Growing Media and Sustainability | Frontiers Research Topic

The global growth in the use of growing media provides access to high, sometimes unparalleled, resource efficiency. The sustainability of energy inputs, fertilizers, crop protection products, plastics and raw materials for growing media can still be improved. There is a need for general methods for real comparison with other agricultural production systems. The use of renewable inputs forces researchers to adapt and develop methods and to use predictive tools to achieve pre-defined targets for the physical, chemical and microbiological properties of growing media mixtures. These predictions include advice on basal and maintenance fertilization, irrigation settings and biostimulants.

In this research topic we focus on:
• Efficient use of resources from existing and improved, evolving media-based systems.
• Renewable raw materials for growing media, including their quantitative availability and risks to crops and public health.
• Evaluation tools to quantify the renewable/sustainable/circular economy of growing media based cultivation systems.
• Predictive tools enabling the creation of growing medium mixtures with known properties, as well as advice on basic fertilization, maintenance fertilization and the addition of biostimulants.
• New renewable raw materials
• Processing of renewable raw materials
• Sustainable development of growing media
• Progress in the characterization of growing media
• Water and nutrient management in soilless cultivation
• Impact on microbiology in growing media

Keywords:Substrates, hydroponics, soilless, circularity, renewable, reuse, recycling

Important note: All work within this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which it is submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to refer an out-of-scope manuscript to a more appropriate section or journal at any stage of peer review.

The global growth in the use of growing media provides access to high, sometimes unparalleled, resource efficiency. The sustainability of energy inputs, fertilizers, crop protection products, plastics and raw materials for growing media can still be improved. There is a need for general methods for real comparison with other agricultural production systems. The use of renewable inputs forces researchers to adapt and develop methods and to use predictive tools to achieve pre-defined targets for the physical, chemical and microbiological properties of growing media mixtures. These predictions include advice on basal and maintenance fertilization, irrigation settings and biostimulants.

In this research topic we focus on:
• Efficient use of resources from existing and improved, evolving media-based systems.
• Renewable raw materials for growing media, including their quantitative availability and risks to crops and public health.
• Evaluation tools to quantify the renewable/sustainable/circular economy of growing media based cultivation systems.
• Predictive tools enabling the creation of growing medium mixtures with known properties, as well as advice on basic fertilization, maintenance fertilization and the addition of biostimulants.
• New renewable raw materials
• Processing of renewable raw materials
• Sustainable development of growing media
• Progress in the characterization of growing media
• Water and nutrient management in soilless cultivation
• Impact on microbiology in growing media

Keywords:Substrates, hydroponics, soilless, circularity, renewable, reuse, recycling

Important note: All work within this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which it is submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to refer an out-of-scope manuscript to a more appropriate section or journal at any stage of peer review.