Parameter bounds and defaults are stored in the PlantStudio program. You might find in some circumstances that you need to override a parameter bound or default. You can do this by specifying overrides directly in your settings file4L9JLL4. 

CAUTION: This is an advanced topic, so you shouldn’t be doing this unless you have used PlantStudio enough to understand these ideas well. If you need help overridding a bound or default, ask us for help and we will send you the correct entry to include in your settings file.

General override format

To override a parameter bound or default, enter a line in the Overrides section of your settings file. If there is not already an Overrides section in the settings file, you must create one. A schematic Overrides section would look like this:

       …

       [Overrides]

       Section name: Parameter name=0.0 100.0 (50.0)

       Another section name: Another parameter name=1.0 60.0 (25.0)

       Yet another section name: Yet another parameter name=0.0 0.0 (TRUE)

       …

NOTE: There was a change in the override format between PlantStudio 2.01 and 2.10. Beginning in PlantStudio 2.10, you need to specify the parameter section and name (separated by a colon) for each override. Also note that this change is not backward compatible: overrides that work in PlantStudio 2.1 or greater will not work correctly in older versions of PlantStudio. We haven’t been too worried about that because it’s easy to change the overrides in your settings file and because people probably don’t use overrides extremely often.


The first part of the line for each override is the name of the section and parameter, EXACTLY as you see it in PlantStudio (you can use the “Copy Parameter Name” item in the popup menu over the parameters as a quick way of getting what you need for this). The second part of the line, after the equals sign, has three parts: the lower bound, the upper bound, and the default in parentheses. The default value MUST be in parentheses. You MUST specify all three values even if some do not apply to the parameter.

Type-specific overrides

For a number parameterUsing_number_parameter_panels>second, the override line might look like this:

General parameters: Number of segments to draw to create curved line=1.0 30.0 (5)

where 1.0 is the lower bound, 30.0 is the upper bound, and 5 is the default. 


For an S-curve parameterUsing_S_curve_parameter_panels>second, the override line might look like this:

General parameters: Growth curve=0.0 1.0 (0.25 0.1 0.65 0.85)

where the first two numbers MUST ALWAYS BE zero and one, and the part in parentheses is the four values that describe the s curve in the order x1, y1, x2, y2. This is the same order the values are shown on the s-curve parameter panel. 


For a yes/no parameter1QMXRWF>second, the override line might look like this:

General parameters: Plant is dicotyledonous (has two seedling leaves)=0.0 0.0 (TRUE)

where the two zeroes stand in for bounds but will be ignored, and the default value is TRUE. The default entry here must be either TRUE or FALSE.


For a list parameterUsing_list_parameter_panels>second, the override line might look like this:

Leaves: If compound, shape=0.0 0.0 (0)

where the first two zeroes stand in for bounds but will be ignored, and the default is zero. In this case zero means the first choice and subsequent choices are numbered following it. The choice numbers are in the same order as you see in the parameter panel in PlantStudio. (In the case of compound leaves, zero means pinnate, so setting the default to 1 would make the default leaves palmate.)


For a color parameterUsing_color_parameter_panels>second, the override line might look like this:

Internodes (stems): Internode color=0.0 0.0 (50 150 50)

where the first two zeroes stand in for bounds but will be ignored, and the default is a color with red value of 50, green value of 150, and blue value of 50. The three RGB values are combined to produce a default color. Each RGB value ranges between zero and 255.


For a 3D object parameterUsing_3D_object_parameter_panels>second, overrides are complicated, and we suggest you ask us to help if you need to override the default 3D object. Send us the 3D object you want to use as the default, and we will send you back a line to paste into your settings file. But if you want to do it yourself, a default 3D object override line might look like this:

Leaves: Leaf 3D object=0.0 0.0 (N[Default 3D object],P[134 245 150],P[113 208 145],P[135 209 150],P[109 171 142],P[136 171 147],P[135 136 138],P[156 208 145],P[159 171 140],T[1 2 3],T[3 2 4],T[3 4 5],T[4 6 5],T[3 7 1],T[7 3 5],T[8 7 5],T[8 5 6])

where the first two zeroes stand in for bounds but are ignored, and the default is a 3D object defined by the long specification you see. The format for this specification is that the parts are delimited by commas, each part is started with a capital letter that determines what is inside the brackets, and inside each bracket are these things:

N[xxxxx] where xxxxx is the name of the 3D object;

P[xx xx xx] where the xx values are x, y and z values for a point in 3D space;

T[x x x] where the x values are identifiers for points that make up a triangle.

The 3D object specification cannot stretch over more than one line (like it does here). It must extend out without any line breaks until the close paranthesis is reached. 

Tips on changing parameter bounds and defaults

▪        Some bounds don’t make any sense to change. For example, for parameters that are fractions, changing the bounds to outside the 0-1 range might produce numerical exceptions. In every case, we suggest you try a) changing only one bound at a time, b) making sure the new bound you set makes sense for the type of parameter it is, and c) testing the bound right away to make sure it won’t cause problems.

▪        If you change a parameter bound, then run the program and load a plant file, then save the plant file, all plant values for that parameter will be constrained to the new bound. So you might want to make a backup of your favorite plant files before you change a parameter bound if you think it might truncate some values.

▪        You can deactivate an override simply by placing a semicolon at the start of the line. Watch out, though – if you comment out all the overrides, the program will remove the [Overrides] section label and you will have to put it back when you un-comment the override lines.

▪        All parameters have defaults, but some defaults never get used in reality because they are set in the plant wizard (which is the only way to make a completely new plant). Out of about 400 parameters, only about 30 get set in the wizard, so setting defaults for other parameters will make a difference.

▪        The breeder works by varying parameters within the bounds we set up, and we tried to set those bounds to avoid drawing problems. If you change a bound to a radically different number (say from 100 to 1,000,000) you may experience some problems when breeding plants. We suggest you only change bounds by less than a factor of two.

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