Root box device for controlling soil moisture condition

Abstract

The invention provides a root box device for controlling the soil moisture condition, which comprises a transparent observation plate, a breathable root box main body and a plurality of back cover plates, and is characterized in that the transparent observation plate is arranged on the front side of the root box device so as to observe the development condition of a plant root system in soil laid by the root box device; the breathable root box body is a box body with three sealed faces, the inner walls of the two sides of the front face of the breathable root box body are provided with grooves used for containing transparent observation plates, the back face of the breathable root box body is provided with a strip-shaped frame fixed to the breathable root box body, the strip-shaped frame is provided with screens with the mesh number larger than the preset mesh number in a laying mode, and the preset mesh number enables soil and root systems not to penetrate through the screens. Water and air freely circulate through the screen; the back cover plates are arranged below the screens laid on the breathable root box body, and the multiple back cover plates are buckled to the breathable root box body so as to completely or partially wrap the breathable root box body provided with the screens. Analysis and research on the morphology and development of the root system under different soil moisture conditions can be realized.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to the technical field of plant root system analysis, and in particular to a root box device for controlling soil moisture conditions. Background Art

[0002] The root system is the main water and nutrient absorption organ of plants, and plays an important role in various physiological activities and adaptation to the environment. The plant root system is in direct contact with the soil environment. Therefore, how plants effectively explore the soil to obtain the necessary water and nutrient supply depends largely on the development and configuration of their root system. Among them, the root system configuration refers to the structure and spatial shape of the root system, which is used to describe the spatial distribution of the root system in the soil. The development process of the root system configuration is not only controlled by genotype, but also regulated by factors such as soil environment (water, nutrients, temperature, etc.) and microorganisms. Therefore, by studying the root system configuration of plants and obtaining the laws of root growth and development, it is not only helpful to find effective methods to regulate root growth and improve plant productivity, but also to timely discover the changes in the root system's response to the environment, so as to better understand how plants use environmental resources, adjust root development according to the environment to adapt to environmental changes, and optimize the root system configuration and cultivation measures accordingly, so as to facilitate rapid measures to improve plants' resistance to adverse external environments, thereby improving plant performance, yield and quality.

[0003] Since plant roots generally grow in the soil, it is a difficult problem to obtain and observe the roots growing in the soil during the study of root architecture. At present, the methods for studying root architecture can be mainly divided into three categories, namely, culture method, destructive sampling method and in situ observation method. Among them, culture method includes flat culture medium culture, hydroponics, aeroponics, etc. This method generally selects transparent and observable media to cultivate plants, but transparent media are difficult to simulate the real soil environment. The destructive sampling method is to obtain plant roots by directly digging from the soil for analysis and research, but this method, on the one hand, cannot obtain the original morphology of the roots in the soil (such as the root growth angle), and on the other hand, cannot dynamically monitor the process of root development. In situ observation methods include glass wall method, sensor method, micro-root tube method, container method, etc. These methods can observe and dynamically monitor the growth and development of plant roots in situ in the soil, and are the most commonly used methods in root-related research in recent years.

[0004] In the container method, the rhizotron method has been widely adopted by scholars at home and abroad in recent years. Among them, the rhizotron is generally composed of a transparent glass plate and an opaque thin box. The glass plate is set at the bottom of the thin box. The thickness of the inside of the rhizotron is usually less than 5 mm. It is filled with soil. The glass plate is used to observe the plant roots growing in the rhizotron soil, so as to obtain the two-dimensional root morphology growing in natural soil. Since the two-dimensional root morphology obtained from the in-situ soil can reflect the real soil environmental impact and is easy to analyze, it is widely used in high-throughput plant phenotyping systems, so that the development of plant roots can be dynamically monitored in large quantities and quickly. However, in order to prevent soil leakage, the existing rhizotrons are all sealed designs, with only a small hole at the bottom for soaking, resulting in the soil in the rhizotron being flooded for a long time and unable to ventilate. On the one hand, it is quite different from the real natural conditions. On the other hand, long-term flooding will cause soil fermentation and affect the development of plant roots, thereby affecting the experimental results. Summary of the invention

[0005] In view of this, an object of the present invention is to provide a root box device for controlling soil moisture conditions, so as to analyze and study the root morphology and development under different soil moisture conditions.

[0006] In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a root box device for controlling soil moisture conditions, comprising: a transparent observation plate, a breathable root box body and a plurality of back cover plates, wherein: A transparent observation panel is arranged on the front of the root box device to observe the development of the plant root system in the soil laid in the root box device; The main body of the breathable root box is a box body sealed on three sides, with grooves for placing transparent observation panels on the inner walls on both sides of the front, and a strip frame fixed to the main body of the breathable root box on the back, and a screen with a mesh larger than a preset mesh number is laid on the strip frame, and the preset mesh number prevents soil and roots from passing through the screen, but moisture and air can flow freely through the screen; The back cover plate is arranged below the screen laid on the breathable root box body. A plurality of the back cover plates are buckled on the breathable root box body to completely or partially wrap the breathable root box body provided with the screen.

[0007] In combination with the first aspect, the embodiment of the present invention provides a first possible implementation of the first aspect, wherein the back cover comprises: a first buckling portion, a second buckling portion and a back plate, wherein: The first buckle part is used to buckle with one side of the breathable root box body in a direction perpendicular to the root growth direction; The second buckling portion is used to buckle with the other side of the breathable root box body in a direction perpendicular to the root growth direction; The back plate is used to connect the first buckling part and the second buckling part.

[0008] In combination with the first aspect, the embodiment of the present invention provides a second possible implementation of the first aspect, wherein the back panel is an integrally formed acrylic panel.

[0009] In combination with the first aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a third possible implementation of the first aspect, wherein ventilation holes are provided on the back plate, and the sizes of the ventilation holes provided on the back plates of the back cover plates are different.

[0010] In combination with the first aspect and any possible implementation manner of the first aspect to the third possible implementation manner, the embodiment of the present invention provides a fourth possible implementation manner of the first aspect, wherein the root box device further includes: The hyperspectral camera is arranged at a predetermined position around the transparent observation plate, and is used to take growth pictures of the root system configuration according to a preset shooting cycle, so as to obtain the soil moisture content according to the spectrum corresponding to the growth picture.

[0011] In combination with the first aspect and any possible implementation of the first aspect to the fourth possible implementation of the first aspect, the embodiment of the present invention provides a fifth possible implementation of the first aspect, wherein the root box device further includes: The sensor is arranged at a predetermined position on the strip frame of the main body of the air-permeable root box, and the sensor includes: a soil moisture sensor, a temperature sensor, and a depolarizing electrode of an online redox potential analyzer.

[0012] In combination with the first aspect and any possible implementation manner from the first possible implementation manner to the fifth possible implementation manner of the first aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a sixth possible implementation manner of the first aspect, wherein the transparent observation plate is a tempered glass observation plate, and the screen includes a metal screen.

[0013] In order to make the above-mentioned objects, features and advantages of the present invention more obvious and easy to understand, preferred embodiments are given below and described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0014] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention, the drawings required for use in the embodiments are briefly introduced below. It should be understood that the following drawings only show certain embodiments of the present invention and therefore should not be regarded as limiting the scope. For ordinary technicians in this field, other related drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative work.

[0015] Figure 1 A schematic structural diagram of a root box device for controlling soil moisture conditions provided by an embodiment of the present invention is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0016] In order to make the purpose, technical solutions and advantages of the embodiments of the present invention clearer, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with the drawings in the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. The components of the embodiments of the present invention generally described and shown in the drawings here can be arranged and designed in various different configurations. Therefore, the following detailed description of the embodiments of the present invention provided in the drawings is not intended to limit the scope of the claimed invention, but merely represents selected embodiments of the present invention. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without making creative work belong to the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0017] In the related art, the morphological analysis method of plant root configuration based on the root box adopts a sealed design with only small holes at the bottom for water immersion, which causes the soil in the root box to be flooded for a long time and unable to be ventilated, resulting in a large difference from the actual natural conditions. In addition, long-term flooding will cause soil fermentation and affect the development of plant roots, making the root development of plants very different from the root development under natural conditions, resulting in low accuracy of the morphological analysis results of the root configuration, limiting the study of root development and root configuration under different soil moisture conditions in the root box.

[0018] This embodiment provides a new type of root box device, which can increase the air permeability of the soil, making the growth environment of the plant roots closer to the natural conditions. At the same time, it can create natural soil moisture conditions in the root box to facilitate the study of root development and the response of root structure to complex environmental factors.

[0019] An embodiment of the present invention provides a root box device for controlling soil moisture conditions, which is described below through an embodiment.

[0020] Figure 1 FIG. 2 shows a schematic diagram of the structure of a root box device for controlling soil moisture conditions provided by an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 1 As shown, the root box device for controlling soil moisture conditions in this embodiment includes: a transparent observation plate 11, a breathable root box body 12 and a plurality of back cover plates 13, wherein: A transparent observation panel 11 is provided on the front of the root box device to observe the development of plant roots in the soil laid in the root box device; The main body 12 of the breathable root box is a box body sealed on three sides, with grooves for placing transparent observation panels on the inner walls on both sides of the front, and a strip frame 121 fixed to the main body of the breathable root box on the back, and a screen 122 with a mesh larger than a preset mesh is laid on the strip frame, and the preset mesh prevents soil and roots from passing through the screen, but moisture and air can flow freely through the screen; The back cover plate 13 is arranged below the screen laid on the breathable root box body. A plurality of the back cover plates are buckled on the breathable root box body to completely or partially wrap the breathable root box body provided with the screen.

[0021] In this embodiment, as an optional embodiment, the transparent observation plate is a tempered glass observation plate. The back cover is used to block the circulation of soil moisture and air in the breathable root box body. The screen includes but is not limited to a metal screen and a plastic screen.

[0022] In this embodiment, the new root box device of this embodiment is formed by assembling a tempered glass observation plate, a breathable root box body and a back cover plate and fixing them with clips.

[0023] In this embodiment, during the use of the root box device, the tempered glass observation plate and the breathable root box body are first assembled together and fixed, and then the root box device is filled with a cultivation medium, wherein the cultivation medium includes but is not limited to: natural soil, matrix soil, vermiculite, etc. As an optional embodiment, the particles in the cultivation medium are less than 4 mm. The root box device is then immersed in water, and the soil filled in the root box device is taken out after it is moistened. According to the research requirements of the root system configuration, after the soil is dry to a certain extent, the back cover is covered to prevent water evaporation, and plants are cultivated in the soil of the root box device by sowing, transplanting, etc. During the cultivation process, the development of the root system configuration can be observed at any time through the tempered glass observation plate on the front of the root box device, and the root box device can be directly placed under a root system scanner to obtain root images in natural soil.

[0024] In this embodiment, as an optional embodiment, the back cover plate includes: a first buckling portion, a second buckling portion and a back plate, wherein: The first buckle part is used to buckle with one side of the breathable root box body in a direction perpendicular to the root growth direction; The second buckling portion is used to buckle with the other side of the breathable root box body in a direction perpendicular to the root growth direction; The back plate is used to connect the first buckling part and the second buckling part.

[0025] In this embodiment, as an optional embodiment, the back panel is an integrally formed acrylic panel.

[0026] In this embodiment, as an optional embodiment, taking four back cover plates as an example, after the root box device is completely moistened, the back cover plates are not fastened on the surface, and the other three back cover plates are fastened on the root box device. In this way, the evaporation of soil moisture on the surface can be simulated, and thus, by setting the back cover plates in different positions, the uneven soil moisture distribution can be simulated in layers.

[0027] In this embodiment, buckling the back cover plate onto the filter screen at the bottom of the root box device can prevent water from evaporating through the filter screen, and removing the back cover plate from the filter screen at the bottom of the root box device can simulate water evaporation.

[0028] In this embodiment, as another optional embodiment, ventilation holes are provided on the back plate, and the sizes of the ventilation holes provided on the back plates of the back cover plates are different.

[0029] In this embodiment, taking the back cover plate including: a first back cover plate, a second back cover plate, a third back cover plate and a fourth back cover plate as an example, the first back cover plate, the second back cover plate, the third back cover plate and the fourth back cover plate are connected in sequence, and each back cover plate partially wraps a breathable root box body provided with a screen, and the sizes of the air holes provided on the back plates of each back cover plate are different.

[0030] In this embodiment, the back plate includes multiple models, and each back plate is provided with ventilation holes of different sizes to simulate different water evaporation rates. By replacing the back cover plate, the evaporation rate of soil moisture in the root box device can be controlled.

[0031] In this embodiment, as an optional embodiment, the porosity in the filter is at the same order of magnitude as the porosity in natural soil.

[0032] In this embodiment, as an optional embodiment, the root box device also includes: A hyperspectral camera (not shown) is arranged at a predetermined position around the transparent observation plate, and is used to take growth pictures of the root system configuration according to a preset shooting cycle, so as to obtain soil moisture content according to the spectrum corresponding to the growth picture.

[0033] In this embodiment, as an optional embodiment, the shooting cycle is once a day, which is not limited in this embodiment. After obtaining the soil moisture content, irrigation can be performed according to the soil moisture content required by the crop.

[0034] In this embodiment, as another optional embodiment, the root box device also includes: The sensor is arranged at a predetermined position on the strip frame of the main body of the air-permeable root box, and the sensor includes: a soil moisture sensor, a temperature sensor, and a depolarizing electrode of an online redox potential analyzer.

[0035] In this embodiment, as an optional embodiment, sensors such as soil moisture sensor, temperature sensor, oxidation reduction potential online analyzer (ORP, Oxidation Reduction Potential) depolarization electrode are arranged on the strip frame of the main body of the air-permeable root box, wherein the ORP depolarization electrode is set at a predetermined position below the plant root system. In this way, after the plant root system grows, it can be ensured that the ORP depolarization electrode is located below the plant root system, for example, 1 cm to 2 cm below the plant root system, so as to obtain soil-related parameters.

[0036] In this embodiment, as another optional embodiment, the soil moisture content can also be obtained by weighing method, soil moisture meter, etc., wherein the plug of the soil moisture meter is inserted into the soil of the root box device.

[0037] The root box device for controlling soil moisture conditions of this embodiment has the following advantages: 1. It is possible to control the soil moisture condition in the root box device. In this embodiment, the high-mesh metal screen arranged at the bottom (back) of the root box device can greatly increase the contact area between the soil and the air while preventing the soil from being lost, and can control the soil moisture at the required level for root generation and growth.

[0038] 2. Use the metal screen to increase the contact area between the root box device and the soil to enhance the air permeability of the root box device, thereby controlling the soil moisture condition and achieving soil permeability in the root box device, which can prevent the soil in the root box device from being flooded for a long time, thereby improving the accuracy of the experimental results.

[0039] 3. The back cover can effectively control soil moisture, keep the soil moisture at a set level for a long time, and realize precise control of soil moisture conditions in the root box device, which is convenient for scientific researchers to study root development and configuration under different soil moisture conditions.

[0040] 4. Combined with the use of a detachable back cover or a split back cover, uneven soil moisture distribution can be created in layers, so that relevant research on soil moisture distribution can be carried out on the root box device, including but not limited to: root hydrotropism, hydrotroping and xerobranching, etc.

[0041] 5. The split back cover can effectively improve the root box device's ability to simulate the natural environment. It can simulate the drought sequence of natural soil: from the surface to the deep soil, and has a broader application prospect: that is, to more realistically simulate the changes in the natural environment under controllable conditions in the laboratory.

[0042] It should be noted that similar numbers and letters represent similar items in the following figures. Therefore, once an item is defined in one figure, it does not need to be further defined and explained in subsequent figures. In addition, the terms "first", "second", "third", etc. are only used to distinguish the description and are not to be understood as indicating or implying relative importance.

[0043] Finally, it should be noted that the above-described embodiments are only specific implementation methods of the present application, which are used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present application, rather than to limit them. The protection scope of the present application is not limited thereto. Although the present application is described in detail with reference to the above-mentioned embodiments, ordinary technicians in the field should understand that any technician familiar with the technical field can still modify the technical solutions recorded in the above-mentioned embodiments within the technical scope disclosed in the present application, or can easily think of changes, or make equivalent replacements for some of the technical features therein; and these modifications, changes or replacements do not make the essence of the corresponding technical solutions deviate from the spirit and scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application. They should all be included in the protection scope of the present application. Therefore, the protection scope of the present application shall be subject to the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A root box device for controlling soil moisture conditions, characterized in that: include: Transparent observation panel, breathable root box body and multiple back cover panels, among which, A transparent observation panel is arranged on the front of the root box device to observe the development of the plant root system in the soil laid in the root box device; The main body of the breathable root box is a box body sealed on three sides, with grooves for placing transparent observation panels on the inner walls on both sides of the front, and a strip frame fixed to the main body of the breathable root box on the back, and a screen with a mesh larger than a preset mesh number is laid on the strip frame, and the preset mesh number prevents soil and roots from passing through the screen, but moisture and air can flow freely through the screen; The back cover plate is arranged below the screen laid on the breathable root box body. A plurality of the back cover plates are buckled on the breathable root box body to completely or partially wrap the breathable root box body provided with the screen.

2. The root box device for controlling soil moisture conditions according to claim 1, characterized in that: The back cover comprises: a first buckling portion, a second buckling portion and a back plate, wherein: The first buckle part is used to buckle with one side of the breathable root box body in a direction perpendicular to the root growth direction; The second buckling portion is used to buckle with the other side of the breathable root box body in a direction perpendicular to the root growth direction; The back plate is used to connect the first buckling part and the second buckling part.

3. The root box device for controlling soil moisture conditions according to claim 1, characterized in that: The back plate is an integrally formed acrylic plate.

4. The root box device for controlling soil moisture conditions according to claim 1, characterized in that: The back plate is provided with ventilation holes, and the sizes of the ventilation holes arranged on the back plates of the back cover plates are different.

5. The root box device for controlling soil moisture conditions according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: The root box device also includes: The hyperspectral camera is arranged at a predetermined position around the transparent observation plate, and is used to take growth pictures of the root system configuration according to a preset shooting cycle, so as to obtain the soil moisture content according to the spectrum corresponding to the growth picture.

6. The root box device for controlling soil moisture conditions according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that: The root box device also includes: The sensor is arranged at a predetermined position on the strip frame of the main body of the air-permeable root box, and the sensor includes: a soil moisture sensor, a temperature sensor, and a depolarizing electrode of an online redox potential analyzer.

7. The root box device for controlling soil moisture conditions according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that: The transparent observation plate is a tempered glass observation plate, and the screen comprises a metal screen.

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