W2: Companion Species

Andrew and I picked mycelium as one of the companion species to grow and take care of, since we both are interested in researching the material properties and potential applications of it for our thesis projects. However, neither of us had any prior experience growing mycelium, which made this process a fun learning opportunity.

Steps:

  1. We chopped up 3 types of store bought mushrooms

  2. We cut up cardboard pieces and soaked them in boiling water to sterilize (this also provides moisture for mycelium to grow)

  3. We peeled the cardboards into thinner layers

  4. We layered the cardboards with pieces of mushroom in between (like making lasagna)

  5. We poked holes in the lids so the mycelium can breathe

  6. We made a quick DIY incubator for the mycelium with material that we found around IDM, to create a dark and warm environment for it to grow:

    • An empty box

    • Foil to line up inside of the box

    • A fish tank heater to keep the temperature around 70-80 degrees

Sara Nejad