Lesson guide · Lesson 25 · Grades 3–8 · 6 min

Farms in cities, deserts, and space

Why a farm in a city, a desert, or a space station is built for its place.

Open the lessonPrintable worksheet

Students will

  • Explain why some city farms grow plants on stacked shelves under lights.
  • Describe how a desert farm saves water and keeps plants cool.
  • Name one way that growing plants in space is different from growing them on Earth.

New words

vertical-farm
A farm indoors where plants grow on shelves stacked one above another, under lights.

Talk about it

If you built a farm where you live, what would it need to be good at?

Check questions and answers

  1. Why do some city farms stack their plants on shelves?

    • Cities have little spare land (answer) Right. Stacking grows more food on a small floor.
    • Plants like to be up high Not quite. Think about how much room a city has.
    • Shelves use less electricity Not quite. The lights on every shelf use lots of electricity.

  2. What is the biggest problem for a desert farm?

    • Very little water (answer) Right. So desert farms reuse every drop they can.
    • Too much rain Not quite. Deserts get very little rain.
    • Too little sunlight Not quite. A desert's big problem is how dry it is.

  3. What makes growing plants in space hard?

    • Water floats instead of draining down (answer) Right. So one space garden uses wicks to carry water.
    • There is no light at all Not quite. The plant chamber has its own lights.
    • Plants can't grow without soil Not quite. You already know plants can grow without soil.

Sources

  • Pennisi, G., Gianquinto, G., Marcelis, L. F. M., Martin, M., and Orsini, F. Vertical farming: productivity, environmental impact, and resource use. A review. Agronomy for Sustainable Development 45: 57, 2025. doi:10.1007/s13593-025-01055-w.
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  • Little, N. Chapter 1: Urban production systems. University of Maryland Extension, updated 3 March 2023.
  • Cornell Small Farms Program. Roof Top Gardening. Guide to Urban Farming. Cornell University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.
  • USDA National Agricultural Library. Urban Agriculture.
  • U.S. Geological Survey. Deserts. Land Management Research Program.
  • U.S. National Park Service. Deserts. Science of the American Southwest.
  • Sallenave, R., and Shultz, R. C. Hydroponics: Water-saving Farming for New Mexico's Arid Environment. Guide H-180. New Mexico State University, College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences, 2022.
  • Rakocy, J. E., Masser, M. P., and Losordo, T. M. Recirculating Aquaculture Tank Production Systems: Aquaponics, Integrating Fish and Plant Culture. SRAC Publication No. 454. Southern Regional Aquaculture Center; Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service.
  • Bartok, J. W., Jr. Shade for Cooling Greenhouses. UMass Extension Greenhouse Crops and Floriculture Program, University of Massachusetts Amherst, 2013.
  • Watson, J. A., Gomez, C., Buffington, D. E., Bucklin, R., Henley, R. W., and McConnell, D. Greenhouse Ventilation. AE-10/AE030. UF/IFAS Extension, University of Florida.
  • Leary, J., Watson, J. A., Gomez, C., Bucklin, R., and McConnell, D. Fan and Pad Greenhouse Evaporative Cooling Systems. CIR1135/AE069. UF/IFAS Extension, University of Florida.
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  • Barbosa, G. L., Gadelha, F. D. A., Kublik, N., Proctor, A., Reichelm, L., Weissinger, E., Wohlleb, G. M., and Halden, R. U. Comparison of Land, Water, and Energy Requirements of Lettuce Grown Using Hydroponic vs. Conventional Agricultural Methods. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 12(6): 6879-6891, 2015.
  • NASA. Veggie. NASA Facts.
  • Herridge, L. Veggie Plant Growth System Activated on International Space Station. NASA, 16 May 2014.
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