A British couple has revolutionized sustainable furniture design by growing chairs directly on trees, transforming a two-acre farm in Derbyshire into what may be the world's first furniture orchard.
Alice and Gavin Munro launched their Full Grown business in 2006, dedicating the past twenty years to perfecting a technique that sculpts living tree branches into ready-made seating. The process requires extraordinary patience, with each chair taking between six and nine years to reach maturity before harvesting.
The innovative method involves pruning young tree branches as they develop over specially designed metal frames that guide their growth into furniture shapes. After the pieces are harvested, they undergo a year-long drying period before being sold as artworks valued at tens of thousands of dollars.
The inspiration for this unconventional approach emerged from an unlikely source. Gavin conceived the idea during childhood while hospitalized with a rare congenital condition causing abnormal fusion of neck vertebrae. During months of treatment involving multiple operations to straighten his spine, he observed the woodland scenery from his hospital bed, sparking the creative vision that would define his career.
"This has all been my husband's idea," Alice told SWNS news. "He got the time to observe the woodland over many months and observe the creatures. His parents also had some overgrown bonsai and the silhouette looked like a throne."
A subsequent experience in California proved equally influential. While collecting driftwood on a beach, Gavin noticed sticks arranged in a pattern resembling a table. The observation prompted a simple question: how difficult would it be to grow wood into that shape?
After studying art and furniture design, Gavin began experimenting with growing chairs in a corner of a friend's farm in 2006. The couple continues to rent that same orchard in Derbyshire today.
"Since we started we've used all sorts of different types of trees," Gavin explained. "Primarily we've shown pieces from willow, but we've tried apple, cherry, oak, ash, beech and hawthorn."
The technique has evolved considerably through trial and error. Initial experiments involved growing chairs upright, but the Munros discovered that inverting the process yielded superior results. They also transitioned from plastic molds to metal frames, which provide better structural support during the years-long growth period.
"You're basically taking a piece of bark from one branch and bringing them together, so they grow together," Gavin described. "It's absolutely bizarre to do. It's like bonsai meets 3D printing."
The process demands precise timing and technique. The couple uses long, oblong frames to shape the growing wood, taking advantage of specific growth phases when branches are most pliable. Garden ties secure the branches to frames, gradually training them into the desired configuration.
"We've tried growing a few different items of furniture, but we're focusing on chairs—and a bench design which seems considerably easier," Gavin noted. "We experiment to help figure out how each species reacts to what we want to do."
The labor-intensive nature of the work means production remains limited. Of the few hundred trees the couple started over two decades, they expect to harvest only about a dozen viable chairs. Currently, six sittable chairs exist in circulation, with additional pieces still growing or drying in their workshop.
"We're quite lucky that the prototypes and failures are being seen as art," Gavin reflected. "They cost too much at the moment to mass produce."
Recognition for their work has grown steadily. A bronze cast of one of their chairs appeared at this month's Chelsea Flower Show in the United Kingdom, while several other pieces have been displayed in galleries worldwide.
Looking toward the future, the Munros are establishing the Full Grown Academy to share their knowledge with aspiring furniture growers. They envision expanding beyond chairs to include lamps and tables, though Gavin acknowledges the learning curve remains steep.
"It might take another two decades to work out how to best share this knowledge," he said.
The couple believes the most accessible path forward involves enabling individuals to grow furniture in their own gardens. Numerous people have expressed interest in cultivating pieces at home, prompting the Munros to develop educational programs for amateur growers.
"Growing your own in your garden is the most accessible way of doing it at the moment—and lots of people have been wanting to do this in their own gardens, so that's our next level," Gavin explained.
Their ultimate ambition extends even further: establishing a furniture orchard in every town. While Gavin acknowledges this vision may require many more green thumbs to realize, the couple remains committed to advancing this unique intersection of horticulture, sustainability, and functional art.