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ARS Home » Plains Area » Lincoln, Nebraska » Agroecosystem Management Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #229993
Title: Non-destructive determination of maize leaf and canopy chlorophyll content

Author
item CIGANDA, VERONICA - INIA - LA ESTANZUELA
item GITELSON, ANATOLY - UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA
item Schepers, James

Submitted to: Journal of Plant Physiology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/31/2008
Publication Date: 6/9/2008
Citation: Ciganda, V.S., Gitelson, A., Schepers, J.S. 2008. Non-destructive determination of maize leaf and canopy chlorophyll content. Journal of Plant Physiology. (In Press: 165: ) Available: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jplph.2008.03.004

Interpretive Summary: Individual corn leaves from 26 plants in 2004 and 128 plants in 2005 were sampled to compare leaf chlorophyll content with reflectance in two wavebands (red edge and near infrared). Leaves collected before silking were numbered relative to the uppermost expanded leaf and those collected after silking were numbered relative to the ear leaf. Leaf chlorophyll content was consistently the highest for each sampling data for the uppermost expanded leaf before silking and the ear leaf during the grain filling period. Results showed that determining the chlorophyll content in the uppermost expanded leaves could be used to accurately estimate the total chlorophyll content in the entire plant canopy. Similar results were obtained when using the ear leaf during grain fill. Results also showed that non-destructively measuring leaf reflectance could be used to reliably estimate total canopy chlorophyll content. These findings are significant because canopy chlorophyll content is highly correlated with corn yield. Implications are that the red edge chlorophyll index can be used to make in-season nitrogen management decisions.

Technical Abstract: The objective of this study was to develop a rapid non-destructive technique to estimate total chlorophyll (Chl) content in a maize canopy using Chl content in a single leaf. The approach was (1) to calibrate and validate a reflectance-based non-destructive technique to estimate leaf Chl in maize; (2) to quantify the relative contribution of each leaf Chl to the total Chl in the canopy; and (3) to estimate a relationship between leaf Chl content and total Chl in a maize canopy. The Red Edge Chlorophyll Index based on reflectance in the red edge and near infrared portions of the spectra was found to be an accurate measure of maize chlorophyll content. It was able to predict leaf Chl ranging from 10 to 805 mg Chl m-2 with root mean-square error less than 38 mg Chl m-2. Relationships established and showed that Chl in each maize leaf and total canopy Chl content were established and showed that Chl in the collar leaf before silking and ear leaves explained more than 80% and 87% of the variation in total Chl in a maize canopy, respectively. Thus, non-destructive measurements ob reflectance and area of a single leaf (either collar or ear) can be used to accurately estimate total Chl content in a maize canopy.