Microgreens have a high nutrient density and are beneficial to human health. Even though this class of vegetables have gaining increasing levels of attention in the last year, scientific research on the growth of microgreens in controlled environments under artificial lighting have not been thoroughly characterized. By describing the scientific outputs focused on the impacts of artificial illumination on microgreens, especially from the first two decades of the 21st century, it is therefore possible to detect advancements and research gaps in this research field. This review is divided in two parts: first, a general overview of the scientific production about microgreens; second, a systematic review of scientific studies exploring artificial lighting on the production of microgreens. The overview of scientific production on microgreens and artificial lighting across the Scopus, Web of Science, and Scielo databases, from 2000 to 2021, respectively, indicated three phases, as before 2011 no paper was found: phase 1 (2012 to 2014), six papers; phase 2 (2015 to 2018), fifteen papers; and phase 3 (2019 to 2021), forty-six papers, respectively. Mustard was the most evaluated crop under all production stages. With regard to the second part of this review, studies on artificial lighting with fluorescent lamps (high-pressure sodium light bulbs—HPS), from the supplementation to the replacement of HPS lighting with light emitting diode (LED) lamps, and plant responses with respect to light properties comprise the main works identified. Studies on the distribution of environmental factors under controlled microgreen cultivation present research gaps.

ISHS V International Symposium on Applications of Modelling as an Innovative Technology in the Horticultural Supply Chain Wireless sensor network to map the meteorological variability in a greenhouse with evaporative cooling

Spatial and temporal monitoring of temperature and relative humidity is essential for greenhouse management, therefore, wireless sensor networks (WSN) can offer crucial advantages. The objective of this work was to use a WSN to characterize and map the horizontal and vertical variability of air temperature and relative humidity inside a greenhouse using five different configurations. The configurations were based on combinations between the following actuating mechanisms: i) mechanical ventilation (by two exhaust fans); ii) natural ventilation (through the roof vent openings); iii) shading through the use of thermo-reflective screen. The WSN was designed with 45 spatially distributed measuring points, and the air temperature and relative humidity were recorded automatically every 30 seconds, for ten consecutive days, for each configuration. Our results show that the horizontal and vertical homogeneity of the meteorological elements depends on the actuating mechanism used in the greenhouse. Mechanical ventilation approximated the temperature and relative humidity of the indoor and outdoor air, with a homogeneous horizontal distribution throughout the environment. Opening the roof vent reduced vertical gradients of temperature and relative humidity. Our observations also showed that the combination of the use of roof vent openings with mechanical ventilation is an effective way to achieve horizontal homogeneity of meteorological elements.

The optimal photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD) and seeding density (SD) combinations for microgreens production on vertical farming systems remain unclear for many species. This study aimed to determine the effects of PPFD (50, 100, 150, and 200 µmol m⁻² s⁻¹) and SD for sunflower (1275, 1700, and 2125 g m⁻²), radish (272, 340, and 408 g m⁻²), and green and red cabbage (126, 180, and 235 g m⁻²) microgreens. PPFD had no effect on the yield of sunflower, radish, or red cabbage, indicating that 50 µmol m⁻² s⁻¹ was sufficient to meet plant demands. Green cabbage yield increased ~10% at 150 µmol m⁻² s⁻¹. Increasing SD enhanced yields, with gains of up to ~22%, 49%, 52%, and 30% for sunflower, radish, green, and red cabbage, respectively (1700, 408, 235, and 180 g m⁻²). PPFD did not affect the nutrient content of sunflower, likely due to its high seed reserves. A higher SD increased anthocyanin in red cabbage but diminished its content in all other species. Our findings highlight that SD is more impactful than PPFD on determining yield, at least under low irradiance, in sunflower, radish, and red cabbage microgreens grown on indoor vertical farming systems.

Hops production largely depends on daylength shortening for proper flowering. Innovative systems like indoor cultivation with LED lighting allow a precise control of photoperiod regardless of season. However, such systems are still under development for most crops and there isn’t a solid framework on which indoor hops cultivation can be referred to. The aim of this study is to provide a descriptive report on how hops plants can develop and flower in an indoor system. A growth chamber was designed to accommodate hops plants, providing lighting and two training methods: parallel and spiral. Within 90 days of vegetative growth the plants had substantially developed and photoperiod was reduced from 16 to 10 h. Flowering began 6 days after photoperiod shortening. Spiral training can provide a more ergonomic usage of vertical space, allowing hops plants to better develop length-wise. Although structural adjustments and further research are still needed, there is potential for hops production in an indoor system using LED lighting.

Urban agriculture plays a strategic role in sustainability, food security, and climate adaptation in cities, where temperature emerges as a key variable. This study conducted a scientometric and qualitative analysis to investigate how temperature has been addressed in the scientific literature on urban agriculture between 2020 and 2025. A total of 244 documents were retrieved from Scopus and Web of Science, followed by a qualitative screening that resulted in 20 articles with high thematic relevance. The results reveal a strong geographic concentration of research in Asia–Pacific countries and a rapid expansion of publications after 2022. The qualitative analysis enabled the classification of studies into three main groups: Group A (open and semi-open systems), Group B (building-integrated and protected systems), and Group C (fully controlled indoor environments). Group C represents the majority of studies (55%), indicating a strong research focus on high-technology systems such as plant factories. Group B accounts for (30%), highlighting growing interest in energy integration between agriculture and buildings, while Group A represents only (15%), showing that open-field urban agriculture remains underexplored in terms of temperature. Temperature is addressed at different scales: as a microclimatic regulator in open environments, as a mediator of energy exchange in building-integrated systems, and as a high-precision control variable in fully controlled systems. Despite its central role, temperature-focused studies remain limited, revealing gaps in empirical validation and multi-scale integration. These findings highlight a technological shift toward controlled environment agriculture and the need for integrated approaches combining microclimate regulation, energy efficiency, and precision control.