Non-destructive models for leaf area determination in canola

Abstract

The leaf is a very important structure of the plants, since it allows gas exchanges and the transformation of light energy into chemical energy. This study aimed to generate and test mathematical models for leaf area estimation in canola based on leaf dimensions. Two experiments were conducted with canola in 2014, in which leaves were collected in different phenological stages with different sizes and shapes. Subsequently, leaf length, width and area were measured (with automatic meter) in 606 leaves, which included 371 ovate and 235 lanceolate leaves. The models were generated using length, width and length versus width as independent variables and leaf area as dependent variable. The models were validated using a group of leaves different from those used to generate the models. A total of 27 models were obtained and those with best statistics and higher simplicity were selected. The polynomial model LA = 0.88735 W2 + 0.93503 W and the power model LA = 1.1282 W1.9396 can be used for both types of leaves and have high accuracy in the estimation of canola leaf area.