flexiblefullpage
billboard
interstitial1
catfish1
Currently Reading

Check out this tree-like skyscraper concept for vertical farming

Check out this tree-like skyscraper concept for vertical farming

Seoul is envisioned as the location for this skyscraper farm. 


By BD+C Staff | July 16, 2014
The complex is envisioned with public garden space. Renderings courtesy of April
The complex is envisioned with public garden space. Renderings courtesy of Aprilli Design Studio, Fast Company.

The concept of vertical farms is well-known and has been played out in a number of different ways. Now, Aprilli Design Studio has stepped forward with a new idea for a vertical farm. 

The concept is intended to resemble a giant tree. It uses lightweight decks as outdoor growing space on a massive skyscraper, Fast Company reports. These decks can provide 24 acres for agriculture, with an indoor hydroponic farm for greens; solar panels and wind turbines would be located on the roof to power the whole undertaking. 

Seoul, South Korea, is envisioned as the location for this skyscraper farm. "It seemed to be an ideal place to test out our prototype since the specific area is very dense and highly active and has been suffering for a long time by all sorts of environmental problems resulting from rapid urbanization," said architects Steve Lee and See Yoon Park.

With its community gardens, park space, and a farmers market, this concept remains just an idea for now. On its future, Lee and Park told Fast Company: "Vertical farming really is not only a great solution to future food shortage problems, but a great strategy to address many environmental problems resulting from urbanization."

Check out project renderings below. All renderings courtesy of Aprilli Design Studio.

 
 
Aprilli envisions this vertical farm in the center of downtown Seoul.
 
 
 
 
Solar panels and wind turbines on the rooftop would power the entire complex.
 
 
 
 
In the "trunk" of the tree, the concept places a hydroponic garden.
 
 
 
 
Within the complex, there would be community gardens and a farmers market to provide food to the local community.
 
 
 
 
The architects have said that the complex could support more than 5,000 fruit trees.
 
 
 
 
Most of the farming would take places on outdoor decks.
 
 
 
Though well-fleshed out, this concept is still a only a concept.

Related Stories

Giants 400 | Feb 6, 2023

2022 Religious Sector Giants: Top architecture, engineering, and construction firms in the U.S. religious facility construction sector

HOK, Parkhill, KPFF, Shawmut Design and Construction, and Wiss, Janney, Elstner head BD+C's rankings of the nation's largest religious facility sector architecture, engineering, and construction firms, as reported in the 2022 Giants 400 Report.

Giants 400 | Feb 6, 2023

2022 Justice Facility Sector Giants: Top architecture, engineering, and construction firms in the U.S. justice facility/public safety sector

Stantec, DLR Group, Turner Construction, STO Building Group, AECOM, and Dewberry top BD+C's rankings of the nation's largest architecture, engineering, and construction firms for justice facility/public safety buildings work, including correctional facilities, fire stations, jails, police stations, and prisons, as reported in the 2022 Giants 400 Report.

Giants 400 | Feb 6, 2023

2022 Parking Structure Giants: Top architecture, engineering, and construction firms in the U.S. parking structure sector

Choate Parking Consultants, Walker Consultants, Kimley-Horn, PCL, and Balfour Beatty top BD+C's rankings of the nation's largest parking structure sector architecture, engineering, and construction firms, as reported in the 2022 Giants 400 Report.

Market Data | Feb 6, 2023

Nonresidential construction spending dips 0.5% in December 2022

National nonresidential construction spending decreased by 0.5% in December, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of data published today by the U.S. Census Bureau. On a seasonally adjusted annualized basis, nonresidential spending totaled $943.5 billion for the month.

Giants 400 | Feb 3, 2023

Top Workplace/Interior Fitout Architecture, Engineering, and Construction Firms for 2022

Gensler, Interior Architects, AECOM, STO Building Group, and CBRE top the ranking of the nation's largest workplace/interior fitout architecture, engineering, and construction firms, as reported in Building Design+Construction's 2022 Giants 400 Report.

Multifamily Housing | Feb 3, 2023

HUD unveils report to help multifamily housing developers overcome barriers to offsite construction

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, in partnership with the National Institute of Building Sciences and MOD X, has released the Offsite Construction for Housing: Research Roadmap, a strategic report that presents the key knowledge gaps and research needs to overcome the barriers and challenges to offsite construction.

Steel Buildings | Feb 3, 2023

Top 10 structural steel building projects for 2023

A Mies van der Rohe-designed art and architecture school at Indiana University and Morphosis Architects' Orange County Museum of Art in Costa Mesa, Calif., are among 10 projects to win IDEAS² Awards from the American Institute of Steel Construction. 

Multifamily Housing | Feb 2, 2023

St. Louis’s first transit-oriented multifamily development opens in historic Skinker DeBaliviere neighborhood

St. Louis’s first major transit-oriented, multi-family development recently opened with 287 apartments available for rent. The $71 million Expo at Forest Park project includes a network of pathways to accommodate many modes of transportation including ride share, the region’s Metro Transit system, a trolley line, pedestrian traffic, automobiles, and bike traffic on the 7-mile St. Vincent Greenway Trail. 

Giants 400 | Feb 2, 2023

2022 Convention Center Sector Giants: Top architecture, engineering, and construction firms in the U.S. convention and conference facilities sector

Clark Group, EUA, KPFF, Populous, TVS, and Walter P Moore top BD+C's rankings of the nation's largest convention and conference facilities architecture, engineering, and construction firms, as reported in the 2022 Giants 400 Report.

Multifamily Housing | Feb 1, 2023

Step(1) housing: A new approach to sheltering unhoused people in Redwood City, Calif.

A novel solution to homelessness will open soon in Redwood City, Calif. The compact residential campus employs modular units to create individual sleeping units, most with private bathrooms. The 240 units of housing will be accompanied by shared services and community spaces. Instead of the congregate dorm-style shelters found in many U.S. cities, this approach gives each resident a private, lockable, conditioned sleeping space.

boombox1
boombox2
native1

More In Category


Urban Planning

Bridging the gap: How early architect involvement can revolutionize a city’s capital improvement plans

Capital Improvement Plans (CIPs) typically span three to five years and outline future city projects and their costs. While they set the stage, the design and construction of these projects often extend beyond the CIP window, leading to a disconnect between the initial budget and evolving project scope. This can result in financial shortfalls, forcing cities to cut back on critical project features.



Libraries

Reasons to reinvent the Midcentury academic library

DLR Group's Interior Design Leader Gretchen Holy, Assoc. IIDA, shares the idea that a designer's responsibility to embrace a library’s history, respect its past, and create an environment that will serve student populations for the next 100 years.

halfpage1

Most Popular Content

  1. 2021 Giants 400 Report
  2. Top 150 Architecture Firms for 2019
  3. 13 projects that represent the future of affordable housing
  4. Sagrada Familia completion date pushed back due to coronavirus
  5. Top 160 Architecture Firms 2021