Researchers at the University of Zurich believe the plant hormone strigolactone could help make farming possible in space. However, such visions, as well as the prospect of long-term human space expeditions in the future, raise the question of how to provide sustainable food sources for the people in space. The plant biologists found the hormone supports the symbiosis between fungi and plant roots, helping growth even amid difficult conditions found outside of Earth’s atmosphere. They tested petunias – a model organism for plants that produce potatoes and tomatoes – with the symbiotic mycorrhizal fungi, in simulated space-like low-gravity conditions. In their study, published today in Nature Communications, they show how the plant’s ability to use its own energy stores is crucial when it comes to growing on Mars.
Researchers at the University of Zurich believe the plant hormone strigolactone could help make farming possible in space. The plant biologists found the hormone supports the symbiosis between fungi and plant roots, helping growth even amid difficult conditions found outside of Earth’s atmosphere. They tested petunias – a model organism for plants that produce potatoes and tomatoes – with the symbiotic mycorrhizal fungi, in simulated space-like low-gravity conditions. In their study, published today in Nature Communications, they show how the plant’s ability to use its own energy stores is crucial when it comes to growing on Mars.