A sustainable softwood product which provides a durable alternative to tropical hardwood has been used to build a treehouse which will be on display at RHS Hampton Court before being donated to a children's charity. The treehouse is built from Kebony, a sustainable alternative to tropical hardwood and toxic treated timber. The technology behind the wood is an innovative process that enhances the properties of sustainable softwood species to give them similar characteristics to tropical hardwoods. It is designed by Blue Forest, the world’s leading luxury treehouse and eco-home builders for Quiet Mark and John Lewis. Blue Forest create treehouses which reflect the environment in which they are built, aiming to bring people closer to the natural world and the great outdoors, with environmental credentials and sustainability a key consideration in all of their designs.

A not-for-profit organisation, Quiet Mark is the international mark of approval from the UK’s Noise Abatement Society, encouraging the design of quieter high performance technology and solutions to reduce unwanted noise in our environment. The Quiet Mark Treehouse and Gardens by John Lewis will offer personal sound-portraits for visitors and a Wild Sanctuary animal soundscape.

The RHS aims to encourage visitors to spend more time in the great outdoors. A thoroughly British establishment, the summer festival celebrates outdoor living and provides ideas for visitors to replicate in their own gardens. This year’s show will focus on the themes of ‘Grow, inspire and escape’ and the treehouse will reinforce these ideas, creating for its occupants a sense of proximity to nature and total detachment from the noise of the world.

Adrian Pye, Head of International Sales at Kebony said: "It has been a very exciting project for Kebony to be involved in and seeing the treehouse in the wonderful RHS setting at Hampton Court, surrounded by the some of the most prestigious gardens. It will demonstrate how innovations such as Kebony can be integrated with a building’s natural environment”.

Simon Payne, Director at Blue Forest commented: “Our bespoke treehouses are designed to blend in and reflect their secluded locations. We only use only the highest quality products to ensure that they are able to withstand and not damage the environment. Kebony was a fitting choice for this Quiet Mark project because of its strength and environmental credibility. It’s organic, natural beauty means that it looks fantastic amongst the stunning array of gardens on display at RHS.”

Sound is increasingly becoming a more important consideration when deciding what technology to buy for our homes. John Lewis’s pioneering partnership with the Quiet Mark award programme sets a new benchmark in sound quality for the next generation of high performance low-noise technology, designed to be in closer harmony with nature.

This unique charity/retailer partnership is also aiming to evolve consumer understanding of sound quality whilst working to develop a new era of sound measurement for electrical products sold at the UK’s favourite department store.