Imagine arriving on Mars as part of the fourth human mission to the Red Planet and being asked to establish the first self-sustaining food supply for a permanent settlement. The plan depends on beneficial fungi, microorganisms that could help improve Martian regolith enough for crops to grow. Success could reduce the need to ship food from Earth and, in this imagined scenario, even earn you a high school named in your honor.
That vision may still be decades away, but researchers in the United States and Brazil are already examining whether fungi could make space agriculture more practical. In a review recently published in Frontiers in Astronomy and Space Sciences, the team explored how beneficial fungi might help convert hostile lunar and Martian regolith into a more biologically suitable material for growing crops.
Fungi Could Help Make Space Regolith Farmable
Lunar and Martian regolith are poor environments for agriculture because they lack several nutrients that plants need to thrive. The researchers focused especially on shortages of nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorus, along with ways those limitations might be overcome.
Beneficial fungi could offer one possible solution. These organisms play an important role in nutrient cycling on Earth and can help plants, soils, and other organisms gain access to essential resources.
The review examined fungal species that have already been shown to support plant growth by improving nutrient uptake, including under abiotic (non-living organism) stress. The researchers also considered fungi that have been used aboard the International Space Station.
Extending a Plant’s Root System
Abiotic stress is particularly important for crops grown in nutrient poor materials such as lunar and Martian regolith. Plants would need help accessing limited resources while also coping with harsh growing conditions.
One group highlighted by the researchers is arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF). These fungi have been used in botany since the mid-19th century and form close partnerships with plant roots. In effect, they act as microscopic extensions of the root system, helping plants reach and absorb nutrients more efficiently.
The researchers say more work will be needed before this approach can be used in real space farming systems. In particular, future studies will need to test how well these fungi perform with actual lunar and Martian regolith rather than simulations or other substitute materials.
Even so, the team sees considerable potential in using fungi to support future agriculture beyond Earth. If the strategy proves effective, beneficial fungi could help astronauts produce larger and more reliable crops on the Moon and Mars while reducing dependence on food transported from Earth.
The study notes in its conclusion, “Including plant growth-promoting fungi into lunar or Martian regolith-based agriculture systems would present a strategic enhancement to space crop production and the establishment of human settlements beyond Earth. Fungi such as Trichoderma and the various AMF (Glomeromycota) stand out for their ability to relieve abiotic stresses, mobilize essential nutrients, and potentially improve the physicochemical structure of regolith substrates. These microorganisms offer a promising biotechnological tool to transform the regolith environment (inorganic composition) and positively impact the engineered microbiome introduced to inhospitable substrates.”
