Lunar soil did not prove fruitful. The germination was significantly less and the growth of all species was much worse. Many germinated plants died before the end of the experiment on moon soil.
In addition, the crops did relatively poorly, but after 50 days a few plants were still alive like rye, carrot, cress, reflexed stonecrop and red fescue.
"There are a few reasons for the poor performance on the moon, besides that it does not hold water well," said Wamelink.
"We send the sand to our lab. Moon sand contains aluminum, which is poisonous for plants. In addition, the soil pH (acidity) is too high. There is not enough acid in the soil. But it would certainly be possible to grow plants on the moon. Only you have to manipulate the sand. This could be done by planting some specific plants absorbing the aluminum from the soil. And acidity can be easily lowered by adding acid," the researcher said.
With the results of the pilot in the pocket, Wamelink hopes his research group can continue with the experiment. "We want to know more," he said.
The project was funded by the Dutch ministry of economic affairs.
