This, believe it or not, is a tree house, Longwood Gardens-style. And true, it's a house in a tree. Guarantee it looks nothing like any tree house you or I may have known! Whoo-ee. It looks like Tree House Mews or Tree House Commons, a new development I just made up but which could be down the road from Longwood.
At a preview of "Nature's Castles" last week, director Paul Redman explained that the idea behind Longwood's new tree house exhibit, which opens Saturday, was "to find a unique way to connect people to the trees of Longwood."
The exhibit has three tree houses in it. This one was inspired by a cathedral in Norway; the other two are called "Lookout Loft" and "The Birdhouse" (below). All three are grand, maybe bordering on grandiose, especially this one.
As we explored its nooks and carvings, someone in our group jokingly asked where the bathrooms were. Everyone laughed. What about the dishwasher? And where's the fireplace?
The whole exhibit cost $1 million, and Longwood folks say they haven't decided whether to make it permanent. It's not even open yet, but - just a thought - for that amount of money, perhaps Longwood would do well to keep the houses up. I think kids are gonna have a ball with them, though I'm not convinced this experience will translate into a connection with trees.
True, it'll get them inside the garden. Maybe something will rub off or stick in their consciousness so that at some later date, plants and trees will hold an appeal.
Nobody needs prompting to like a tree house. It has universal and timeless appeal. Redman, who grew up in Oklahoma, says his brother and his friends had one and wouldn't let him in. Sounds like he never got over it. "I think I've gotten him back," Redman said gleefully.
The kids in the audience - from Pocopson Elementary School - cheered at the idea of revenge on a sibling.
Now that's appealing.
