The JC Raulston Arboretum Lath House in Raleigh, designed by Frank Harmon Architect PA, received a Citation Award during the prestigious 2013 Wood Design Awards sponsored by Wood Design & Building magazine in partnership with the Canadian Wood Council.

Designed pro bono and completed in 2010, the open-air Lath House functions as a laboratory for experimental horticultural techniques and methods. Through its screen of carefully placed wooden two-by-twos with steel support, the structure meets the specific light-to-shade ratio needed for infant plants in the spring as they prepare to transition into larger gardens within the arboretum grounds.

Frank Harmon, FAIA, compares the design to “an abstract tree that is spreading its branches to protect the tender plants.”

This marks the fifth award the Lath House has received. In 2011 it won both an American Institute of Architects (AIA) North Carolina chapter Honor Award and an AIA Triangle Merit Award. In 2012 it received an Honor Award from the AIA’s South Atlantic Region. And in 2013 it received an Object Design Award from Inform magazine.

Out of 125 entries, the Wood Design Awards jury selected only 16 projects to honor. The 2013 jurors were Michael Malinowski of Applied Architecture Inc., Michael Heeney of Bing Thom Architects, and Steven Raike of Lake|Flato Architects.

“The Wood Design Awards is an opportunity to showcase excellence in wood architecture and acknowledge a wide-range of wood product applications that demonstrate an understanding of the special qualities of wood such as strength, durability, aesthetic appeal and cost-effectiveness,” said Theresa Rogers, editor, Wood Design & Building magazine.

For more information on the Lath House and Frank Harmon Architect PA, visit www.frankharmon.com.

For more information on the annual Wood Design Awards visit www.cwc.ca.