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I wonder why they started with lettuce. I get the nutrients and minerals part, but the calorific value is low. Potatoes also grow well using hydroponics and w

I wonder why they started with lettuce. I get the nutrients and minerals part, but the calorific value is low. Potatoes also grow well using hydroponics and would seem to be a better base choice for longer orbits.

luxurytent 5y ago
Perhaps due to reliable and quick germination? Could allow for regular churn for experiments as you adjust conditions
WJW 5y ago
If you are going to build a pilot plant to test things out, it makes sense to make it small, light and not very energy intensive then use v2 and v3 to scale up. Since potatoes contain a lot of energy, they also take a lot of energy to grow. Lettuce is a good crop to start with precisely because it is not very energy dense.
- hiddencache 5y ago
  Good point, thanks - effectively an MVP approach...
retrac 5y ago
Unless this is actually used with some recycling on a long term basis, it's a net loss by weight. Just ship up some cooking oil. So I suspect it's entirely for the practicality and scientific value for now. Lettuce, especially a hardy cultivar, is delicate but fast growing and parasite resistant. And not picky about the growth media usually. Potatoes are slow and I suspect they might start to rot on the space station before they got to full size. Hydroponic potatoes is possible but tricky. But I'm only making a guess from having grown these plants here on Earth. In regard to calories I've heard good things said about oats and switchgrass. Not many people's favourite staples but they grow like weeds under wide climatic conditions with minimal water.
cwingrav 5y ago
If you've ever eaten freeze dried, canned and dried foods for extended periods of time, you'll know the joy of something crisp and fresh. Leafy greens are spot on what you'd want. Before refrigeration, greenhouses and global shipping, our ancestors were the same way. It's why something like Polk salad (one of the first greens in Spring) or storing chicory roots for their mid-winter chicon (a single crisp leaf that sprouts from a single root) were so enjoyed. Fresh and green used to be celebrated, before it became too normal to worry about.
- crymer11 5y ago
  I’m curious to know where you learned about polk salad and that specific name for it. I’ve seen the use of “polk” to refer to “poke” before (the song Polk Salad Annie immediately comes to mind), but I always heard it called “poke” salad, which makes sense given the plant name is pokeweed. That said, hearing it called “poke” could also just be due to the regional accent/dialect of where I’m from.
  - saurik 5y ago
    FWIW, it it seems like it is supposed to be called "poke sallet" (that apparently being a word for a "cooked salad"), so misspelling both words is probably funnier than just one.
analog31 5y ago
Nearly the whole plant is edible, no leaves or sticks to dispose.

luxurytent 5y ago

Perhaps due to reliable and quick germination? Could allow for regular churn for experiments as you adjust conditions

WJW 5y ago

If you are going to build a pilot plant to test things out, it makes sense to make it small, light and not very energy intensive then use v2 and v3 to scale up. Since potatoes contain a lot of energy, they also take a lot of energy to grow. Lettuce is a good crop to start with precisely because it is not very energy dense.

hiddencache 5y ago
Good point, thanks - effectively an MVP approach...

retrac 5y ago

Unless this is actually used with some recycling on a long term basis, it's a net loss by weight. Just ship up some cooking oil. So I suspect it's entirely for the practicality and scientific value for now. Lettuce, especially a hardy cultivar, is delicate but fast growing and parasite resistant. And not picky about the growth media usually. Potatoes are slow and I suspect they might start to rot on the space station before they got to full size. Hydroponic potatoes is possible but tricky. But I'm only making a guess from having grown these plants here on Earth. In regard to calories I've heard good things said about oats and switchgrass. Not many people's favourite staples but they grow like weeds under wide climatic conditions with minimal water.

cwingrav 5y ago

If you've ever eaten freeze dried, canned and dried foods for extended periods of time, you'll know the joy of something crisp and fresh. Leafy greens are spot on what you'd want. Before refrigeration, greenhouses and global shipping, our ancestors were the same way. It's why something like Polk salad (one of the first greens in Spring) or storing chicory roots for their mid-winter chicon (a single crisp leaf that sprouts from a single root) were so enjoyed. Fresh and green used to be celebrated, before it became too normal to worry about.

crymer11 5y ago
I’m curious to know where you learned about polk salad and that specific name for it. I’ve seen the use of “polk” to refer to “poke” before (the song Polk Salad Annie immediately comes to mind), but I always heard it called “poke” salad, which makes sense given the plant name is pokeweed. That said, hearing it called “poke” could also just be due to the regional accent/dialect of where I’m from.
- saurik 5y ago
  FWIW, it it seems like it is supposed to be called "poke sallet" (that apparently being a word for a "cooked salad"), so misspelling both words is probably funnier than just one.

analog31 5y ago

Nearly the whole plant is edible, no leaves or sticks to dispose.