How to grow your own living house
 

This is definitely a new one for me. Growing a house out of trees plus additional materials... Odd, but kind of neat.

How to Grow Your Own Living House | Urban Gardens | Unlimited Thinking For Limited Spaces

That could be a great way to build / grow a gazebo or similar outdoor structure.

But, would you go with a fast growing species of tree (poplar or similar) and make the trade off of the usual shorter lifespan? Or would you plant a slower growing tree (oaks, etc.) and have something that could last for centuries?

Tim

That is a very cool idea Tim, a gazebo!

How about an outdoor festival pavilion - the Auerworld Palace? It was designed by Marcel Kalberer and built/planted in 1998 with the help of 300 volunteers.

Most of the website text is in German, but it has lots of photos of other "Living Architecture" projects throughout Europe. Reading through the website it appears that Sanfte Strukturen (an architecture studio) uses bundled willow branches that are lashed together to form the structure. The willow bundles then sprout and then grow out over time.

More Auerworld Palace info and photos here - Auerworld Palace | Auerstedt, Germany | Atlas Obscura

Gilroy gardens south of San Jose, CA has circus trees. They really show you some of the things that you can do with trees if you have time. Gilroy Gardens Family Theme Park -- Home of the Circus Trees!

Coast redwoods kind of create there own gazebos. When an old tree dies or is burned up, younger trees grow from the roots. They are often in a circle providing protection inside.