Velskov Forest

The brief Velskov is a 10-acre natural forest farm just outside Auckland, growing food regeneratively within a biodiverse native bush setting and focusing on agroforestry and ecosystem restoration rather than harvesting trees for timber. Design constraint Provide a dry working space within native forest while keeping the structure low beneath the canopy. Sanctuary's response Our brief here was to create a simple, robust structure that could sit quietly in the middle of the native forest, giving Velskov a dry, usable space for farm activity while keeping the focus on the surrounding ecosystem. We set out a 7 m by 6 m pergola at 3.5 m height with a shallow 7° pitched roof so the cover feels generous underneath but keeps a low profile beneath the forest canopy