Development of a Laser Scanner for Measuring Tree Canopy Characteristics: Phase 2. Foliage Density Measurement

This study used a laser scanning system to quantify foliage density of citrus trees. The density calculations werebased on the laser sensor-canopy distance measurements and a canopy boundary-smoothing algorithm. Ten citrus trees withdifferent foliage densities were scanned by the laser system, and the calculated results were compared with the correspondingvisual assessments of tree densities. Overall, laser measurements and visual assessments had a good correlation (R2 = 0.96;RMSE = 6.1%). Laser density measurements also had a good repeatability, with an average coefficient of variation of lessthan 3%.