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Vertical Farms As Big As Skyscrapers To Add Greenery To Seoul’s Skyline

Urban Skyfarm would be a carbon zero food production facility open to all.

Ross Brooks

Vertical farming is one way to make use of space in urban environments, but Brooklyn-based Aprilli Design Studio has come up with an even better idea. Their Urban Skyfarm is a hydroponic farm, air filter, source of renewable energy, and a community garden where people can learn about permaculture or simply relax amongst some greenery. The prototype was designed for the central business district of Seoul, South Korea, and features hundreds of lightweight farming platforms arranged into the shape of a giant tree.

The base of the structure structure is used as a processing plant and a water recycling facility, while the upper sections house 43,445 square feet of solar panels and wind turbines. Designed to be a Net Zero facility, the structure would be able to provide enough clean energy to power the entire Skyfarm. Additional benefits for the city include less heat accumulation, reduced storm water runoff and decreased carbon emissions, along with an abundance of new green space.

Designed to mimic an actual tree, the vertical farm has elements corresponding to a root, trunk, branches and leaves. The lower section, or root, is home to hydroponic farming that uses artificial lighting more suited to indoor products such as basil, arugula, and bok choy. The main outdoor vegetation areas, or leaves, are higher up in the air to accommodate fruit trees and other vegetables that need more exposure to sunlight.

While the Skyfarm could be used solely as a food production facility, the designers also made sure to present it as a place where people can visit or grow their own fruit and vegetables. Whether they decide to take it home for personal consumption, or sell it on to others is their choice, but overall, the facility will provide a more efficient way to provide food for the world’s rapidly expanding population.

Aprilli Design Studio

[h/t] Inhabitat, Yanko Design

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