Determination of the leaf area of Bauhinia forficata using mathematical models

Abstract

The "pata-de-vaca" (Bauhinia forficata Link), belonging to the Fabaceae family, is a medicinal plant with leaves as its pharmacognosy. These leaves are sold in open markets and contain the chemical marker kaempferitrina, responsible for its hypoglycemic activity. The leaf area, crucial for photosynthesis, plays a decisive role in processes related to metabolism, biomass, phenology, and crop yield. In this context, the aim was to develop a mathematical model to estimate the leaf area of B. forficata. Two hundred leaves were collected from specimens at the Medicinal Plants Garden of UFLA. The leaflets were separated, scanned using an EPSON PERFECTION V700 PHOTO scanner, and the observed leaf area (OLA) was determined by the WinFOLIATM software. Linear models, graphs, and histograms were created using STATISTICA. The relationship between observed leaf area (OLA) and the product of length and width (estimated leaf area - ELA) showed a good fit, validating the linear equation for Bauhinia forticata. It is concluded that the linear model (Ŷ = -0.68 + 0.70x, R2=0.98) best represents the leaf area of the species in terms of length versus width.