Branching patterns of root systems: quantitative analysis of the diversity among dicotyledonous species

摘要

Background and AimsRoot branching, and in particular acropetal branching, is a common and important developmental process for increasing the number of growing tips and defining the distribution of their meristem size. This study presents a new method for characterizing the results of this process in natura from scanned images of young, branched parts of excavated roots. The method involves the direct measurement or calculation of seven different traits.