Core Project 3 measures the soil-root zones of crops with minimally or non-invasive sensors and robotic technology concentrating on sensing and predicting root performance in the field. New technologies such as 3D imaging methods gather information on the spatial organization of subsurface soil at the field scale. We aim to assemble the tools to collect and apply soil-root zone data to structural function crop models, yield predictions with the goal of optimizing resource inputs on farms in real time.

Research Videos

Functional Phenotyping of Plant Roots to Achieve Sustainable Crop Production

Functional Phenotyping of Plant Roots to Achieve Sustainable Crop Production

PhenoRob PhD Student Hamid Rouina provides insights into his research within Core Project 3: The Soil-Root-Zone.

Investigation of Root Traits in Reference to the Root Soil Contact by Root System Sensing

Investigation of Root Traits in Reference to the Root Soil Contact by Root System Sensing

PhenoRob PhD Student Anna Wendel talks about her research within Core Project 3: The Soil-Root-Zone.

Imaging Spatial and Temporal Soil Water Content Variations Using Borehole GPR

Imaging Spatial and Temporal Soil Water Content Variations Using Borehole GPR

PhenoRob PhD Student Lena Lärm talks about her research within Core Project 3: The Soil-Root-Zone.

Investigating Root Growth Using Spectral Electrical Impedance Tomography

Investigating Root Growth Using Spectral Electrical Impedance Tomography

PhenoRob PhD Student Valentin Michels talks about his research within Core Project 3: The Soil-Root-Zone.

Plants Control Soil Gas Exchanges Possibly Via Mucilage by A. Haupenthal et al.

Plants Control Soil Gas Exchanges Possibly Via Mucilage by A. Haupenthal et al.

PhenoRob PhD Student Adrian Haupenthal talks about his research within Core Project 3: The Soil-Root-Zone.

Soil-root Dynamics and Impacts of Potential Interventions

Soil-root Dynamics and Impacts of Potential Interventions

PhenoRob PhD Student Gina Lopez talks about her research within Core Project 3: The Soil-Root-Zone.

Pore Scale Simulation of Mucilage Drainage

Pore Scale Simulation of Mucilage Drainage

PhenoRob PhD Student Omid Jahromi talks about his research within Core Project 3: The Soil-Root-Zone.

Gabriel Schaaf, University of Bonn & Andrea Schnepf, Forschungszentrum Jülich (13.05.2022)

Gabriel Schaaf, University of Bonn & Andrea Schnepf, Forschungszentrum Jülich (13.05.2022)

27th PhenoRob Seminar Series with Gabriel Schaaf (University of Bonn) & Andrea Schnepf (Forschungszentrum Jülich) on “Crop Responses under Phosphate Deficiency: Integration of Plant Physiology in Sensing and Modelling”

Sugar Beet Shoot and Root Phenotypic Plasticity by S. Hadir et al.

Sugar Beet Shoot and Root Phenotypic Plasticity by S. Hadir et al.

This short paper trailer video is based on the following publication: S. Hadir, T. Gaiser, H. Hüging, M. Athmann, D. Pfarr, R. Kemper, F. Ewert, and S. Seidel, “Sugar Beet Shoot and Root Phenotypic Plasticity to Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Potassium and Lime Omission,” Agriculture, vol. 11, iss. 1, 2021. Find more info here: https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0472/11/1/21

Johannes Postma: Crop Improvement From Phenotyping Roots - Highlights Reveal Expanding Opportunities

Johannes Postma: Crop Improvement From Phenotyping Roots – Highlights Reveal Expanding Opportunities

Johannes A. Postma is a PhenoRob Member and Researcher at the Institute of Bio- and Geosciences (IBG-2), Forschungszentrum Jülich Saoirse R. Tracy, Kerstin A. Nagel, Johannes A. Postma, Heike Fassbender, Anton Wasson, Michelle Watt (2020), Crop Improvement from Phenotyping Roots: Highlights Reveal Expanding Opportunities, Trends in Plant Science, Volume 25, Issue 1, Pages 105-118 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tplants.2019.10.015

Roots –Groping in the Dark

Roots –Groping in the Dark

Sabine Seidel, Junior Research Group Leader in PhenoRob at the University of Bonn gives a PhenoRob Interdisciplinary Lecture [PILS] on the topic of “Roots – Groping in the Dark”.

Carbon and Nutrient Stocks in Soil – a Challenge to Soil Ecology and Environmental Sensing

Carbon and Nutrient Stocks in Soil – a Challenge to Soil Ecology and Environmental Sensing

Wulf Amelung, Professor of Soil Science and Soil Ecology at the Institute of Crop Science and Resource Conservation (INRES), University of Bonn and head of the Agrosphere Institute at IBG-3, Forschungszentrum Jülich gives a PhenoRob Interdisciplinary Lecture [PILS] on carbon and nutrient stocks in soil, which pose a challenge to soil ecology and environmental sensing.

Pore-scale simulation of mucilage drainage by Omid Esmaeelipoor Jahromi et al.

Pore-scale simulation of mucilage drainage by Omid Esmaeelipoor Jahromi et al.

This short trailer video is based on the following publication: O. Esmaeelipoor Jahromi, M. Knott, R. K. Janakiram, R. Rahim, and E. Kroener, “Pore-scale simulation of mucilage drainage,” Vadose Zone Journal, vol. e20218, pp. 1-13, 2022. doi:10.1002/vzj2.20218

The Plant Microbiome as Player in Sustainable Crop Production

The Plant Microbiome as Player in Sustainable Crop Production

H. Pagel, FZ Jülich (03.11.2023)

H. Pagel, FZ Jülich (03.11.2023)

41st Seminar Series with Holger Pagel (FZ Jülich), on “Process-based modeling of matter and energy turnover in soil systems”

Faces of PhenoRob: Adrian Haupenthal

Faces of PhenoRob: Adrian Haupenthal

In Faces of PhenoRob, we introduce you to some of PhenoRob’s many members: from senior faculty to PhDs, this is your chance to meet them all and learn more about the work they do! In this video, you’ll meet Adrian Haupenthal, PhenoRob PhD Student.

G. Lobet, Forschungszentrum Jülich (08.09.2023)

G. Lobet, Forschungszentrum Jülich (08.09.2023)

38th PhenoRob Seminar Series with Guillaume Lobet (Forschungszentrum Jülich) on “The PhenoRob Digtal Agricultural Avatar”

Metabolic responses to phosphate deficiency

Metabolic responses to phosphate deficiency

Peter Dörmann, Head of the Institute for Molecular Physiology and Biotechnology of Plants at the University of Bonn gives a PhenoRob Interdisciplinary Lecture [PILS] on “Metabolic responses to phosphate deficiency”.

Robert Koller, Forschungszentrum Jülich (12.05.2023)

Robert Koller, Forschungszentrum Jülich (12.05.2023)

36th PhenoRob Seminar Series with Robert Koller (Forschungszentrum Jülich) on “Tomographic methods for deep phenotyping of plant structure and function”.

CPlantBox - A Functional-Structural Plant Model

CPlantBox – A Functional-Structural Plant Model

Andrea Schnepf, Professor of Soil-, Root Systems and Rhizosphere Processes at the Institute of Bio- and Geosciences (IBG-3), Forschungszentrum Jülich and at the Faculty of Agriculture, University of Bonn gives a PhenoRob Interdisciplinary Lecture [PILS] on the “Light grey model” CPlantBox.

Faces of PhenoRob: Sabine Seidel

Faces of PhenoRob: Sabine Seidel

In Faces of PhenoRob, we introduce you to some of PhenoRob’s many members: from senior faculty to PhDs, this is your chance to meet them all and learn more about the work they do! In this video, you’ll meet Sabine Seidel, PhenoRob Junior Research Group Leader. https://www.lap.uni-bonn.de/de/mitarbeiter/webseiten/sabine-seidel

Sabine Seidel, University of Bonn (10.02.2023)

Sabine Seidel, University of Bonn (10.02.2023)

Sabine Seidel, Junior Research Group Leader with the Cluster of Excellence PhenoRob, gives a talk on “Modelling approaches for understanding the processes underlying mixture performance and quantifying agroecosystem services” as part of the PhenoRob Women in Science-Talk Series on February 10, 2023.

A. Schnepf - S. Seidel, University of Bonn (11.11.2022)

A. Schnepf – S. Seidel, University of Bonn (11.11.2022)

32nd PhenoRob Seminar Series with Andrea Schnepf and Sabine Seidel (University of Bonn) on ” Core Project 3: Putting the Soil-Root Zone into Sustainable Crop Production “