EAGER: Determining Interaction Parameters of Roots in Soil

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PI: Philip Benfey (Duke University)CoPI: Daniel Goldman (Georgia Institute of Technology) The goal of this EAGER project is to begin to address the question "How do plant roots behave in soil?" Due to the opaque nature of soil, most previous studies have involved digging up roots, observing them in transparent materials, or observing them as they grow against a transparent interface. This project is an early stage effort that has the potential to transform the way root/soil interaction studies are performed. Expertise in the physics of granular matter will be combined with expertise in root biology to explore this area. The experimental plan involves growing rice in cylindrical containers and systematically varying soil parameters. Root response will be imaged with X-ray computed tomography with 3-D root structure reconstructed and analyzed using software previously developed by the PIs. The project is interdisciplinary (physics and biology) and applies new expertise (physics of granular matter) and new technology (high-resolution X-ray detection). The work also has important practical applications: poor soil fertility and environmental stress suppress crop yields in many parts of the world, and many models predict abiotic stress will increase in coming decades. Thus, enhanced knowledge of root responses to soil composition and soil moisture could be highly beneficial to agriculture, particularly in developing countries. X-ray CT scans of roots and software necessary for analysis will be made available on repository websites at the Georgia Institute of Technology.