Both architecture and agriculture transform the natural world to best serve human goals. But at a site roughly two hours north of Manhattan, in Columbia County, New York, architect David Leven and partner Stella Betts of Leven Betts Studio have made the next step—fusing the two. The couple’s “agritecture” translates the crop lines of a (mostly) active farm into the blueprint for their 2,000-square-foot second home and the surrounding landscaping.

“When we first went to the site, we were really struck by the crop lines in this relatively open field,” says Leven. “So the design follows the direction and module of the lines that are created by the machinery to work the land.” Set in the midst of hundreds of acres of farmland, these lines became markings on the flanks of the house and paving patterns for the patios, as well as models for the elongated, hovering forms of the kitchen counter and outdoor barbecue. The couple went so far as to use these pastoral designs to generate the organization of plumbing and services, and determine the shape of a low outdoor retaining wall leading to the garage.

While the house’s two clean, rectangular volumes literally stemmed from the land, it’s not exactly local produce. “The house has no trims or molding, and that’s not what people are used to up here. At first we just had to throw out the plans, but over time the contractors have been getting more and more comfortable with it,” says Betts. “We’re teaching them how to ‘do modern.’”