a giant birdhouse rises above lausanne to address soil scarcity in urban areas

the three-legged monument mimics the lifecycle of mistletoe, an 'epiphyte' plant that means it depends on thriving green areas to grow.

kieron marchese September 19, 2019 2 min

an 18-meter-high birdhouse in switzerland doubles up as an artificial tree and addresses the issue of soil scarcity in cities. designed by swiss architects comte/meuwly, the three-legged monument supports an oversized mistletoe ball, which serves a nest box for birds while helping to support the lifecycle of the plant.

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the project — titled ‘amour éternel’ or ‘eternal love’ — calls attention to mistletoe’s possible extinction caused by the lack of fertile ground and a diminishing number of birds. mistletoe is an ‘epiphyte’ plant, which means that it grows on the surface of another – in this case the branches of other trees – and so it depends on thriving green areas to survive. it also relies on birds to eat the berries, digesting the fleshy part and spreading the seeds through excretion.

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rising above lausanne, switzerland, the structure occupies a once-green promenade in an area that has faced rapid urbanization over the years. all that is left is a humble patch of grass known as the messidor meadow where many of the city’s remaining birds have settled.

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‘the messidor square, named after the month of the harvest in the revolutionary calendar, should be sown and fertile but today, the quality of its soil contradicts its toponymy,’ comte/meuwly explains. ‘its territory is being gradually gnawed by buildings, the school, its large gym hall and its bitumen yard.’

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respecting the site’s foundations, the tripod limits its footprint to three small points. meanwhile, the giant man-made structure serves as a sanctuary, encouraging birds to feed before spreading the plant to other green areas in the city.

‘the park of ‘eternal love’ becomes the epicenter of a wider action,’ the architects add. ‘at a height of 18 meters, a large birdhouse, which loves mistletoe berries and transports them to sow them further, reveals a potential for densification in height.’

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