Many vertical farming setups—alongside indoor hydroponic systems—run on constant environmental conditions, which demand large amounts of costly electricity to sustain. Yet scientists’ analysis reveals these rigid conditions are unnecessary: by adopting dynamic environmental control, they argue, vertical farms and indoor hydroponics growing system operations can become more cost-effective and yield healthier plants—including robust hydroponic indoor plants.

“We drew inspiration from the fact that plants follow diurnal and developmental rhythms, which require regular adjustments to their growing environment to guide their growth optimally,” explains Professor Leo Marcelis from Wageningen University. “Our proposed strategy leverages insights into plant physiology, advanced sensing and modeling technologies, and new crop varieties specifically developed for vertical farms and indoor hydroponic systems.”

Dynamically tuning air flow rates, temperature, and CO₂ levels to match plant needs holds great potential to lower electricity costs—critical for both vertical farms and indoor hydroponics growing system operators. To implement this, farmers need proper sensors and models to monitor and adjust the environment, plus newly bred cultivars suited for vertical farming and hydroponic indoor plants cultivation. Further research is still needed to calibrate all these variables, ensuring a balanced mix of high crop quality and yield.

“In vertical farms, every growing condition can be precisely managed—this is key to optimizing yield, quality, and resource efficiency,” Marcelis notes. “But just because we technically can keep conditions constant doesn’t mean that’s the best approach. Once dynamic environmental control is in place, energy consumption and its associated costs drop significantly—boosting the profitability and sustainability of both vertical farms and indoor hydroponic systems that nurture hydroponic indoor plants.”