ROOM LIST

MUSHROOM MUSIC

  • Around 80–90% of plant species form symbiotic relationships with fungi.
  • Plants give fungi sugars (from photosynthesis).
  • Fungi provide plants with nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus.
  • Fungi are essential partners with plants because they enhance water retention and soil aeration and they increase plant resistance to drought, erosion, pathogens, and environmental stress like heavy metals and pollutants.
  • Many plants cannot survive without these partnerships.
  • Many fungi are decomposers, breaking down dead plants, wood, and organic matter.
  • This process returns nutrients to the soil, making them available for new plant growth.
  • Without fungi, ecosystems would accumulate waste and lose fertility.
  • Fungal networks help bind soil particles together, improving soil structure and stability.
  • PROTECT SOIL STRUCTURE
  • Avoid excessive digging or turning of soil in gardens and green spaces.
  • Practices like no-till gardening help preserve underground mycelium networks, which are essential for nutrient exchange and soil health.
  • REDUCE CHEMICAL USE
  • Limit or eliminate synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides.
  • These chemicals can disrupt or kill beneficial fungi that plants depend on for nutrients and resilience.
  • PLANT NATIVE SPECIES & SUPPORT REGENERATIVE AGRICULTURE
  • Choose native plants for landscaping and restoration projects.
  • Native plants have established relationships with local fungal networks, making ecosystems more stable and self-sustaining.
  • Buy from farms and brands that prioritize soil health, biodiversity, and regenerative practices.
  • REDUCE ORGANIC WASTE
  • Compost food scraps and yard waste instead of sending them to landfill.
  • This supports natural decomposition processes and reduces methane emissions.
  • Leave some leaves, wood, and plant debris to decompose, or compost them.

Advocate for ecosystem health:

  • Support policies and organizations that protect forests, soils, and biodiversity.
  • Fungi are critical to these systems but are often overlooked in conservation efforts.

Increase awareness

  • Share information about the role of fungi in ecosystems, including their role in plant communication and nutrient cycling

 

Organizations like SPUN (Society for the Protection of Underground Networks) are working to map and protect these underground ecosystems for the first time. They are also responsible for the incredible videos you experienced inside of the Mushroom Music exhibit!

SPUN WEBSITE
CLICK HERE FOR THE SPUN WEBSITE

The mushrooms you see above ground are the fruiting body of a fungus — the main organism is an underground network called mycelium, made of billions of thread-like filaments woven through the soil.

These mycelium networks can span vast areas, connecting the roots of plants across entire forests in what’s popularly known as the “wood wide web.”

These connections facilitate a constant biological negotiation — fungi trade phosphorus and nitrogen to plants in exchange for carbon sugars.

  • Originally educated as a biologist, veteran Canadian musician Tarun Nayar brings his passion for nature and sound together to create Mushroom Music
  • He uses home-built synthesizers to improvise with natural impulses via plant and mushroom bioelectricity
  • Trained from childhood in Indian classical music, he uses the system of Indian raga to mold his musical choices for time of day and season.
MODERN BIOLOGY
Modern Biology Website
Check out his Instagram

Known widely online, his videos have been viewed over 200 million times and amassed him over 1.5 million followers on social media.

Thanks to our amazing activation partners: