Located between the rear facade of a shopping center and a residential building, the Quinta da Armada urban farm in Braga, Portugal, operates as a compact but active green space within a dense urban setting. For the Festival Forma da Vizinhança – Braga 25, Portuguese Capital of Culture, LIMIT architecture studio developed the Sementeira Ambulante (Mobile Seedbed), a modular, mobile greenhouse structure designed to support seed germination, promote biodiversity, and extend the presence of the farm into the city.
The project originated from site visits and discussions with the farm's community prior to the design phase. These exchanges highlighted the farm's social, ecological, and economic role within its immediate context. Surrounded by built infrastructure, the cultivated plots provide space for planting, food production, and shared activity.
A graffiti message discovered near the site: 'Who sows illusions, reaps disappointments,' informed the project's conceptual direction, prompting a proposal focused on cultivating awareness and collective participation. Rather than remaining confined within the farm's boundaries, the initiative sought to disseminate its practices and values throughout Braga.
The resulting structure by LIMIT architecture studio consists of eight modular units mounted on wheels. Each unit is constructed with lightweight aluminium frames, internal shelving for seed trays, translucent yellow polycarbonate panels, and a curved sheet metal roof. The roof profile references traditional greenhouse typologies while enabling effective rainwater drainage. Variations in height and configuration allow the modules to be assembled in multiple arrangements according to programmatic needs.
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