Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire -- (SBWIRE) -- 04/21/2016 -- Hydroponic growing is rapidly being hailed as the future of sustainable food production due to its numerous benefits. Hydroponic growing involves the growth of plants using artificial light in a nutrient packed, water based solution without the need for soil. This means that hydroponics can be set up anywhere to effectively and efficiently produce and supply food.
Tomatosphere is an initiative which has evolved into a regular component of the science curriculum in the United States and Canada and is operated by a consortium with First the Seed Foundation and Let's Talk Science. Pupils study the effects on the growth of food having been in space conditions with the enquiry to support humans traveling to space in the future.
Over 600,000 tomatosphere seeds were launched into space to the International Space Station (ISS) in 2015 to spend 5 weeks in space. Upon their return to earth, the seeds were distributed to around 18,000 classrooms across Canada and the States for pupils to be able to study the effects of a space environment on food production. Each classroom is delivered two packets of tomato seeds, one which has been in space and one control packet which has not. The aim of the experiment will be to compare the germination rates of the space seeds to the control. The pupils and teachers do not know which packet is which until germination is complete and the results have been finalized in order to carry out an effective blind test experiment.
A spokesperson for Grown Up Hydroponics said "Tomatosphere is an incredible initiative and it's a shame we don't have access to it here in the United Kingdom. The initiative highlights the benefits of hydroponic growing as a sustainable yet incredibly practical method for growing any food and we hope to see more innovative uses for hydroponics in the future".
About Grown Up Hydroponics
Grown Up Hydroponics is an industry leading supplier of an extensive selection of quality hydroponics equipment for all types of requirements.
For more information, please visit their website: http://www.grownuphydroponics.com/
Media Contact:
Grown Up Hydroponics
Contact: Mark Tayler
Email: mark@grownuphydroponics.com
Address: 51 Edison Rd
Aylesbury
HP19 8TE
Tel: 0800 084 2843
Url: http://www.grownuphydroponics.com/