Reishi or ling-zhi (Ganoderma lucidum)

Weird growth of reishi (Ganoderma lucidum)

Reishi or ling-zhi grows wild in European forests but it is rather hard to find.

People have been taking reishi in Asia for more than 2000 years, but not as an edible mushroom in meals because it is very hard and tastes bitter. LingZhi can be translated as „divine mushroom of immortality“ or „spiritual herb of longevity“. It is also called „king of the medicinal mushrooms“. It is used in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). It has a high concentration of polysaccharides, beta-glucanes and triterpenes.

The fruiting bodies of reishi have a very bizarre appearance. each fruiting body has a different shape. The surface is very shiny (like paint). When the fruiting bodies are dried, they turn into a wood like substance and retain their individual shapes. For this reason they are often used in floristry for floral arrangements.

Reishi (Ganoderma lucidum) growing on substrates in a mushroom farm

Literature about the reishi mushroom often discusses its use as tea. It is however quite bitter drunken as tea.

Suitable log types for growing are copper beech,
birch, oak, alder, plum and maple. The wood must be healthy and should be stored for between 4 and max. 12 weeks before inoculation.