LEGO’s latest plant piece moves from Middle-earth to the beach – and it’s perfect

The LEGO Group’s latest plant piece has moved from Middle-earth to the beach – and found a perfect use in the process.

Originally debuting in 10316 The Lord of the Rings: Rivendell in regular green, the new-for-2023 fern element is about to reappear in May’s 75353 Endor Speeder Chase Diorama. It’s plentiful in both those Icons and Star Wars sets, but the LEGO design team are already looking to more unorthodox – but intuitive – uses for the surprisingly versatile piece.

The first of those is in the recently-revealed 43215 Magical Treehouse, a Disney 100th anniversary set that includes the fern piece in trans-pink. It’s a fun colour change early in the element’s life, and totally appropriate for the aesthetic of the mini-doll set. But an even better use is about to come along in a summer LEGO Friends set.

A LEGO Certified Store in Singapore published the first image of 41737 Beach Adventure Park over the weekend, revealing the theme’s second set targeted at 12+ builders for 2023 (following 41732 Downtown Flower and Design Stores). The sprawling and colourful build is packed with plenty of cool features, from a mechanically-controlled spinner ride to a wave pool ready for surfing.

Maybe its greatest achievement, though, is how it perfectly repurposes the fern element – recoloured in lime green – for its palm tree. It’s a smart idea executed with relative simplicity, which feels fitting for a Friends set. And it’s not the only place the new fern pops up in 41737 Beach Adventure Park: you’ll also spot it hanging over the drinks kiosk, cementing the set’s tropical aesthetic.

That’s just one reason to look forward to 41737 Beach Adventure Park, which is expected to arrive in June with 1,348 pieces and four mini-dolls in the box. We’ll hopefully see more LEGO Friends summer 2023 sets very soon.

You can find out more about the development of the new fern element here.

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