Abstract
Various root traits has been focused and root length is one of important traits for nutrient and water uptake from the soil. Estimation of root length has been dramatically improved by image analysis with image-processing software and image scanners. In estimation of root length, WinRHIZO, the special software for root analysis, has been often used but we proposed a novel method of estimating root length using open-source software ImageJ. The estimates by our proposed method using ImageJ closely corresponded to those estimated by WinRHIZO. Using this method, the high-thoroughput and completely automated estimation of root length could be performed by using ImageJ-plugins and ImageJ-macro. It is necessary to establish the standard protocol of root length measurement. The quantitative discussion of root length will be facilitated between many root researchers in the protocol. In addition, various plant traits can be evaluated with image analysis using ImageJ.
