Abstract
Sustainable agriculture aims to meet the needs of the people in the present as well as in the future. The inadequate supply of vegetables raises dependency on imports for the growing population. To reduce import dependency, effective approaches in urban farming are emerging. One of the approaches is the application of hydrogel as a growth substrate in urban farming. This comparative study focuses on the characterisation of cellulose-based hydrogel sourced from cotton and its application as a seed germination medium in comparison to soil and perlite. Hydrogel is prepared by using cotton linter, sodium hydroxide, urea and epichlorohydrin as the cross-linker. Analyses to characterize soil, perlite and hydrogel (cryogel) were performed through gel fraction, field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), X-ray diffractometry (XRD), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). Seedling growth performance for four plant species (Ipomoea aquatica, Brassica juncea, Lactuca sativa, Solanum lycopersicum) was recorded after 15 days on each growth medium. Hydrogel crosslinking strength was at 92.49% based on the gel fraction analysis and the swelling of the hydrogel reached 65.00% in ten days. The FESEM analysis shows the hydrogel has a porous structure. Growth of Ipomoea aquatica in hydrogel medium was better than in soil. Hydrogel medium has room for further improvement through future research and development in urban farming.
Graphical abstract
Similar content being viewed by others
Data availability
The data presented in this study are available on request from the corresponding author.
References
Abdel-Raouf ME, El-Saeed SM, Zaki EG, Al-Sabagh AM (2018) Green chemistry approach for preparation of hydrogels for agriculture applications through modification of natural polymers and investigating their swelling properties. Egypt J Pet 27:1345–1355. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejpe.2018.09.002
Abu-Shahba MS, Mansour MM, Mohamed HI, Sofy MR (2021) Comparative cultivation and biochemical analysis of iceberg lettuce grown in sand soil and hydroponics with or without microbubbles and macrobubbles. J Soil Sci Plant Nutr 21:389–403. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42729-020-00368-x
Ahmed EM (2015) Hydrogel: preparation, characterization, and applications: a review. J Adv Res 6:105–121. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jare.2013.07.006
Alam MN, Islam MS, Christopher LP (2019) Sustainable production of cellulose-based hydrogels with superb absorbing potential in physiological saline. ACS Omega 4:9419–9426. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsomega.9b00651
Ali AS, Elozeiri AA (2017) Metabolic processes during seed germination. Adv Seed Biol. https://doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.70653
Benke K, Tomkins B (2017) Future food-production systems: vertical farming and controlled-environment agriculture. Sustain Sci Pract Policy 13:13–26. https://doi.org/10.1080/15487733.2017.1394054
Buchtová N, Budtova T (2016) Cellulose aero-, cryo- and xerogels: towards understanding of morphology control. Cellulose 23:2585–2595. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10570-016-0960-8
Cao L, Li N (2021) Activated-carbon-filled agarose hydrogel as a natural medium for seed germination and seedling growth. Int J Biol Macromol 177:383–391. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2021.02.097
Chang C, Duan B, Cai J, Zhang L (2010) Superabsorbent hydrogels based on cellulosefor smart swelling and controllable delivery. Eur Polym J 46:92–100. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eurpolymj.2009.04.033
Djidonou D, Leskovar DI (2019) Seasonal changes in growth, nitrogen nutrition, and yield of hydroponic lettuce. HortScience 54:76–85. https://doi.org/10.21273/HORTSCI13567-18
Engelhart MD, Moughamian H (1971) Book reviews : book reviews. Educ Psychol Meas 31:1029–1029. https://doi.org/10.1177/001316447103100435
French AD, Santiago Cintrón M (2013) Cellulose polymorphy, crystallite size, and the segal crystallinity index. Cellulose 20:583–588. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10570-012-9833-y
Gan S, Zakaria S, Chia CH et al (2015) Physico-mechanical properties of a microwave-irradiated kenaf carbamate/graphene oxide membrane. Cellulose 22:3851–3863. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10570-015-0749-1
Gan S, Zakaria S, Chia CH et al (2017) Highly porous regenerated cellulose hydrogel and aerogel prepared from hydrothermal synthesized cellulose carbamate. PLoS ONE. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0173743
Gohardoust MR, Bar-Tal A, Effati M, Tuller M (2020) Characterization of physicochemical and hydraulic properties of organic and mineral soilless culture substrates and mixtures. Agronomy 10:1–18. https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy10091403
Gou T, Chen X, Han R et al (2020) Silicon can improve seed germination and ameliorate oxidative damage of bud seedlings in cucumber under salt stress. Acta Physiol Plant. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11738-019-3007-6
Gül D (2016) Characterization and expansion behaviour of perlite. Dissertation, Izmir Institute of Technology
Husin NMC, Roseli ANM, Sekeli R et al (2021) Emerging trends of plant physiology in changing environment. Trans Malaysian Soc Plant Physiol 28:6–251
Jacoby R, Peukert M, Succurro A et al (2017) The role of soil microorganisms in plant mineral nutrition—current knowledge and future directions. Front Plant Sci 8:1–19. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2017.01617
Jampi ALW, Chin SF, Wasli ME, Chia CH (2021) Preparation of cellulose hydrogel from sago pith waste as a medium for seed germination. J Phys Sci 32:13–26. https://doi.org/10.21315/JPS2021.32.1.2
Kabir SMF, Sikdar PP, Haque B et al (2018) Cellulose-based hydrogel materials: chemistry, properties and their prospective applications. Prog Biomater 7:153–174. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40204-018-0095-0
Kabra S, Katara S, Rani A (2013) Characterization and study of turkish perlite. Int J Innov Res Sci Eng Technol 2:4319–4326
Kayra N, Aytekin AÖ (2018) Synthesis of Cellulose-Based Hydrogels: Preparation, Formation, Mixture, and Modification. Cellulose-Based Superabsorbent Hydrogels 1–28. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-76573-0_16-1
Lei C, Engeseth NJ (2021) Comparison of growth characteristics, functional qualities, and texture of hydroponically grown and soil-grown lettuce. Lwt 150:111931. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lwt.2021.111931
Lokhande HT, Varadarajan PV (1992) A new Guargum-based superabsorbent polymer synthesised using gamma radiation as a soil additive. Bioresour Technol 42:119–122. https://doi.org/10.1016/0960-8524(92)90070-E
Luyckx M, Hausman JF, Lutts S, Guerriero G (2017) Silicon and plants: current knowledge and technological perspectives. Front Plant Sci 8:1–8. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2017.00411
Maya Waiba K, Sharma P, Sharma A et al (2020) Soil-less vegetable cultivation: a review. J Pharmacogn Phytochem 9:631–636
Palanivelu SD, Salleh KM, Lindsey K et al (2021) Performance of seed germination on cellulose-based hydrogel. Int J Chem Biochem Sci 20:71–74
Parhi R (2017) Cross-linked hydrogel for pharmaceutical applications: a review. Adv Pharm Bull 7:515–530. https://doi.org/10.15171/apb.2017.064
Salleh KM, Zakaria S, Gan S et al (2020) Interconnected macropores cryogel with nano-thin crosslinked network regenerated cellulose. Int J Biol Macromol 148:11–19. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2019.12.240
Salleh KM, Zakaria S, Mostapha M et al (2021) Keterlarutan selulosa, pelarut dan produk selulosa yang dijana semula: suatu ulasan. Sains Malaysiana 50:3107–3126. https://doi.org/10.17576/jsm-2021-5010-23
Salleh KM, Zakaria S, Sajab MS et al (2019) Superabsorbent hydrogel from oil palm empty fruit bunch cellulose and sodium carboxymethylcellulose. Int J Biol Macromol 131:50–59. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2019.03.028
Simoni RC, Lemes GF, Fialho S et al (2017) Effect of drying method on mechanical, thermal and water absorption properties of enzymatically crosslinked gelatin hydrogels. An Acad Bras Cienc 89:745–755. https://doi.org/10.1590/0001-3765201720160241
Solatni Z, Shekari F, Jamshidi K et al (2012) The effect of silicon on germination and some growth characteristics of salt-stressed canola seedling. Int J Agron Agric Res 2:12–21
Tm S, Thakur N, Sharma P (2020) Use of alternative growing media in ornamental plants. Int J Chem Stud 8:188–194
Uzir Mahidin (2021) Department of Statistics Malaysia: Supply and Utilization Accounts Selected Agricultural Commodities, Malaysia, 2016–2020. https://www.dosm.gov.my/portal-main/release-content/supply-and-utilization-accounts-selected-agricultural-commodities-malaysia-2016-2020
Walsh CM, Becker-Uncapher I, Carlson M, Fierer N (2021) Variable influences of soil and seed-associated bacterial communities on the assembly of seedling microbiomes. ISME J 15:2748–2762. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41396-021-00967-1
Wanas A, Khamis M (2021) Effect of garlic and licorice extracts on vegetative growth and leaf anatomy of strawberry plants cultivated in different growing media. Sci J Damietta Fac Sci 11:89–102. https://doi.org/10.21608/sjdfs.2021.195598
Woodhouse J, Johnson MS (1991) Effect of superabsorbent polymers on survival and growth of crop seedlings. Agric Water Manag 20:63–70. https://doi.org/10.1016/0378-3774(91)90035-H
Zainal SH, Mohd NH, Suhaili N et al (2021) Preparation of cellulose-based hydrogel: a review. J Mater Res Technol 10:935–952. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmrt.2020.12.012
Zhang H, Yang M, Luan Q et al (2017) Cellulose anionic hydrogels based on cellulose nanofibers as natural stimulants for seed germination and seedling growth. J Agric Food Chem 65:3785–3791. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jafc.6b05815
Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank the Ministry of Higher Education Malaysia for the financial support via the research project grant LRGS/1/2019/UKM-UKM/5/1. We appreciate the support provided, which contributes to the writing of the research article. We also appreciate Assoc. Prof. Dr. Mohammad Hafizuddin Bin Hj Jumali for the guidance provided.
Funding
This work was supported by the Ministry of Higher Education Malaysia (Project Grant No. LRGS/1/2019/UKM-UKM/5/1).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Contributions
Conceptualization and Design: SDP, KMS, KL, FS, MHC-O, SZ; Writing—Original Draft: SDP; Writing—Review and Editing: SDP, SG, KMS, KL, FS, MHC-O, SZ; Funding Acquisition: SZ.
Corresponding authors
Ethics declarations
Conflict of interest
The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
Consent to participate
Not applicable.
Consent for publication
Consent for publication was obtained from all the authors.
Informed consent
Not applicable.
Additional information
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.
About this article
Cite this article
Palanivelu, S.D., Gan, S., Salleh, K.M. et al. Assessment of bio-based hydrogel as an alternative growth medium for seed germination and seedling growth in urban farming. Cellulose 30, 7791–7803 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10570-023-05334-1
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10570-023-05334-1