Kerry Brian Walsh

Central Queensland University · Centre for Plant and Water Science

Near infrared spectroscopy was used in discrimination of intact bovine teeth in terms of animal sex, diet, tooth type and place of origin. Discriminant Analysis (DA) models were developed and tested using a stratified random 70:30 data split to calibration and test sets. Of the discriminant techniques of Soft Independent Modelling of Class Analogy...

Nigella sativa L., which is commonly referred to as black cumin, is a globally recognized plant for the nutraceutical and pharmaceutical values of its seed oil. While numerous studies have investigated Nigella oil, there is a scarcity of information regarding the variation of key phytoconstituents in Nigella oil from diverse seed sources. It is als...

In the original publication [...]

Understanding the extraction process of Nigella oil is crucial due to its significant impact on yield, quality, and therapeutic effectiveness. This study explored the effects of various screw press temperatures (40 °C, 50 °C, 60 °C, 70 °C, and 80 °C) on the quantity and quality of Nigella oil to optimize conditions that maximize yield while maintai...

Recent developments in affordable depth imaging hardware and the use of 2D Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN) in object detection and segmentation have accelerated the adoption of machine vision in a range of applications, with mainstream models often out-performing previous application-specific architectures. The need for the release of training...

Rainfed mungbean crops in Queensland Australia frequently experience terminal drought (drought stress in the final stages of reproductive development), highlighting the importance of drought-tolerant varieties for sustainable mungbean production. Given there is limited information on the relative drought tolerance of current mungbean varieties in A...

Nigella sativa, also known as black cumin, is esteemed for its rich reservoir of health-benefitting phytoconstituents nestled within its seeds. The composition of its seeds can be influenced by factors such as genotype diversity and agricultural practices. Understanding these dynamics is important for maximizing the nutritional and medicinal attrib...

This study explored the performance and physiological responses of three commercially used peanut cultivars in Australian farming systems under ambient and elevated CO2 conditions, aiming to identify the most suitable genotype for dual-purpose (grain and graze) cropping experiments. The experiment utilized an open-top chamber (OTC) facility to regu...

Open-top chambers (OTCs) consist of semi-open enclosures used to investigate the impact of elevated carbon dioxide [CO2] on crops and larger plant communities. OTCs have lower operational costs than alternatives such as controlled environment cabinets and Free Air Carbon Dioxide Enrichment (FACE). A low-cost design is presented for an OTC with a su...

New technologies providing information on spatial distribution of fruit load in tree crops offer potential for improved orchard management operations. One harvest management task is the distribution of empty fruit bins through the orchard prior to harvest. This concept is explored for a mango orchard, with use of fruit load data derived from RGB-D...

Spatially enabled yield forecasting is a key component of farm Management Information Systems (MISs) for broadacre grain production, enabling management decisions such as variable rate fertilization. However, such a capability has been lacking for soft (fleshy)-tree-fruit harvest load, with relevant tools for automated assessment having been develo...

Bioprospecting native Australian plants offers the potential discovery of latent and novel bioactive compounds. The promising cytotoxic and antibacterial activity of methanolic extracts of Pittosporum angustifolium and Terminalia ferdinandiana led to further fractionation and isolation using our laboratory’s bioassay-guided fractionation protocol....

Inconsistent yield of subtropical table grape across seasons is often associated with low carbohydrate reserves during flowering. In an attempt to increase TNC and thus yield, sucrose was injected into treated trunks during periods of high carbohydrate demand (i.e., between budburst and flowering). Total non-structural carbohydrate (TNC) concentrat...

A farm management information system (MIS) entails record keeping based on a database management system, typically using a client-server architecture, i.e., an information system, IS, coupled with a variety of tools/methods/models for the support of operational management. The current review adopts a multivocal approach to consider academic and com...

Bioprospecting native Australian plants offers potential discovery of latent and novel bioactive compounds. Promising cytotoxic and antibacterial activity of methanolic extracts of Pittosporum angustifolium and Terminalia ferdinandiana led to further fractionation and isolation using our laboratory’s bioassay guided fractionation protocol. Hence, t...

This study was conducted to evaluate the ability of near infrared (NIR) spectroscopy to estimate oil content, and per cent of cake, resin and residue in beauty leaf tree ( Calophyllum inophyllum L.) kernel samples. Fruits were collected from various geographical locations of tropical Australia (from Rockhampton to Darwin) and air dried before the k...

Despite the potential role of soil carbon offset schemes to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, there are concerns that the rules for assessment, monitoring, and operation are barriers to engagement. This may explain why there is low participation of Australian landholders in soil carbon projects. This study reviews the literature on three leading vol...

Hydroxyapatite is a major component of teeth and bones and is used commercially in metal sequestration. Near infrared imaging and spectroscopy has found increasing use in characterisation of these materials, particularly in context of dental conditions. The near infrared spectra of these materials are reviewed in terms of band assignments related t...

A web mapping XYZ Tile Layer Service, such as Google Earth (GE), provides an amazing resource for the visualization of spatial data against aerial and satellite imagery with global coverage, typically at a resolution finer than 5 m. However, the increasing requirement on spatial accuracy in farm information requires a greater appreciation of the is...

Faba bean ( Vicia faba ) is growing in popularity in Australia, partly due to its higher levels of health‐benefiting compounds compared to other grain crops. This study investigated infrared spectroscopy for predicting levels of bioactive compounds such as antioxidants and phenolics in faba bean flour. Calibration models were performed on 60 sample...

Hydroxyapatite is a major component of teeth and bones and is used commercially in metal sequestration. Near infrared imaging and spectroscopy has found increasing use in characterisation of these materials, particularly in context of dental conditions. The near infrared spectra of these materials are reviewed in terms of band assignments related t...

This study compared the performance of near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) and mid-infrared spectroscopy (MIRS) for the prediction of moisture, protein, total phenolic content (TPC), ferric reducing antioxidant potential (FRAP) and total monomeric anthocyanin (TMA) content in 65 samples of Australian wheat flour. Models were constructed on 50 of the...

This study analyzed the relationships between tissue Cl and tissue light absorption in the wavelengths ranging from 399.9424 to 3997.363 (1746 spectra). The purpose was to determine plant tissue Cl concentrations non-destructively. Beauty leaf tree seedlings were grown in a glasshouse and were exposed to 0 and 75 mM NaCl for about 130 days. After h...

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the potential of handheld near-infrared (NIR) and benchtop mid-infrared (MIR) spectroscopy for the rapid prediction of antioxidant capacity, dry matter, and total phenolic contents in cayenne pepper (Capsicum annuum ‘Cayenne’). Using NIR spectroscopy, the best-performing model for dry matter had an R2pre...

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the potential of handheld near-infrared (NIR) and benchtop mid-infrared (MIR) spectroscopy for the rapid prediction of antioxidant capacity, dry matter, and total phenolic contents in cayenne pepper (Capsicum annuum 'Cayenne'). Using NIR spectroscopy, the best-performing model for dry matter had an R 2 p...

The task of gripping has been identified as the rate-limiting step in the development of tree-fruit harvesting systems. There is, however, no set of universally adopted ‘specifications’ with standardized measurement procedures for the characterization of gripper performance in the harvest of soft tree fruit. A set of metrics were defined for evalua...

A forward estimate of mango (Mangifera indica L.) harvest timing is required for farm management (e.g., for organization of harvest labour and marketing). This forward estimate can be based on accumulated growing degree days (GDD) from an early stage of flowering to fruit harvest maturity, with fruit maturity judged on a destructive assessment of f...

Forward estimates of harvest load require information on fruit size as well as number. The task of sizing fruit and vegetables has been automated in the packhouse, progressing from mechanical methods to machine vision over the last three decades. This shift is now occurring for size assessment of fruit on trees, i.e., in the orchard. This review fo...

Infrared spectroscopy (wavelengths ranging from 750-25,000 nm) offers a rapid means of assessing the chemical composition of a wide range of sample types, both for qualitative and quantitative analyses. Its use in the food industry has increased significantly over the past five decades and it is now an accepted analytical technique for the routine...

The temperate mid-hills areas of Nepal are suited to a production of a range of fruit commodities, but suitable production areas are dependent on local climatic, soils and infrastructure such as roads and electricity supply. A rapid crop suitability analysis for the example of apple production was conducted, exploiting a set of soil, topographic an...

The efficacy of hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 ) was evaluated for the inhibition of mycelial growth of Phytophthora cinnamomi in vitro . Phytophthora cinnamomi infects many crops globally causing root, collar and crown rot, resulting in significant economic losses for producers. Two 30% (w/v) H 2 O 2 products, each stabilised with a different concentr...

Early and accurate tomato disease detection using easily available leaf photos is essential for farmers and stakeholders as it help reduce yield loss due to possible disease epidemics. This paper aims to visually identify nine different infectious diseases (bacterial spot, early blight, Septoria leaf spot, late blight, leaf mold, two-spotted spider...

The adoption of orchard farm management and information systems (OFMIS) are at an early-stage relative to that in broadacre cropping applications, and those that exist focus on spray and labour records and on irrigation control. Another major need in tree fruit management is forecast of both harvest timing and harvest fruit load. A design science r...

Experimental trials on the performance of end-effectors for the automated harvest of soft fruit are constrained by seasonal limitations on fruit availability and fruit perishability, necessitating the use of different sets of fruit across time. Consequently, the use of fruit and stalk phantoms, rather than real fruit, is an attractive proposition....

Forecast of tree fruit yield requires prediction of harvest time fruit size as well as fruit number. Mango (Mangifera indica L.) fruit mass can be estimated from correlation to measurements of fruit length (L), width (W) and thickness (T). On-tree measurements of individually tagged fruit were undertaken using callipers at weekly intervals until th...

Estimation of fruit size on-tree is useful for yield estimation, harvest timing and market planning. Automation of measurement of fruit size on-tree is possible using RGB-depth (RGB-D) cameras, if partly occluded fruit can be removed from consideration. An RGB-D Time of Flight camera was used in an imaging system that can be driven through an orcha...

Habanero chillies (Capsicum chinense cv Habanero) are a popular species of hot chilli in Australia, with production steadily increasing. However, there is limited research on this crop due to its relatively low levels of production at present. Rapid methods of assessing fruit quality could be greatly beneficial both for quality assurance purposes a...

Citrus production is important to the economy of the mid-hill areas of Nepal, bringing an estimated return of more than five billion rupees. However, the industry has been characterized by low profitability, with fragmented and short value chains delivering product of variable quality to local markets. This study adopted a critical case study appro...

A large variety of unique and distinct flora of Australia have developed exceptional survival methods and phytochemicals and hence may provide a significant avenue for new drug discovery. This study proposes a bioassay guided fractionation protocol that maybe robust and efficient in screening plants with potential bioactive properties and isolating...

Ginger is well known for its unique pungent flavour and numerous health benefits, both of which can be attributed to the gingerol derivatives. Quantification of these compounds is important for assessing ginger quality for processing purposes, as their levels can vary with cultivar and growing conditions. However, current analytical techniques are...

Mungbean is susceptible to waterlogging stress; therefore, breeding tolerant varieties would provide Australian growers with management options for wet summer season planting. Selection for waterlogging tolerance could be improved using vegetative indices that correlate to yield. Five mungbean genotypes were exposed to waterlogging stress at the po...

A large variety of unique and distinct flora of Australia have developed exceptional survival methods and phytochemicals and hence may provide a significant avenue for new drug discovery. Several literatures have identified some native Australian plants as having high therapeutic potential. Despite this, the bioactive compounds of some of these spe...

Every new tool gives humankind a new capability or capabilities, as a new tool finds a range of applications [...]

Background Numerous commercial pharmaceuticals – including anticancer, antiviral, and antidiabetic drugs have been developed from traditional plant-derived medicines. There are approximately 25,000 species of flora occurring in Australia, which are adapted to a range of harsh environments, and hence a plethora of novel compounds are still awaiting...

Short wave near infrared (NIR) spectroscopy operated in a partial or full transmission geometry and a point spectroscopy mode has been increasingly adopted for evaluation of quality of intact fruit, both on-tree and on-packing lines. The evolution in hardware has been paralleled by an evolution in the modelling techniques employed. This review docu...

Citrulline is a non-protein building amino acid that plays important roles in nitric oxide production, vasodilation and ammonia detoxification. It is structurally related to arginine and is most abundant in melons and other cucurbit species. Most current methods for the quantification of citrulline and arginine require time-consuming chemical deriv...

New measurement technologies are facilitating new approaches to the improvement of safety and quality in agri-food supply chains. However, measurement uncertainty and choice of sampling strategy can influence the outcomes of assessment programmes. This chapter provides a sampler of calculations of population statistics, required sample sizes and ap...

Tablegrape (Vitis vinifera L.) yield is lower in the subtropics than in Mediterranean production systems. To explain this difference, the development of inflorescence primordia of ‘Menindee Seedless’ grape in Emerald, Australia, one of the hottest grape-growing regions in Australia, was described using dissecting and scanning electron microscopy. I...

In smallholder crop–livestock systems where maize (Zea mays L.) is a staple cereal, the stover is usually an important but low‐quality ruminant feed. Maize stover has various competing uses, and optimal allocation of stover, particularly for forage and mulch, is essential for improving whole‐farm productivity and sustainability. Knowledge that feed...

Ginger is well known for its unique pungent flavour and numerous health benefits, both of which can be attributed to the gingerol derivatives. Quantification of these compounds is important for assessing ginger quality, particularly for ginger destined for processing purposes. However, current analytical techniques are not suitable for in-house mon...

Numerous commercial pharmaceuticals – including anticancer, antiviral, and antidiabetic drugs have been developed from traditional plant-derived medicines. With approximately 25,000 species of flora occurring in Australia that are adapted to the harsh environment, there is a plethora of novel compounds awaiting research in the context of their medi...

Eight depth cameras varying in operational principle (stereoscopy: ZED, ZED2, OAK-D; IR active stereoscopy: Real Sense D435; time of flight (ToF): Real Sense L515, Kinect v2, Blaze 101, Azure Kinect) were compared in context of use for in-orchard fruit localization and sizing. For this application, a specification on bias-corrected root mean square...

The yields and nutritive value of haulm (stem and leaf) and pod wall (HPW) crop residues of common bean early-harvested at the green pod fill stage were measured in nine genotypes grown in two dissimilar environments (Boricha and Mandura) in Ethiopia. The concentrations of total N, neutral detergent fibre (NDF) and acid detergent fibre (ADF), and t...

The performance of a multi-view machine vision method was documented at an orchard level, relative to packhouse count. High repeatability was achieved in night-time imaging, with an absolute percentage error of 2% or less. Canopy architecture impacted performance, with reasonable estimates achieved on hedge, single leader and conventional systems (...

To survive in an increasingly competitive economic environment, the Northern Australian agricultural sector needs to expand overall production and diversify its cropping systems. Functional foods – which provide health-benefitting effects in addition to nutritional benefits – provide one potential option for maximising farmers’ returns, with numero...

Although Australia is the largest exporter of faba bean globally, there is limited information available on the levels of bioactive compounds found in current commercial faba bean varieties grown in this country. This study profiled the phenolic acid and flavonoid composition of 10 Australian faba bean varieties, grown at two different locations. P...

Chickpea is the second-most grown legume crop world-wide; however, most chickpea genotypes are susceptible to drought and heat stress, limiting expansion of this crop beyond current growing regions. Consequently, this study evaluated the agronomic performance and phyto-nutritional content of five new genotypes of desi chickpea, grown under rainfed...

Pulse crops form an important aspect of the Australian agricultural sector, comprising around 10% of the total cropping area sown per year. In addition to their ability to fix nitrogen into the soil, pulses contain higher levels of phenolic acids compared to other grains. Given that many of these phenolic acids have been associated with improved ca...

The management and marketing of fruit requires data on expected numbers, size, quality and timing. Current practice estimates orchard fruit load based on the qualitative assessment of fruit number per tree and historical orchard yield, or manually counting a subsample of trees. This review considers technological aids assisting these estimates, in...

Citrulline is a non-proteinaceous amino acid found in high concentrations in melons and other cucurbits. Via its subsequent biotransformation into arginine by the kidneys, citrulline plays important roles in nitric oxide production, vasodilation and ammonia detoxification. Dietary citrulline supplementation provides a range of benefits, including i...

Sweet potatoes are experiencing increased popularity across many parts of the world due to their high levels of functionally beneficial compounds, including vitamin C, anthocyanins and carotenoids. However, limited work has been performed on Australian-grown sweet potatoes. This work investigated the key phytochemical composition of the root tissue...

Estimation of on-tree mango maturity is essential for the prediction of harvest time. Dry matter (DM) is a useful index in deciding mango maturity, and post-harvest quality. Existing NIR based maturity meters employ machine learning regressors to predict a maturity index value (such as DM, oBrix, or etc.) and then impose a hard threshold on predict...

Machine vision from ground vehicles is being used for estimation of fruit load on trees, but a correction is required for occlusion by foliage or other fruits. This requires a manually estimated factor (the reference method). It was hypothesised that canopy images could hold information related to the number of occluded fruits. Several image featur...

Imaging systems mounted to ground vehicles are used to image fruit tree canopies for estimation of fruit load, but frequently need correction for fruit occluded by branches, foliage or other fruits. This can be achieved using an orchard ‘occlusion factor’, estimated from a manual count of fruit load on a sample of trees (referred to as the referenc...