New Technique to Measure Tree Defect Using an Image Analyzer. R. A. Blanchette, Assistant Professor, Department of Plant Pathology, University of Minnesota, St. Paul 55108. Plant Dis. 66:394-397. Accepted for publication 21 August 1981. Copyright 1982 American Phytopathological Society. DOI: 10.1094/PD-66-394.

A new technique to measure discolored and decayed wood in trees using a video processor image analyzer, commonly used in remote sensing laboratories, is presented. Discolored and decayed wood associated with Inonotus (Poria) obliquus in Betula papyrifera and Phellinus (Fomes) pini in Pinus banksiana was accurately measured using this simple, rapid technique. The cross-sectional areas of defects were obtained from disks taken at 30.6-cm intervals throughout the main stem of the trees. A highly significant (r >0.91**) correlation was found when this new technique was compared with hand measurements from tracings of the discolored and decayed columns.

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