Smart farming approaches in medicinal plant cultivation: a review of techniques, benefits, and sustainability

Smart farming technologies significantly enhance medicinal plant cultivation by improving yield, quality, and sustainability, while addressing traditional challenges through precision, automation, and data-driven decision-making. Medicinal plants have played a vital role in healthcare and the pharmaceutical industry. However, traditional cultivation methods face challenges, such as variable yield due to environmental stress and suboptimal resource use. While pharmacopeias already define strict quality parameters for medicinal plant material, smart farming technologies can further support consistency, sustainability, and efficiency in cultivation. This review critically examines the integration of smart farming technologies to optimize the biological mechanisms governing the growth and phytochemical production of medicinal plants. This paper focuses on key physiological processes including photosynthesis regulation, nutrient uptake, stress response, and secondary metabolite biosynthesis, which are directly influenced by precision irrigation, AI-driven nutrient management, and controlled-environment agriculture. Countries such as the Netherlands (80%), Japan (75%), and the USA (70%) are leading adopters, using automated greenhouses, artificial intelligence crop analytics, and drones. Key medicinal crops benefiting include Withania somnifera (L.) Dunal, Panax ginseng Makino, Echinacea purpurea (L.) Moench, Lavandula angustifolia Mill., Ocimum sanctum L., Hypericum perforatum L., Cinnamomum verum J.Presl, and Coriandrum sativum L. Techniques, such as precision irrigation, soil health monitoring, artificial intelligence-based pest detection, controlled-environment agriculture, and drone surveillance, have shown major improvements. Empirical studies report improvements in water efficiency and phytochemical yields in these plants, with the results derived from empirical trials conducted in controlled settings. However, scalability and economic feasibility of these technologies in diverse climatic regions remain challenges. Despite these gains, barriers like high costs, limited tech literacy, infrastructure gaps, and regulatory hurdles remain. Addressing these through funding, education, and policy change is essential. Future integration of genomics and metabolomics could further boost yield, quality, and sustainability. This review advances the field by providing a comprehensive framework for adopting smart farming in medicinal plant cultivation, linking technology trends with practical outcomes and global adoption insights.