Sandponics: A Sustainable Agriculture Solution for Food Security and Resource Efficiency in Arid Regions

ABSTRACT Agriculture in arid regions encounters significant challenges, including water scarcity, poor soil quality and low crop yields. Sandponics, also known as the Integrated Aqua Vegeculture System (IAVS), presents a promising solution by utilizing sand as a sustainable, water‐efficient medium f...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Chythra Somanathan Nair, Meera Bakheet Hamad Alsudain, Ramya Manoharan, Drishya Nishanth, Radhakrishnan Subramanian, Anicet Manga, Abdul Jaleel
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2024-10-01
Series:Journal of Sustainable Agriculture and Environment
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1002/sae2.70033
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:ABSTRACT Agriculture in arid regions encounters significant challenges, including water scarcity, poor soil quality and low crop yields. Sandponics, also known as the Integrated Aqua Vegeculture System (IAVS), presents a promising solution by utilizing sand as a sustainable, water‐efficient medium for food production. This review explores the potential of sandponics as a scalable, eco‐friendly agricultural practices in arid regions. Sand, being abundant, recyclable and cost‐effective, offers a viable alternative to conventional growth media, making sandponics a practical and resource‐efficient option. The method has demonstrated success in enhancing crop productivity, particularly, in saline environments, while minimizing environmental impact. Sandponics supports food security and land use optimization by transforming challenging conditions into productive agricultural landscapes. Future research should focus on refining sand selection, optimizing nutrient and environmental conditions, managing microbial interactions and scaling up sandponics for broader application, thus advancing their role in sustainable agriculture.
ISSN:2767-035X