She imagined industrial activities in space, freeing the land on Earth. Hollywood directors shoot movies on track. Botanists travel back and forth to inspect their space gardens. She and her colleagues are currently seeking funding to help make their concept a reality. The model is made by London-based design firm Millimeter and is for display only. At least initially, a real version (if it flies) would not be inhabited by humans. I asked why her team was so eager to come up with aesthetically pleasing designs. It was “thing that could retake the public’s imagination,” she explained.

But is this practical? The arms that stretch out from the tiny leaves stretching out from the space garden look very fragile. Ekblaw said these telescope appendages usually retract. "For the most part, the structure looks more like berries than those sharp arms," ​​she added. When closed, the lobes shield the plant in the center behind the thick windows from light, but the structure can be opened so that the light reaches the plant. This is an alternative to mechanical control of the Earth's day and night cycle.

Ultimately, Ekbrough suggested that astronauts may sometimes collect samples next to the space garden. She said open source data that tracks the environmental conditions on board and plant growth rates will also increase our understanding of how to successfully grow food in space.

When I showed Dixon the space garden, he said it looked "fancy" and immediately thought that it might not be much to grow food in space soon: "We can arm ourselves with enough supplies to manage this." He said he couldn't see "massive" gardens floating in space, but he did say the psychological benefits of plants familiar with with astronauts were "a good idea."

Alistair Griffiths, director of science at the Royal Horticultural Society, participated in a project that sent rocket seeds (an appropriate option) to the International Space Station with British astronaut Tim Peake. Given the idea of ​​Space Garden, the shape he said was complicated.

The gardens on the earth are very diverse. They contain plants and design functions that represent the personality of the characters behind them. Space Garden may not be any different. Given the opportunity, Green Refers astronauts will certainly bring their preferences.

Dixon has long tried barley seeds, sending many people to orbit and back to Earth, and most of his research has been supported by Scotland's Glenlivet Whiskey Distillery. "This is my bucket list. I'm going to plant barley on the moon," he said.

For Griffiths, another option came to mind. "I will grow a strawberry plant," he said. "But strawberry plants also have bright red petals." Fragaria X Ananassa is his variety of choice. He believes that if it goes all the way to space, it must be as beautiful as the edible extra.

However, if someone wants to use a cosmic straw fresh cream, someone will have to come up with a space dairy product.