I'm veering off on quite a tangent here, but if you have ever seen the movie "The Martian", I have always been amused by the fictional portrayal of raising potatoes in that movie. Martian soil being barren dust, ground temperature likely well below zero (F or C, take your pick), no nutrients except the "poo" from 6 people over a few days, water derived from rocket fuel and the odd bit of wee. What could possibly go wrong?
I know, it's fiction, just a bit of fun. I really don't think of it seriously. Just like I don't take the portrayal of rock drilling in the movie "Armageddon" seriously.