Imaging drought stress in plants
Our knowledge of species drought tolerance is significantly limited yet critical in predicting how plants will respond to a rapidly changing climate. New optical techniques for visualising the effect of water stress provide the foundation for a new generation of tools to assess plant drought tolerance.
Find out more
OpenSourceOV is an Open Source project that encourages community involvement.
From electronics to optics to beta-testing, a range of expertise is required to develop and improve the resources you'll find on the site. If you'd like to get involved then head on over to contributing for more information.
Stay up to date with the latest news and information from OpenSourceOV.org
Get updatesHow does it work?
Capture
Capture images of a leaf or stem over time using a microscope, off-the-shelf document scanner, or 3D-printed clamp.
Find out moreProcess
Use the OpenSourceOV plugins and guides to extract embolism events from the captured sequence of images.
Find out moreAnalyze
Use our detailed guide to analyse the data and present the cumulative effect of increasing drought stress as an optical vulnerability curve.
Find out more
Remotely transferring images from the Pi
By Chris Lucani -Instead of transferring captured images from the Pi using a USB stick it’s far more efficient to remotely transfer them over a network connection. First, make sure your Pi and the computer you want to transfer the files to (the local computer) are connected to the same network. Most mobile phones have a ‘Mobile Hotspot’…
Read more
New hand-lens clamp for stem and leaves nearly ready!
By Chris Lucani -
We’ve been very excited testing a new 3D printed clamp that allows you to fit any (most?) standard hand lens to use as the magnifier. Although the Moment lens used in the standard clamp provides an excellent image, it only provides 10x magnification which we’re finding is just not quite enough for most stems. With…
Read more
Mapping xylem failure in disparate organs of whole plants reveals extreme resistance in olive roots
The capacity of plant species to resist xylem cavitation is an important determinant of resistance to drought, mortality thresholds, geographic distribution and productivity. Unravelling the role of xylem cavitation vulnerability in plant evolution and adaptation requires a clear understanding of how this key trait varies between the tissues of individuals and between individuals of species….
Read moreGallery
