JSON.NET Serializes Empty JSON

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As stated by Newtonsoft in this issue, MetadataTypeAttribute attributes are in fact supported by Json.NET. However, it appears that Json.NET requires that the MetadataClassType members must be properties when the corresponding “real” members are properties, and fields when the corresponding “real” members are fields. Thus, if I define your Plant type as follows, with two properties and one field to be serialized:

public sealed partial class Plant : IEukaryote
{
    public System.Collections.Generic.IEnumerable<ICell> Cells { get { return (_valuesDict["Cells"] as System.Collections.IEnumerable).Cast<ICell>(); } }
    public string GenericName { get { return _valuesDict["GenericName"] as string; } }
    public string FieldIWantSerialized;
    public int SomethingIDoNotWantSerialized { get { return 99999; } }

    // Remainder as before.

Then the PlantMetadata must also have two properties and one field for them to be serialized successfully:

//Metadata.cs
[System.ComponentModel.DataAnnotations.MetadataType(typeof(PlantMetadata))]
public sealed partial class Plant
{
    [JsonObject(MemberSerialization.OptIn)]
    internal sealed class PlantMetadata
    {
        [JsonProperty]
        public IEnumerable<ICell> Cells { get; set; }

        [JsonProperty]
        public string GenericName { get; set; }

        [JsonProperty]
        public string FieldIWantSerialized;
    }
}

If I make Cells or GenericName be fields, or FieldIWantSerialized be a property, then they do not get opted into serialization.

Sample working .Net Fiddle.

Note that, in addition, I have found that the MetadataClassType properties apparently must have the same return type as the real properties. If I change your PlantMetadata as follows:

[JsonObject(MemberSerialization.OptIn)]
internal sealed class PlantMetadata
{
    [JsonProperty]
    public object Cells { get; set; }

    [JsonProperty]
    public object GenericName { get; set; }

    [JsonProperty]
    public object FieldIWantSerialized;
}

Then only FieldIWantSerialized is serialized, not the properties. .Net Fiddle #2 showing this behavior. This may be a Newtonsoft issue; as stated in the Microsoft documentation Defining Attributes in Metadata Classes:

The actual type of these properties is not important, and is ignored
by the compiler. The accepted approach is to declare them all as of
type Object.

If it matters, you could report an issue about the return type restriction to Newtonsoft – or report an issue asking that details of their support for MetadataTypeAttribute be more fully documented.

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