Mycelium

Creating a mycelium sample with a 3D printed mold

Complexity	Skills	Duration
Medium	Mycelium & 3D printing	1 week

First, let’s start with a 3D mold

Tools and Procedure

Tools

• 3D printer
• Filament

Step by step procedure

• Create your 3D model in Rhinoceros or any other 3D software.
• Save it and open it Ultimaker Cura to slice it for the 3D printer.
• Set up the base, walls, type of filament etc.
• Send to print and observe at least the first 3 layers to see if the printing is doing ok.

Mycelium Procedure

Ingredients and Procedure

Ingredients

• Straw
• Flour
• Mycelium kit previously made
• Water

Other tools

• Bowl
• Alcohol
• Plastic Wrap
• Gloves & safety googles
• Dehydrator, oven or pressure cooker
• Camping gas

Sterilization

• Sterilise straw and 3D printed mold for 45 min in the pressure cooker.
• Disinfect your table and bowls with alcohol.
• Turn on camping gas to create a sterilization bubble.

Mycelium mix procedure

• Add the Mycelium Kit to the bowl
• Add straw, flour and mix well with hands
• Place the Mycelium in the mold
• Wrap mold in plastic and poke small holes
• Let it grow for 1 week in the dark.

Reflection Learning to grow mycelium has been a fascinating experience. I started by looking for inspiration on Pinterest and TikTok, where I saw people creating impressive items like lamps and containers out of mycelium.

As I am new to Rhino, I searched for Rhino files on Thingiverse to use as a base for 3D printing the mold. The most challenging part was keeping everything sterile. It required some effort, but once I managed it, growing mycelium turned out to be quite straightforward.

What I find most exciting about mycelium are its unique properties. It’s fireproof, cleans the air, and is biodegradable, making it an excellent material for sustainable design. I am enthusiastic about the numerous possibilities mycelium offers and look forward to exploring them further.

Books
- Growing gourmet and medicinal mushrooms by Paul Stametz
Links
https://www.core77.com/posts/55675/How-to-Grow-Objects-With-Mushroom-Mycelium https://www.instructables.com/id/Making-Mycelium/ https://www.watsonwolfe.com/2020/02/08/what-is-mushroom-leather/ https://paul-thorpe.com/2015/01/16/growth-patterns-in-nature/ https://www.mycelia.be/en/strain-list https://biofabforum.org/t/how-do-i-grow-mushroom-leather/545/4 https://www.mycoworks.com/ https://neffa.nl/nl/portfolio/mycelium-textile/ https://www.grown.bio/shop/ https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/research/project/growables/

Some cool 3D files you can use as molds:
Flower pot - it has a system for an easy removal of the cast if you are not using a flexible material.
Duny mold- cute character which prints in 10 minutes.
Mold for planter
Coffee Bean soap
FibonacciShell
3D Printed and Mycelium Grown Beehives
Another pot but taller
Self watering plant pot
oval ribbed rossette mold