A forward-thinking Nebraska student has taken mushroom ingenuity to a whole new level.
Katy Ayers has created an 8ft-long canoe from fibrous mushroom roots, otherwise known as mycelium.
These roots, usually found beneath the soil, and known for their dense, buoyant and waterproof properties
Ayers, who is a student at Central Community College in Columbus, named the boat ‘Myconoe’.
But the real question is, how mush room does it have?
Sorry, we couldn’t help ourselves.
She came up with the idea after spending hours researching all of the different ways that mushrooms could be used.
Ayers is a part of the Growing Pathways to STEM program and is now leading one of the cohort’s main research projects building bee hotels, small structures called nests or homes, all from mycelium.
We’ve covered the amazing qualities of fungi and their possible future applications several times in the past; this is just another example of how much we have to learn about the fungus among us.