Root System Scanning Data with Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) in Shandong Province, China, 2024

Two scanning schemes (a square grid scanning scheme and a concentric circle scanning scheme) were employed for detection of the triploid poplar ((P. tomentosa × P. bolleana) × P. tomentosa) root system using GPR at an antenna frequency of 1600 MHz, with a 15 cm interval, so as to non-destructively invert the spatial distribution of plant root systems. The GPR root survey was conducted at the state-owned Jiucheng Forest Farm in Gaotang County, Liaocheng City, Shandong Province, China (116°05′25′′E, 36°48′47′′N), authorized by the Gaotang County Qingping Forest Farm Municipal Nature Reserve Management Office. During the experiment, the environment, soil, and microorganisms were not damaged. The GPR used was the TRUTM (Tree Radar Unit) (Tree Radar, Inc, USA), operating at an antenna frequency of 1600 MHz. Two scanning schemes were employed for non-destructive detection of the root system: a square grid scanning scheme and a concentric circle scanning scheme. The square grid scanning scheme involved a total of 44 scanning lines, including 22 lines along the positive X-axis (Y000, Y015, …, Y150; Y210, Y225, …, Y360) and 22 lines along the positive Y-axis (X000, X015, …, X150; X210, X225, …, X360). Each scanning line was 3.60 m long, with a 15 cm interval between adjacent parallel scanning lines, covering a total scanning area of 12.96 m². The concentric circle scanning scheme was centered around the root collar, starting from the initial line and proceeding in a clockwise direction to complete a full circle. The length of each scanning line corresponded to the circumference of the circle, with the concentric circle radius starting at 30 cm and ending at 180 cm, increasing in increments of 15 cm, resulting in 11 scanning lines (R030, R045, …, R180) and covering an area of 10.18 m².