As a continuation of the research into growing soft roots for use in living structural applications, we intend to design and fabricate a lightweight, modular alternative to the aeroponic system constructed with Treenovations in June 2016. Conceptualized as an individual ‘spacesuit’ for each plant, this apparatus generates and maintains a precisely conditioned adaptable environment in which growth can be promoted, monitored and controlled. Utilizing more sophisticated materials and technologies enable this system to become a transportable and deployable solution for growing programmable architectures on-site, as well as a smart monitoring device linked to an online database of life cycle analyses – aiming to iterate, discover and optimize the environmental conditions for maximally accelerated root growth over generations of plants. The eventual aim is to develop a living structural system, from which entire architectures can be ‘grown-to-order’; pleaching the individual trees to form a composite structure.
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