The mushroom has a wide number of medicinal properties such as being an antioxidant, antimicrobial, anticancer, antidiabetic, immune enhancer, and also used for the treatment of various diseases such as anthelmintic, anti-inflammatory, antipyretics, etc. According to current information, there are approximately twelve-thousand species in the world, and out of them, 2000 species are reported as being edible. Around 35 edible mushroom varieties are cultivated commercially, whereas almost 200 wild species could be used for medicinal purposes. This book also covers the diversity of edible mushrooms and describes several applications as an alternative source for food production and clinical approach. This book includes: • the diverse types of mushroom and their enzymatic activity • importance of nutritional properties along with their food product development • industrial and clinical applications of macro fungi, i.e., degradation of dyes, anticancer, antimicrobial, antioxidant, etc.

Mushrooms are exciting to find, beautiful to look at, fascinating to identify, and delicious to eat. When you know what to look for, a mushroom hunt is as safe and enjoyable as a treasure hunt. Katya Arnold ranges through the world to find hundreds of varieties of mushrooms, as well as fascinating anecdotes and fun facts that make these wonders of nature exciting and immediate. A walk in the woods will never be the same!

An in-depth exploration of organic mushroom cultivation practices, groundbreaking research and myriad ways to incorporate mushrooms into your life "A clear, comprehensive guide that is a gift to amateur as well as professional mushroom growers. This book opens the doors wide to a diverse and fascinating fungal world."—Toby Hemenway, author of Gaia’s Garden What would it take to grow mushrooms in space? How can mushroom cultivation help us manage, or at least make use of, invasive species such as kudzu and water hyacinth and thereby reduce dependence on herbicides? Is it possible to develop a low-cost and easy-to-implement mushroom-growing kit that would provide high-quality edible protein and bioremediation in the wake of a natural disaster? How can we advance our understanding of morel cultivation so that growers stand a better chance of success? For more than twenty years, mycology expert Tradd Cotter has been pondering these questions and conducting trials in search of the answers. In Organic Mushroom Farming and Mycoremediation, Cotter not only offers readers an in-depth exploration of best organic mushroom cultivation practices; he shares the results of his groundbreaking research and offers myriad ways to apply your cultivation skills and further incorporate mushrooms into your life―whether your goal is to help your community clean up industrial pollution or simply to settle down at the end of the day with a cold Reishi-infused homebrew ale. Inside, you’ll find: The Fundamentals of Mushroom Cultivation Innovative Applications and Projects Using Fungi Basic Laboratory Construction, Equipment, and Procedures Starting Cultures and Spawn Generation Detailed descriptions of over 25 different genus The book first guides readers through an in-depth exploration of indoor and outdoor cultivation. Covered skills range from integrating wood-chip beds spawned with king stropharia into your garden and building a “trenched raft” of hardwood logs plugged with shiitake spawn to producing oysters indoors on spent coffee grounds in a 4×4 space or on pasteurized sawdust in vertical plastic columns. For those who aspire to the self-sufficiency gained by generating and expanding spawn rather than purchasing it, Cotter offers in-depth coverage of lab techniques, including low-cost alternatives that make use of existing infrastructure and materials. Cotter also reports his groundbreaking research cultivating morels both indoors and out, “training” mycelium to respond to specific contaminants, and perpetuating spawn on cardboard without the use of electricity. Readers will discover information on making tinctures, powders, and mushroom-infused honey; making an antibacterial mushroom cutting board; and growing mushrooms on your old denim jeans. Geared toward readers who want to grow mushrooms without the use of pesticides, Cotter takes “organic” one step further by introducing an entirely new way of thinking―one that looks at the potential to grow mushrooms on just about anything, just about anywhere, and by anyone. "This comprehensive introduction to growing and utilizing fungi has something for all mushroom-inclined readers . . . . Both practical and passionate, Cotter offers extensive and detailed information.”—Publishers Weekly

Table of Contents Introduction to Mushrooms Introduction So What Is a Mushroom? Mushroom Fungophobia Fairy Rings Mushroom Hunting Cultivation of Mushrooms How Are Mushrooms Grown Making a Mushroom Bed Best Mushroom Compost Compost Fermentation Pasteurization Mushrooms in Shelves or Trays Spawning Watering of Mushrooms Ventilating Casing Harvesting Mushrooms in Cuisine Mushrooms in Medicine Conclusion Mushroom Identification Mushroom Guide Is a Mushroom Edible Getting to Know More about Morels Learning about Truffles Starting up a Mushroom Business Author Bio Publisher Introduction Just look at the illustration of any fairy story with a number of fairies, elves, gnomes, and other imaginary creations of the writer’s imagination. You are going to see them sitting on toadstools and mushrooms. The Amanita muscaria is one of the easiest recognizable of all these illustrations, because you see it ever so often in illustrations, associated with gnomes. In ordinary terms, this is called a toadstool.

The discipline of Mushroom Biology, created by the authors of this book, has now been legitimized by references in the scientific literature and by two International Conferences devoted to the subject. This book sets the parameters of Mushroom Biology in a concise manner and also emphasizes trends and points out future directions which will lead to a greater utilization of mushrooms and mushroom products. The discipline was established to bring together persons who have in common scientific or commercial interests involving mushrooms. The authors' definition of mushroom is more broad than the usual mycological definition so that macrofungi other than Basidiomycetes can be included. Mushrooms may be edible, non-edible, poisonous or medicinal species, with hypogeous or epigeous fruiting bodies, and their texture may be fleshy or non-fleshy.Many aspects of Mushroom Biology are presented, including nutritional and medicinal uses, the role of mushrooms in bioremediation, biotechnology, and in the bioconversion of waste organic materials into forms that can enter the major nutrient cycles.Basic scientific studies involving mushroom species are also considered with an emphasis on genetics and breeding.

Known as the meat of the vegetable world, mushrooms have their ardent supporters as well as their fierce detractors. Hobbits go crazy over them, while Diderot thought they should be “sent back to the dung heap where they are born.” In Mushroom, Cynthia D. Bertelsen examines the colorful history of these divisive edible fungi. As she reveals, their story is fraught with murder and accidental death, hunger and gluttony, sickness and health, religion and war. Some cultures equate them with the rottenness of life while others delight in cooking and eating them. And then there are those “magic” mushrooms, which some people link to ancient religious beliefs. To tell this story, Bertelsen travels to the nineteenth century, when mushrooms entered the realm of haute cuisine after millennia of being picked from the wild for use in everyday cooking and medicine. She describes how this new demand drove entrepreneurs and farmers to seek methods for cultivating mushrooms, including experiments in domesticating the highly sought after but elusive truffles, and she explores the popular pastime of mushroom hunting and includes numerous historic and contemporary recipes. Packed with images of mushrooms from around the globe, this savory book will be essential reading for fans of this surprising, earthy fungus.