In what looks like a potential rival to EcoCradle, Mycotectural Alpha is a construction material made of dense mycelium.  Time magazine mentions it in the article Industrial-Strength Fungus by Adam Fischer:

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. (Sorry, the homes in the fictional Smurf village don’t count.) 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.

This new entry in to the mycostructural realm is the brainchild of Philip Ross “…artist, an inventor and a seriously obsessed amateur mycologist.” The product is grown at Far West Fungi, a mushroom growing concern near San Francisco.

Fungally derived substances like Mycotectural Alpha and EcoCradle hold promise as ecologically friendly alternatives to less (or non) biodegradable structural materials.

I have to say, upon further research it isn’t clear if the name of the material is Mycotectural Alpha, or if that is the name of a structure Ross built with Ganoderma Lucidum mycelium now on display in Germany as part of  “Eating the Universe. Food in Art” showing through February 10 at Frankfurt Städelschule. Maybe it’s both.

Ross has a photo set on Flickr showing his fungus bricks in production.

These bricks look to be ready to produce mushrooms (Philip Ross)

Well, they are at it again. This time they have a mushroom-based product called ecocradle to be used in packaging.

“For each unit of EcoCradle we produce, compared to the same unit or volume of polystyrene, we use 10 times less energy and emit eight times less CO2 over the life of the product from production, use and to disposal,” Ecovative Design CEO Bayer said. “Our long-term vision is actually to replace all plastic and foams and mitigate their environmental consequences… and this natural platform we have discovered or invented will allow us to do that,” he said.

When you are done with it, just chuck it in the garden or on the compost heap. Pretty cool idea.