Growing vegetables in a greenhouse under the sea

Italian scientists are experimenting with growing vegetables in the seabed greenhouse, where temperatures and humidity are ideal, without pests and no land.

Planting vegetables on the seabed

According to Popsci, these greenhouses are part of a project called the Nemo Garden developed by Ocean Reef Group to create an ideal and economical garden on the seabed.

A seabed greenhouse in the Nemo Garden project.(Photo: Ocean Reef Group)

After more than 4 years of research and development, the Nemo Garden project initially achieved success and will be exhibited at the International Expo in Milano, Italy in October 2015. This year's international exhibition has the theme of Nurturing and sustainable development of the green planet.

The seabed greenhouse is like a cage, fastened to the bottom at a depth of about 6 meters above the sea surface. Here experts will pump air into the greenhouse and install earth trays to plant trees.

Unlike on-land greenhouses, it takes a lot of energy to maintain the temperature and humidity conditions for plants, the sea-floor greenhouses always maintain the best conditions naturally. Surrounding seawater makes temperature always stable regardless of day and night. Seawater evaporates, condenses on top of the cage and flows to the trays that provide adequate water and the ideal humidity is always 83%.

At the bottom of the sea , no climate change such as drought, flooding or frost can affect plant growth. Also, there are no harmful insects around these types . This means absolutely no use of pesticides.

People are growing in glass houses with some basil, some beans, some strawberries and waiting for harvest.

"I just tried to do something different to show the beauty of the ocean, " said Sergio Gamberini, president of the Ocean Reef Group, responding to the Washington Post. " I hope to bring inspiration to young people, encourage them to fulfill their dreams."

Ocean Reef Group expressed the prospect of this project in the near future. It is these greenhouses that will be installed in countries without agricultural land or harsh climates. They hope this will be a comprehensive solution to the food crisis in some parts of the world.