenarios. Multivariate regression models explained 77.8, 71.6, and 82.7% of the variance in yield from aerial, ground, and combined data sets, respectively.