Minirhizotron Cameras for UHD Root & Rhizosphere Imaging

VSI UHD Minirhizotron camera systems and accessories are key tools to non-destructively study root and mycorrhizal dynamics and related ecosystem processes in situ. Capture non-distructive UHD images of living roots, mycorrhizal hyphae and soil fauna. Monitor the rhizosphere and in specific root and hyphae development over the course of a day, the cropping cycle, or multiple seasons with reliable VSI Minirhizotron camera systems!

MS-190 Manual UHD Minirhizotron Camera

MS-190 - UHD Minirhizotron Camera. Manual, classical Minirhizotron System for narrow to wide MR tubes installed at any angle. Reliable Indexing System. For Pot, Mesocosms and Field Studies.


AC-19 Semi-automatic Minirhizotron Camera for horizontal operation

AC-19 - Semi-automatic Minirhizotron Camera. Camera system for horizontal tubes as frequently installed in rhizotron facilities. Independent imaging on a gear rack and automatic tube registration allows one operator to run several AC-19 in parallel. 

 


AC-21 Automatic Minirhizotron Camera

AC-21 - Automatic Minirhizotron Camera. Fully automated camera system for vertical and angled root observation tubes. Designed for permanent field or greenhouse installation and 24/7 or regularly scheduled imaging campaigns. Sets of cameras available  at a reduced price for replicated experiments


Minirhizotron Tubes. MR observation tubes of various diameters. Refinements (end caps, light shield, positioning hole/drill jig, etc.) for minirhizotron tubes.


Corer for Minirhizotron Tube Installation

Minirhizotron Tube Corer. A manual soil coring system with a smaller diameter than the MR Tubes, which ensures a tight installation of the tubes.


VSI Minirhizotron Camera Systems - Ultra-High-Definition Root Imaging Systems

Pisum sativum root wit hroot hairs, UHD image captured with the VSI MS-190 root imager
Pisum sativum root in a sand/humus-filled pot. Image was captured with VSI MS-190

The Vienna Scientific minirhizotron cameras are available as fixed diameter systems for root observation tubes of 5-10 cm of inner diameter (2 inch being the fomer "Bartz" standard = narrow gauge)  – allowing for continued use of available minirhizotron tubes and to easily upgrade older / scanner-based imaging systems. Imaging systems for non-standard tube diameters can be realised upon request.

The imaging process can be (semi-)automatised including tube recognition (AC-19) in rhizotron facilities, and fully automatic, continouus imaging of pre-set locations under field conditions (AC-21). Classical positioning systems with manual indexing ("Smucker handle") but advanced rotational positioning are available (MS-190). In any case, precision in terms of imaging quality and repeatability of imaging locations is key. All imaging systems allow to capture Full HD / UHD images of selected areas (at the tube surface), easily allowing to adapt the monitored minirhizotron tube surface to research needs. Image size allows to align root length observations from MR-Ts e.g. to biomass sampling depth (e.g. 0-10 cm, 10-20 cm, ...) without recutting images. Imaging a depth gradient at a time, on predefined sides of the MR-T, is recommended when using angled MR-Ts - allowing for more accurate soil depth determination then other root imager systems on the market. The VSI minirhizotron imaging systems are either programmed and operated by a tablet or a laptop (Windows OS, dedicated Bartz ICAP or MR Editor software). Devices are powered by internal batteries (MS-190, AC-19), external 24 V batteries (AC-21) and/or power line (110-230V; MS-190, AC-21). Image naming follows the ICAP-scheme to be compatible with image analyses software world-wide (see below).

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Minirhizotron Root Imager - Working Principle

minirhizotron imaging system, root imager, MR camera, MR scanner, minirhizotron camera, root imaging, rhizosphere imaging

MR systems are based on transparent root observation tubes (MR-T) that are inserted tightly into the soil with MR soil corers of a dedicated, smaller diameter. A minirhizotron imaging device is then inserted into the tube to take images of (regrown) roots and the rhizosphere (incl. soil fauna and hypae) as seen through the MR tube walls. The images are recorded and processed by a control unit for later analyses. Various free and commercial analysis programms have been developed for MR Images. Newer approaches heavily rely on Machine larning based for fast root segmentation in the heterogeneious soil environment. 

Application Potential of Minirhizotron Imaging Systems

Observing the development of root systems is key to understand plant performance in natural and production ecosystems (trees and crops), and i.a. an important mean to unravel water, carbon and nutrient dynamics of terrestrial ecosystems. Non-destructive imaging of roots and the rhizosphere can be used to determine a wide range of parameters (under controlled or abiotic and biotic stress conditions, in situ or the greenhouse), including root system development, observation of root growth and turnover patterns, root distribution per depth (root system architecture, RSA), occurrence of mycorrhizal root tips and hyphal development, rhizobia development, and observations of soil fauna.

 

Minirhizotron imaging cameras thus have a wide range of applications in the study of plant roots, mycorrhizal hyphae, belowground pests such as Orobanche and other biotic and abiotic interactions within the hidden half of ecosystems. Ecosystems to apply MR systems range from managed systems auch as agricultural lands and forests, to pristine ecosystems, to studies in mesocosms and pots under controlled conditions (greenhouse, growth chambers). Some potential applications of minirhizotron root imaging cameras include:

  • Root growth and development, phenology: Minirhizotron cameras can be used to non-destructively monitor root growth and development over time, providing researchers and professionals with detailed information on the dynamics of root systems and how plant phenology is influenced by environmental factors and changes during plant development. Farmers can use this information to adapt fertilisation and irrigation regimes to root development incl. rooting depth.
  • Root system architecture: By visualising root systems in situ, minirhizotrons can help researchers study the architecture of root systems (RSA) and how they respond to environmental cues.
  • Assessing effects of abiotic and biotic stresses: Minirhizotrons can be used to study how roots respond to stresses such as drought, flooding and nutrient deficiency. They can also be used to study interactions between roots and ectomycorrhizal symbionts, and roots and pests.
  • Plant breeding: Root imagers can be used to select for more stress-tolerant crop genotypes, such as those with root systems that allow stable yields in low-input systems.
  • Evaluating the efficacy of management: Minirhizotron cameras can be used to evaluate the effects of fertilisers, soil amendments (organic matter, hydrogels, etc.) and biostimulants (growth promoting bacteria, etc.) and mechanical management (no-till, ploughing depth, etc.).
  • Carbon sequestration: Information on root longevity/turnover rates in perennial systems allows determining root litter formation and thus approximate carbon input to the soil from decaying roots.
  • Soil animals: High-definition minirhizotron cameras provide a unique opportunity for researchers to view in situ the activities of soil animals such as Collembola.

Overall, the potential applications of in situ root imagers are diverse and far-reaching, making them a highly valuable tool for researchers, breeders and agronomists interested in gathering information about root systems and their interactions with the soil / soil organisms under real growing conditions. Contact Vienna Scientific to dicuss your application, and how VSI root imaging systems can facilitate data collection.

Things Required for a Minirhizotron Study

  • Root imaging device.
  • Minirhizotron tubes (MR-T): Acrylic tubes (standard) of various diameters can be purchased, other materials are available upon request. In addition, we can cut MR-T to length. If you like to acquire your MR-T elsewhere, please inform us about the tube dimension (inner, outer diameter) when purchasing a MR camera. It is recommended to close your minirhizotron tubes on both sides to prevent water, dust and daylight to enter ("tube refining"). We can supply (removable) end caps or produce all possible types of permanent seals (bottom only). If installed in non-temperate ecosystems, an extra insulation of the protruding MR-T part is recommended to minimize changes in soil temperature around tubes.
  • Soil coring set: To install the MR tubes in situ, a soil corer with a slightly smaller diameter is needed for tight installation. We can manufacture soil corer sets suitable to install the chosen MR-T type to a depth of approx. 1 m (depending on brawn ;) and soil skeleton of course).
  • Image analysis software: see below for some (free) options.

Selected software tools to analyse minirhizotron Pictures

Visit the great Plant Image Analysis webpage of G. Lobet for a comprehensive list of image analysis software tools.

[Vienna Scientific Instruments is not responsible for the content of external links.]

Selected Readings on Minirhizotron Applications

  • Britschgi, D., P. Stamp, and J. M. Herrera. 2013. Root Growth of Neighboring Maize and Weeds Studied with Minirhizotrons. Weed Science 61:319-327.
  • Hendrick, R. L., & Pregitzer, K. S. (1992). The demography of fine roots in a northern hardwood forest. Ecology, 73(3), 1094-1104.
  • Iversen et al.  2011. Advancing the use of minirhizotrons in wetlands. Plant and Soil 352:23-39.
  • Lewis, E. E., Stevens, G. N., & Spence, K. O. Root Herbivores in an Orchard System: Assessing the Influence of Root Herbivory and Pest Management on Root Dynamics, Soil Fauna, and Soil Carbon Pools.
  • McCormack, L. M., D. M. Eissenstat, A. M. Prasad, and E. A. Smithwick. 2013. Regional scale patterns of fine root lifespan and turnover under current and future climate. Global Change Biology 19:1697-1708.
  • Milchunas, D. G. 2012. Biases and Errors Associated with Different Root Production Methods and Their Effects on Field Estimates of Belowground Net Primary Production Measuring Roots. Pages 303-339 In S. Mancuso, ed. Measuring roots - An updated approach. Springer Berlin Heidelberg.
  • Moeller, B., Chen, H., Schmidt, T., Zieschank, A., Patzak, R., Tuerke, M. et al. 2019. rhizoTrak: A flexible open source Fiji plugin for user-friendly manual annotation of time-series images from minirhizotrons. bioRxiv, 547604.
  • Nair, R., Strube, M., Hertel, M., Kolle, O., Rolo, V., & Migliavacca, M. (2022). Replicate Sub-Daily Minirhizotron Sampling, Data and Interpretation for Root Dynamics Studies. bioRxiv, 2022-01.
  • Pinno, B. D., S. D. Wilson, D. F. Steinaker, K. C. J. Van Rees, and S. A. McDonald. 2010. Fine root dynamics of trembling aspen in boreal forest and aspen parkland in central Canada. Annals of Forest Science 67.
  • Rahman, G., Sohag, H., Chowdhury, R., Wahid, K.A., Dinh, A., Arcand, M., and Vail, S. (2020). SoilCam: A Fully Automated Minirhizotron using Multispectral Imaging for Root Activity Monitoring. Sensors 20, 787.
  • Rewald, B., and J. E. Ephrath. 2013. Minirhizotron techniques. Pages 1-15 in A. Eshel and T. Beeckman, editors. Plant roots: The hidden half. CRC Press, New York, USA.
  • Snider, R. J., Snider, R., & Smucker, A. J. M. 2019. Collembolan populations and root dynamics in Michigan agroecosystems. In Rhizosphere Dynamics (pp. 168-191). CRC Press.
  • Zeng, G., S. T. Birchfield, and C. E. Wells. 2010. Rapid automated detection of roots in minirhizotron images. Machine Vision and Applications 21:309-317.
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