The Australian Plant Phenomics Facility invites expressions of interest from Australian plant scientists wishing to undertake pilot projects using the new DroughtSpotter system in Adelaide.

DroughtSpotter is a gravimetric platform with precision irrigation to assess transpiration dynamics of plants with a precision of up to 1g. The integrated irrigation units allow precise and reproducible water application for drought stress or related experiments that require an accurate control of water volume to 1ml. The individual pot weight can be up to 10 kg.

The platform is installed in an existing greenhouse and comprised of 168 load cells for which watering protocols or drought scenarios can be easily customised. The designed irrigation events maintain the target weight of each individual plant pot according to the researchers’ experimental protocol and provide plant transpiration rates at high temporal resolution calculated by the loss of weight.

Expressions of interest close 30 November 2015Further information