Modelling wheat behaviour under different population densities using the stochastic GreenLab model

Introduction Plant architecture is determined by both the genetic basis of the plant (e.g. Wang and Li, 2006) and the effects of environmental factors (e.g. Evers et al., 2006). It can be described in terms of the dynamics of buds, with the fate of buds depending on their relative positions in space and time (Buck-Sorlin and Bell, 2000). The variation in architecture is obvious in wheat plants (Triticum aestivum L.), especially regarding the degree of tillering and consequently yield per plant (Darwinkel, 1978). Deterministic functional-structural plant models (FSPMs) are limited in the simulation of plasticity in development in terms of bud behaviour. In the current study, the difference and statistical similarity of individual wheat architectures are taken into account in the context of the function-structural model GreenLab. The aim of this paper is to simulate the stochastic development and mean production of wheat plants grown with different population densities, based on calibration of a stochastic GreenLab model. The results are validated with independent data.