OBSERVATIONS OF ROOT GROWTH THROUGH PORTS COVERED WITH POLYETHYLENE SHEETING AS COMPARED WITH OTHER METHODS

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Abstract
Methods (4) of observing and measuring root proliferation of sorghum plants were compared. Plants were grown under artificial lighting in portable lysimeters of 160-l capacity. The 2 non-destructive methods were measurement of roots visible through glass in place throughout the 77-80 day growth period, and measurment of roots through ports covered with polyethylene film, which was pressed against the soil by 3.5 kPa2 [kilopascals] of air pressure. Destructive methods were the measuring of length, and weighing of roots recovered from soil samples. The polyethylene-covered ports gave good visibility and adjusted to the moderate shrink-well movements of the sandy loam soil. In contrast, gaps developed between glass and soil in the upper half of the 108-cm deep lysimeters. Lack of contact between glass and soil and proliferation of roots intercepted by the glass hindered accurate observation. Root growth rates, measured through polyethylene-covered ports, correlated significantly with those from soil-recovered roots, but growth rates measured through glass panels did not. Because far fewer roots were measured by non-destructive techniques, they had greater data variance than measurements of soil-recovered roots.

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