Is There a Way We Can Grow Our Own Homes?

The Concept 

We here at Rise have talked about biophilic design in the past-- the process of integrating nature into the built environment. Fab Tree Hab is flipping this concept on its head and, instead, finding ways to integrate the built environment into nature.

The Fab Tree Hab team consists of two architects Mitchell Joachim and Javier Arbona, and an environmental engineer Lara Greden. Their idea is to create a single-family home that is as alive as its occupants. This two-level home would include three bedrooms, a kitchen, a bathroom, and an open living space. The structure’s strength relies on the weaving or pleaching, of plants and tree branches. Pleaching is a relatively common practice that some have taken to new levels to create works of art, such as the works of world-renowned Patrick Dougherty.

This experiential home design considers the entire life cycle of the home by bridging the gap between biotechnology and nature. It has found ways to create a symbiotic relationship between the house and the surrounding environment.

So, how does it work? 

By using biotechnology, the team at Fab Tree Hab is developing a home design that can be ‘grown’ in a handful of years. Every portion of the home would be built with living nutrients and give back to the local ecosystem. This video provides a brief overview of the concept.

Temporary framing structures (scaffolds) are made off-site using CNC machining. These scaffolds are then sent to a site and fitted against a native tree. The tree trunk itself would provide much of the bearing capacity for the home. The tree’s branches are then pleached, or woven together, to help provide additional support. Using the CNC scaffolds and tree branches, plants would have a framework to grow on. Once the plants are woven enough so that they are structurally sound, the scaffolding would be removed and then used for another project. It would then be infilled with clay and straw-based materials to add insulation and a moisture barrier to the home.

Guiding principles behind this concept 

We’ve learned that trees are stronger when in a community. A group of aspen trees, for instance, is considered a single organism because their roots are so intertwined that they create an intricate system of strength. The Fab Tree Hab’s concept includes the idea that these homes would be best suited in a community to provide support for the individual units.

The Fab Tree Hab’s living home structure has four main goals for each home: to use zero pesticides, harvest rainwater, sequester carbon, and eliminate material waste. While the concept is still in the experimental phase, it is evident that the designers intend to work with nature rather than against it. 

This concept has taken a lot of visionary thinking to get to this phase. This home encompasses living, breathing architecture, and brings ideas of biophilia to the forefront of the home design.

Fab Tree Hab’s home would absorb greenhouse gas emissions, reduce emissions, and improve the biodiversity in a given region. In addition, the house could self-assemble and self-repair, providing a flexible solution that could be fitting to various lifestyles and environments.

This concept is one way that the modern built environment could use to achieve true sustainability. Buildings account for 25-40% of the world’s total carbon emissions, and this number is expected to rise drastically in the next decade. In addition, three-quarters of total energy consumption in buildings is from the residential sector. Now, more than ever, we are in a position to take ownership of our built environment’s impact on the Earth, and the Fab Tree Hab’s home is undoubtedly a step in the right direction.