This work was carried out to evaluate the viability of the use of a chroma meter as an alternative to the leaf chlorophyll meter for nondestructive quantification of chlorophylls in the leaves. Leaves of kale ("Manteiga") and potato ("Ágata") plants, with colors ranging from yellow-green (chlorotic) to dark green, were individually assessed with the chlorophyll meter (SPAD-502) and the chroma meter (Minolta CR-400, at the L, C, and ho color space), and, thereafter, destructively assessed for total chlorophyll and chlorophylls a and b. The chlorophyll meter reading and the hº/(LxC) ratio for the chroma meter increased with the increment of chlorophylls content in the leaves of kale and potato. The adjusted models between chlorophylls content versus chlorophyll meter readings and the hº/(LxC) ratio for the chroma meter had similar R² in both species. The chroma meter is a viable alternative for non-destructive assessment of chlorophylls (µg cm-2) in leaves, especially of chlorophyll a and total chlorophyll. Nevertheless, this requires the calibration between the hº/(LxC) ratio of the chroma meter and the chlorophylls extracted from leaves of concerned specie and genotype.
Brassica oleracea var. acephala; Solanum tuberosum L; leaf color; leaf optical properties; absorbance; reflectance
