Food Agility's September virtual seminar by Dr Liqi Han.

The QAAFI DigiHort research aims to deliver digital-twin technologies for innovation of horticultural systems, to “optimise via computer simulations before acting in the real world”. It currently includes two components: one for growers and horticulturalists to improve their orchard designs for better light environment; the other to help orchard spray operators minimise agrochemical drift by precise use of their sprayers.

Light capture is highly important to plant growth, productivity and fruit quality. The distribution of light energy – within each canopy, across the orchard and over the year – is jointly affected by farm configuration, terrain, weather and geolocational factors, making it extremely hard for fine-scale evaluations. Once an orchard design becomes reality, it is usually too late to be altered.

Another problem that has long plagued growers, the governments and the community is off-target spray from horticultural practices. The sprayed chemicals that miss tree canopies are not only waste for no gain, but contaminating the environment, posing risks to adjacent farms, and on the east coast potentially endangering the Great Barrier Reef.

About the presenter

Dr Liqi Han is a research fellow at QAAFI Centre for Horticulture Science, the University of Queensland. Originally from a computer science background, Liqi has been working with plant scientists and horticulturalists for more than 16 years, using his IT skills to help explore plant signalling, carbon transport, light interception and distribution as well as spray dynamics. At QAAFI, Liqi has led the development of a high-performance ray tracer and an orchard simulator to improve horticultural designs towards better light quality for better yield. He has also been responsible for a project to innovate digital-twin technologies (powered by high performance computing and artificial intelligence) to reduce horticultural spray drift for protection of the Great Barrier Reef.