Mycotecture is a term created to describe buildings made of mushrooms, or more specifically, made of bricks made of mushroom roots known as mycelium.
“Mycelium doesn’t taste very good, but once it’s dried, it has some remarkable properties. It’s nontoxic, fireproof and mold- and water-resistant, and it traps more heat than fiberglass insulation. It’s also stronger, pound for pound, than concrete. In December, Ross completed what is believed to be the first structure made entirely of mushroom. . . .The 500 bricks he grew at Far West Fungi were so sturdy that he destroyed many a metal file and saw blade in shaping the ‘shrooms into an archway 6 ft. (1.8 m) high and 6 ft. wide. Dubbed Mycotectural Alpha, it is currently on display at a gallery in Germany.”
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1957474,00.html#ixzz0exE930rS
A Time Magazine article gives more information about Philip Ross and Far West Fungi farm in Monterey, California where this amazing crop is grown and processed. Talk about green and sustainable!
It doesn’t appear that any energy efficient houses have been built yet, but Ecovative Design in Green Island, NY is making Greensulate rigid board insulation and Ecocradle packaging material using the same technology. I do love weird and wonderful news stories.
This is so interesting! Thank you for sharing the information!
How fantastic Pat! I have never heard of this but what potential!! Thanks for the education!
I think this is interesting too. I had never heard of such a thing.
Rose and Carol – Isn’t this stuff amazing? I know of a strawbale house with a meadow roof that looks like a mushroom, but never a house made of mushrooms.
Lisa – It is really hard to keep up with all the developments. My hope is that they move along as quickly as possible.
Has someone been hybridizing her web site? The new look is terrific and will be easier than ever to use. It’s always reassuring to see our gardener’s smiling face and I hope (as does every Commonweeder reader) that the banner of the snow covered meadow will soon be replaced by a sunny image of spring. As an architect I am fascinated by the idea of mushrooms as a building material. Earl Pope, another Hawley architect, once suggested the overabundance of West County zucchini be diverted to a factory, shredded and mixed with some sort of glue and made into a 4×8-foot plywood-like building component. Some readers may well wish that fruitcake be discovered to have structural properties, but I’m holding out for pâté de foie gras. Pat, your post is a reminder that we can never be certain what will sprout up before us on your web site. Thank you!
Flaneur – I also hope the banner will be replaced by a sunnier vista before too long. Thanks for the kind words.
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