House Within a Greenhouse: Your Own Private Bio-Dome

The Naturhus is a design concept that creates an energy efficient micro environment by placing a smaller house inside of a greenhouse. For colder climates this creates a way to extend the benefits of warm weather into the cold months. The green house keeps the interior temperature comfortable and also lets residents grow a variety of plants that couldn’t usually survive the Swedish seasons. This plus a combination of wood burning ovens and a hot water masonry heater keep the electric bill about 50% less than a traditional home.

Swedish architect Bengt Warne originally built his Naturhus in 1976 to work with the cooler Scandinavian climate. Since then, two other Swedish families have made their own versions of this enclosed micro-environment.

[via Treehugger]