The Stalker: An open source force meter for rapid stalk strength phenotyping

Heuschele, D. Jo; Wiersma, J. V.; Reynolds, Leonard; Mangin, Amy; Lawley, Yvonne; Marchetto, Peter

doi:10.1016/j.ohx.2019.e00067

Cited by 17 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 4 publications

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“…Such loading conditions produce natural failure types and failure patterns in plant specimens (i.e., failure occurs at the cross-section with the least optimal allocation of structural tissue). Several devices have been recently developed which accomplish this task (Grafius and Brown, 1954; Berry et al ., 2003; Guo et al ., 2018, 2019; Erndwein et al ., 2019; Heuschele et al ., 2019). In particular, they utilize the natural anchoring of the maize roots and apply a point load to a cross-section near the ear (very similar to the loading profile shown in Figure 7).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Are Maize Stalks Efficiently Tapered to Withstand Wind Induced Bending Stresses?

Stubbs

Seegmiller

Sekhon

et al. 2020

Preprint

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structural 19 Highlight: Maize stem morphology was investigated through an optimization algorithm to 20 determine how efficiently their structural tissues are allocated to withstand wind induced bending 21 stresses that cause stalk lodging.Abstract 24 Stalk lodging (breaking of agricultural plant stalks prior to harvest) results in millions of 25 dollars in lost revenue each year. Despite a growing body of literature on the topic of stalk lodging, 26the structural efficiency of maize stalks has not been investigated previously. In this study, we 27 investigate the morphology of mature maize stalks to determine if rind tissues, which are the major 28 load bearing component of corn stalks, are efficiently organized to withstand wind induced 29 bending stresses that cause stalk lodging. 30 945 fully mature, dried commercial hybrid maize stem specimens (48 hybrids, ~2 31 replicates, ~10 samples per plot) were subjected to: (1) three-point-bending tests to measure their 32 bending strength and (2) rind penetration tests to measure the cross-sectional morphology at each 33 internode. The data were analyzed through an engineering optimization algorithm to determine the 34 structural efficiency of the specimens. 35Hybrids with higher average bending strengths were found to allocate rind tissue more 36 efficiently than weaker hybrids. However, even strong hybrids were structurally suboptimal. 37There remains significant room for improving the structural efficiency of maize stalks. Results 38 also indicated that stalks are morphologically organized to resist wind loading that occurs primarily 39 above the ear. Results are applicable to selective breeding and crop management studies seeking 40 to reduce stalk lodging rates. 41 65 to devote to grain filling as compared to inefficient stalks (i.e., efficient stalks would have a higher 66 harvest index). 67As mentioned previously, both the taper and probable wind loading scenarios must be 68 defined to determine the structural efficiency of maize stalks. The wind load exerted on a plant 69 stalk, known as the drag force (Df), can be approximated as (Niklas, 2000):where ⍴ is the density of air, u is the local wind speed, Ap is the projected area of the structure, and 72 CD is the drag coefficient. While this equation appears fairly simple at first glance, it is 73 complicated by the fact that the variables on the right hand side of the equation are functions that 74 can vary both temporally and spatially. For example, the drag coefficient changes spatially along 75 the length of the stalk and is also a function of the local wind speed. As the local wind speed 76 increases, the angle of the leaf blades and tassel change (known as flagging), which alters the drag 77 coefficient. 78The strong interrelationships between the factors of Equation 1 complicate attempts to 79 directly measure wind forces on maize stalks. Direct measurements of wind speeds have 80 successfully been used to estimate drag forces in past studies of trees (Niklas and Spatz, 1999; 81 Niklas, 2000). However, t...

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Are Maize Stalks Efficiently Tapered to Withstand Wind Induced Bending Stresses?

Stubbs

Seegmiller

Sekhon

et al. 2020

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…(3) carefully remove the leaf sheath while ensuring no damage has occurred to the stem, (4) re-test the stem without the leaf sheath for 10 cycles using the same three-point bending test setup as before, (5) the difference in flexural rigidity of the sample with and without the leaf sheath is a reasonable estimate of the difference in stalk bending strength. It should be noted that several field-based phenotyping devices capable of measuring flexural rigidity have been developed and that these devices could be used in place of the universal testing system utilized in the current study (Cook et al, 2019 ; Heuschele et al, 2019 ; Erndwein et al, 2020 ). However, if field-based phenotyping methods are employed the grain head should either be removed prior to testing or alternatively the grain head should be weighed and the effect of the grain weight on bending strength and flexural rigidity measurements should be accounted for as outlined in Stubbs et al ( 2020a ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Overlooked Biomechanical Role of the Clasping Leaf Sheath in Wheat Stalk Lodging

et al. 2021

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The biomechanical role of the clasping leaf sheath in stalk lodging events has been historically understudied. Results from this study indicate that in some instances the leaf sheath plays an even larger role in reinforcing wheat against stalk lodging than the stem itself. Interestingly, it appears the leaf sheath does not resist bending loads by merely adding more material to the stalk (i.e., increasing the effective diameter). The radial preload of the leaf sheath on the stem, the friction between the sheath and the stem and several other complex biomechanical factors may contribute to increasing the stalk bending strength and stalk flexural rigidity of wheat. Results demonstrated that removal of the leaf sheath induces alternate failure patterns in wheat stalks. In summary the biomechanical role of the leaf sheath is complex and has yet to be fully elucidated. Many future studies are needed to develop high throughput phenotyping methodologies and to determine the genetic underpinnings of the clasping leaf sheath and its relation to stalk lodging resistance. Research in this area is expected to improve the lodging resistance of wheat.

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“…Recently, this device was modified by another group to reduce the weight and continuously record data as plants are bent (Fig. 3B, Table 1; Heuschele et al, 2019). This updated device, called the Stalker, was created to differentiate between different management practices in wheat and between different small grains (i.e., wheat, oat, and barley); however, the paper does not report the results of these trials (Heuschele et al, 2019).…”

Section: Mechanical Methods To Evaluate Stalk Lodgingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Field‐based mechanical phenotyping of cereal crops to assess lodging resistance

et al. 2020

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Plant mechanical failure, also known as lodging, is the cause of significant and unpredictable yield losses in cereal crops. Lodging occurs in two distinct failure modes—stalk lodging and root lodging. Despite the prevalence and detrimental impact of lodging on crop yields, there is little consensus on how to phenotype plants in the field for lodging resistance and thus breed for mechanically resilient plants. This review provides an overview of field‐based mechanical testing approaches to assess stalk and root lodging resistance. These approaches are placed in the context of future perspectives. Best practices and recommendations for acquiring field‐based mechanical phenotypes of plants are also presented.

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The Stalker: An open source force meter for rapid stalk strength phenotyping

Cited by 17 publications

References 4 publications

Are Maize Stalks Efficiently Tapered to Withstand Wind Induced Bending Stresses?

Are Maize Stalks Efficiently Tapered to Withstand Wind Induced Bending Stresses?

The Overlooked Biomechanical Role of the Clasping Leaf Sheath in Wheat Stalk Lodging

Field‐based mechanical phenotyping of cereal crops to assess lodging resistance

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