Application of the Adobe Photoshop Software Package in Leaf Blade Area Measurement of Woody Plants = Применение программного пакета adobe photoshop при измерении площади листовых пластин древесных растенийApplication of the Adobe Photoshop Software Package in Leaf Blade Area Measurement of Woody Plants = Применение программного пакета adobe photoshop при измерении площади листовых пластин древесных растений There are a number of applied methods for determining morphometric parameters,
including the area of leaf blades of woody plants: millimeter graph paper method, method of
direct measurements, punching method, and planimetric method. The analysis and practical
application of the methods in the test mode revealed their shortcomings related to inaccuracy
of measurements, experiment duration, and equipment inaccessibility. Many researchers
have successfully acquired digitized images. However, capturing the parameters of the
considered structure from the monitor screen is often impossible due to the low availability
of morphometric programs and their high cost. The purpose of the work is to evaluate the
effectiveness of existing methods for determining the area of leaf blades on the example of the
birch genus (Betula L.) trees and to accumulate the algorithm for determining morphometric
parameters of birch leaf blades in the Adobe Photoshop software package. We have developed
a method for determining morphometric parameters of leaf blades of woody plants using the
Adobe Photoshop software package. The research subject is the leaf blades of birch trees.
This method requires: blank A4 sheets; a ruler with an angle of 90°; transparent adhesive tape
(scotch tape); and a scanner. We draw a reference square of random (but fixed) dimensions
in a random corner of each sheet, step by 10 mm from its borders, on a blank A4 sheet using
a ruler with an angle of 90°. The square is placed strictly parallel to the sheet borders. Then,
leaf blades of the desired wood species are attached to the sheet with scotch tape. Using
the scanner, we convert the workpiece into electronic form and upload the image to Adobe
Photoshop. In order to receive morphometric parameters, you can use the following program
tools: “ruler”, “magic wand”, “magnetic lasso tool”. At the same time, it is possible to
automatically select the borders of the studied object, which helps to avoid subjective errors.
The resulting measurements are displayed in pixels and then converted to the required units.
The obtained data is verified using the reference square. Verification showed that the method
accuracy is more than 99.9 %. The proposed method allows to perform fast and accurate
measurements of morphometric parameters of leaf blades, without requiring the purchase of
expensive equipment, which makes it available to any researcher who faces with the task of
measuring the surface of leaf blades of woody plants.
For citation: Babaev R.N. Application of the Adobe Photoshop Software Package in Leaf
Blade Area Measurement of Woody Plants. Lesnoy Zhurnal [Russian Forestry Journal], 2021. |