How Sweden Became the Surprising Center of the Greenhouse Home Movement

Sitting in Roja Brimalm’s back garden in the Swedish countryside, it’s easy to believe it is a bright morning in early summer. We’re bathed in sun, enjoying fika—the Swedish tradition of coffee and cake—and chatting about her plans for the garden while bumblebees dart among blossoming fruit trees. The reality, however, is that it’s a cold and blustery morning in March, one that we’re separated from by nothing more than the four-millimeter-thick glass of the greenhouse that covers Roja’s entire home and garden, creating a bubble of balmy weather.

Roja and her partner, Johan Holmstedt, are part of a small, yet growing, group of sustainably minded homeowners in Sweden who have built these greenhouse residences. The origins of the concept—known as a naturhus—can be traced back to Swedish architect Bengt Warne, who, half a century ago, proposed a model of biodynamic living in which residents and the home itself are part of a self-sustaining ecosystem. The home inside a greenhouse creates a climate that enables nearly year-round growth of fruit and vegetables; the garden is nourished with recycled water and composted nutrients. 

To test his theory, in 1976, Warne constructed a timber building within a glasshouse in Saltsjöbaden. It served as both his research center and family home. While the project attracted some attention, it stayed a unique vision for almost three decades.