Underground farming is the practice of cultivating food underground. Underground farming is usually done using
hydroponics
Hydroponics is a type of horticulture and a subset of hydroculture which involves growing plants, usually crops or medicinal plants, without soil, by using water-based mineral nutrient solutions in aqueous solvents. Terrestrial or aquatic plant ...
,
aeroponics
Aeroponics is the process of growing plants in the air or mist environment without soil or an aggregate medium. The word "aeroponic" is derived from the Greek meanings of ''aer'' ("air") and ''ponos'' ("labour"). It is a subset of hydroponic ...
or
air-dynaponics systems or
container gardens
Container gardening or pot gardening/farming is the practice of growing plants, including edible plants, exclusively in containers instead of planting them in the ground. A container in gardening is a small, enclosed and usually portable object ...
. Light is generally provided by means of
growth lamps or
daylighting systems (as
light tube
Light or visible light is electromagnetic radiation that can be perceived by the human eye. Visible light is usually defined as having wavelengths in the range of 400–700 nanometres (nm), corresponding to frequencies of 750–420 terah ...
s).
The advantages of underground farming are that it is independent of the environment above the ground. Thus, a hot or cold climate is more manageable underground. Also, possible air pollution gases can be more easily filtered. There is theoretically much space below ground. Thus, underground farming could be one part of the solution for higher food security.
On the downside are current high energy costs for the growth lamps. Also, building underground spaces is expensive with current technology.
Present systems
* The
Lunar greenhouse is an underground farm made by
Phil Sadles and
Gene Giacomelli of the
University of Arizona's Controlled Environment Agriculture Center (CEAC) The urine and exhaled air of the astronauts is reused in the system by the plants.
* GreenForges is a Canadian startup developing underground farming systems.
See also
*
Forestiere Underground Gardens
The Forestiere Underground Gardens in Fresno, California are a series of subterranean structures built by Baldassare Forestiere, an immigrant from Sicily, over a period of 40 years from 1906 to his death in 1946. The gardens are operated by member ...
*
Pot farming
Container gardening or pot gardening/farming is the practice of growing plants, including edible plants, exclusively in containers instead of planting them in the ground. A container in gardening is a small, enclosed and usually portable object ...
*
Rooftop farming
Urban agriculture, urban farming, or urban gardening is the practice of cultivating, processing, and distributing food in or around urban areas. It encompasses a complex and diverse mix of food production activities, including fisheries and fo ...
*
Vertical farming
Vertical farming is the practice of growing crops in vertically stacked layers. It often incorporates controlled-environment agriculture, which aims to optimize plant growth, and soilless farming techniques such as hydroponics, aquaponics, and ae ...
References
{{reflist
Urban agriculture
Types of garden