Our Species Information

Species Page

Welcome to our species page. We have tried to include as much information as possible about each and every unique mushroom species we supply here at Super Spore. Please browse below to find an overview, taste profile, growing difficulty level and claimed health benefits for each species. *Please note no health claims are made by us here at Super Spore, we are merely quoting the "claimed" health benefits widely available and stated in online publications. Please do your own research and consult your own health professional prior to supplementing your diet, especially if for medical reasons.

Grey Oyster (Pleurotus Ostreatus)

The Grey oyster is one of the easiest gourmet mushrooms to cultivate, and thankfully so as they are one of the most widely eaten! They can be grown on straw, cardboard, used paper mulch, used coffee grounds and even clean toilet paper! It produces nice clusters as seen here and can easily be grown indoors or out (like our one pictured.) Grey's are an amazing natural composter and fairly tolerant to varied growing conditions compared to some more fussy strains.

Taste profile:

Subtle anise flavour, very mild with woodsy & earthy notes. Smooth oyster like, texture once cooked. Can be used in a wide variety of dishes.

Growing Difficulty:

Easy - Beginner oyster mushrooms can be grown on a diverse and wide range of substrates and conditions, such as straw, logs, supplemented sawdust, cardboard and coffee grounds.

Oyster Mushroom Claimed Health Benefits:

Immune system support, Regulates cholesterol levels, Lowers high blood pressure, Helps build strong bones, Anti inflammatory, Potent antioxidants with anti-cancer claims, Protects heart function, helps defend against neurodegenerative diseases.

Lions Mane (Hericium Erinaceus)

The Lions Mane mushroom looks amazing with its breath taking display of drooping teeth making it look very similar to its namesake. This mushroom can be grown on hardwood sawdust in specialised grow bags alternatively dowels can be inoculated and inserted into hardwood logs to grow them outdoors! It can also easily be grown indoors (in controlled conditions) A beautiful and spectacular mushroom that's very tasty!

Taste profile:

Gorgeous... Taste like crab or lobster meat with a similar mouth feel, sweet and seafood like, with a meaty texture. Great vegan alternative for seafood. You wont believe its a mushroom...

Growing Difficulty:

Easy to Moderate - Easy for log dowels, Moderate for cultivating in bags as you need controlled conditions and specific substrates.

Lions Mane Claimed Health Benefits:

Neuro protection as this species has shown potential to repair and regenerate brain and nerve cells, people who regularly eat Lions mane report improved cognition and mental clarity. Lions mane has been shown to reduce stress and anxiety.

Pink Oyster (P. Salmoneo-Stramineus)

The Pink oyster is a sub tropical species and likes warmer conditions. It can be successfully grown indoors in temperatures from 20 all the way up to 35 deg.c! Typical substrates can range from straw supplemented with coffee grounds to hardwood sawdust. Please note: Do not store mycelium, agar or spawn in the fridge as these low temperatures can kill the mycelium.

Taste profile:

Believe it or not pink oyster mushrooms can taste a bit like ham or bacon when fried until crispy! They do loose their lovely pink colour when cooked, and also can be a little bitter unless cooked properly. Meaty and chewy - Definitely worth a try...

Growing Difficulty:

Easy - Beginner oyster mushrooms can be grown on a diverse and wide range of substrates and conditions, such as straw, logs, supplemented sawdust, cardboard and coffee grounds.

Oyster Mushroom Claimed Health Benefits

Shiitake (L. Edodes) Wide Ranging & Versatile Species

My favourite all round mushroom. Tastes amazing and fairly easy to grow. Think white button only multiply the flavour. Amazing meaty mushroom and what I could only describe as a taste sensation! Can be grown outdoors on logs inoculated with dowels or cultivated inside (In controlled conditions) using hard wood sawdust mixes.

Wide Ranging Strain - Fruits in a wide range of temperatures (10 - 20 deg.c) best for hardwood sawdust and log inoculations.

Versatile - Can grow and be fruited on different substrates than normal (Straw, Coffee grounds etc)

Taste profile:

My personal favourite... I describe as a button mushroom taste that's been enhanced by x10. Meaty texture that's pleasantly chewy, Unami, earthy and woodsy all packed into this great tasting mushroom.

Growing Difficulty:

Easy to Moderate - Easy for log dowels, Moderate for cultivating in bags as you need controlled conditions and specific substrates. We sell two varieties

1) Wide ranging strain (Good for hardwood logs and sawdust in a wide range of temperatures)

2) Versatile (Good for a wide range of substrates, IE can be grown on straw.)

Shiitake Claimed Health Benefits:

Helps prevent obesity with its fat reducing properties, anti cancer claims, supports the immune system, enhances cardiovascular health, antimicrobial properties, increases energy and brain function. Excellent source of vitamin D and improves skin health.

King Oyster (Pleurotus Eryngii)

Our best selling species! Fruits in a range of temperatures (12 - 18 deg.c) The king oyster is unique, unlike most other Oyster mushrooms the stem of the King is soft and edible. Amazing on its own or roasted as an accompaniment. Fairly easy to grow on a wide range of substrates from cereal straw and coffee grounds to hardwood sawdust. Can also be grown in beds.

Taste profile:

Soft meaty woodsy sweet stem, some people cut the stem into slices and eat them as a substitute for scallops. Whole mushrooms can be roasted as the king stays fairly firm when cooked.

Growing Difficulty:

Easy to Moderate - Easy for log dowels, Moderate for cultivating in bags as you need controlled conditions and specific substrates.

King Oyster Claimed Health Benefits:

White Button / Brown Button & Portobello (Agaricus bisporus)

The most commonly grown species in the world. Although white and brown are separate species by colour, I've grouped the brown and white button together as they are, apart from colour similar to each other (same Latin name). The larger Portobello is just a large fully grown brown or chestnut button so effectively the same species as brown button.

These species I think we are safe to say are the bread and butter and the workhorses of the commercial mushroom world...

Taste profile:

Soft and mild taste, which intensifies whilst cooking. Used in a wide variety of salads, sauces and cooked dishes. Portobello is the most common morning mushroom most commonly served up with a full breakfast. Portobello due to their size also lend themselves to being stuffed with a wide range of ingredients. I think the brown mushrooms have a slight stronger taste than the white, however that may just be me!

Growing Difficulty:

Moderate - Substrate has to be manure and rotted straw based as these mushrooms are secondary decomposers. Need to provide casing layer after spawn run and optimal fruiting conditions to be successful. Can be fiddly to get nutrient mixes in substrate correct and fruiting conditions correct however once achieved easy to reproduce time and time again. A good challenge... Now where is my nearest horse stable??

Button Mushroom Claimed Health Benefits:

Contain B vitamins and a powerful antioxidant which support the immune system. One of the few non animal sources of vitamin D

Black Morel (Morchella Angusticeps)

Probably one of the most prized species, when you think of gourmet mushrooms you think Black Morel. Recognisable dark honeycombed cap with black to brownish black ridges and yellowish brown pits; completely hollow inside. Grows singly or in groups of up to many on the ground in deciduous woods, disturbed areas, and recently burned areas. They are found especially under white ash, poplars, oak, and hickory.

Taste profile:

It is difficult to describe the famous morel flavour. It is nutty, meaty, and unique whether cooked or dried. There is no substitute for butter to bring out its subtle but treasured character. All Morels are poisonous when raw or undercooked causing gastric upsets and other symptoms.

Growing Difficulty:

Difficult - As described above ground needs to be disturbed (Usually by fire) then inoculated. There are various information articles and video's online on how to DIY force fruit a patch of Black Morels outdoors in your garden. I've not heard of them being successfully cultivated in an indoor setting.

Black Morel Claimed Health Benefits:

The morel contains high amounts of potassium, vitamins and copper which all contribute to a healthy heart. The morel is a wonderful source of Vitamin D

Enoki (F. Velutipes)

Enoki mushrooms are a long thin white and crunchy (think beansprouts) mushroom, usually sold in clusters. They are especially popular in East Asian cuisine and are also known as enokitake, golden needle, futu, or lily mushrooms.

Taste profile:

Cultivated Enoki mushrooms are crisp and firm with a crunchy bite and a mild, fruity flavour.

Growing Difficulty:

Moderate - I picked moderate but should be more along the lines of fiddly... As its difficult to get them as amazing looking as many pictures you see. Grow in plastic or glass jars on a supplemented hardwood sawdust mix, to get that signature tight and straight cluster as pictured here.

Enoki Claimed Health Benefits:

Enoki mushrooms contain dietary fiber, niacin, calcium, potassium, selenium, copper, phosphorus, and iron. They are also known to have anti-inflammatory properties and are excellent immune system boosters.

Red Reishi (G. Lucidium)

Red reishi, is a polypore fungus belonging to the genus Ganoderma. Its red-varnished, kidney-shaped cap and peripherally inserted stem gives it a distinct fan-like appearance. When fresh, the lingzhi is soft, cork-like, and flat. For many years, this fungus has been a staple in Eastern medicine.

Within the mushroom, there are several molecules, including triterpenoids, polysaccharides and peptidoglycans, that may be responsible for its health effects. While the mushrooms themselves can be eaten fresh, it is also common to use powdered forms of the mushroom or extracts that contain these specific molecules.

Taste profile:

Not generally eaten whole due to its chewy cork like texture. Usually ground into supplements and extracts.

Growing Difficulty:

Easy to Moderate - Supplemented hardwood sawdust. Reishi will not do well on straw. It is also possible to inoculate hardwood stumps with Reishi plugs for outdoor cultivation.

Reishi Claimed Health Benefits:

Immune system booster, many state it has anti cancer properties, fights fatigue and depression, heart health, blood sugar control, antioxidant booster.

Cordyceps Militaris

If you were an insect, Cordyceps would be the parasitic mushroom of nightmares.

The spores of this fungus would have the potential to infect your brain, causing madness! As if possessed, you would climb up to a high branch, hold on tight, and die, giving the fungus an opportunity to sprout and fruit through your brain and spread its spores once again. Yuk...

Luckily for us humans Cordyceps is harmless... In fact it is the opposite... An extremely powerful and sought after medicinal mushroom. It is commonly known amongst athletes as endurance and energy booster letting them perform and endure for longer. It is also widely known to improve overall health.

Taste profile:

Cordyceps have a savoury umami-quality and a deep earthy-nutty flavour that finishes with a slight sweet note. One common way to get the health benefits is to dry the stalks and have them as a savoury crunchy snack.

Growing Difficulty:

Moderate - Cordyceps Militaris unlike Cordyceps Sinensis can be cultivated without an insect host. Rice based nutrient enhanced substrates are commonly used to cultivate this amazing beneficial mushroom.

Cordyceps Health Benefits:

Increases stamina and endurance - Adenosine, a precursor to ATP is found in high levels in Cordyceps militaris. By increasing the availability of adenosine, Cordyceps helps overall ATP production, allowing for increased energy production.

Also Boosts immune system, Anti-Aging properties. Breath easier - People who suffer from asthma and other immune related disorders. Studies in mice have shown Cordyceps militaris to be effective in reducing airway inflammation. Cordyceps has traditionally been used to help improve fertility and act as a remedy for impotence, making it a natural aphrodisiac. This is thought to be because of the ability of Cordyceps to increase blood flow.

Beef Steak Mushroom (Fistulina Hepatica)

Sticky and gruesome, beefsteak is a woodland fungus with the disconcerting appearance of a raw cut of meat. It even oozes a blood-like substance when cut! When young, this bracket fungus looks like a tongue poking out of a tree trunk. As it matures, it begins to look more like a piece of raw steak or liver. The wood of trees infected with the beefsteak fungus develops brown rot, which makes the wood richer, darker and of great interest to the furniture building trade...

Taste profile:

This mushroom is best cooked in a creamy recipe, or mixed with other mushrooms due to the slight acidic taste. They do not taste at all like beef, the younger the less tart they are.

Growing Difficulty:

Moderate - Best to be grown on wider hardwood logs and stumps outdoors

Beef Steak mushroom Health Benefits:

Beefsteak fungi contain soluble and insoluble dietary fibre, promoting gut health and helping to reduce LDL cholesterol.

Wine Cap (Stropharia Rugosoannulatta)

Wine Cap mushrooms are easily grown in home gardens to enrich soil and provide an edible treat. They are easy to grow, provide fertilizer for the soil which benefits other plants and vegetables in the garden forming a symbiosis relationship, and can grow on a variety of items including straw, hardwood sawdust, or wood chips. Many inoculate partially shaded bark or woodchip areas with Wine caps and providing they are topped up with fresh substrate will produce mushrooms year after year.

Taste profile:

Wine Cap mushrooms are crisp with a mild, earthy, and slightly nutty flavour with hints of potatoes and red wine. Best picked smaller as the larger ones can become chewy.

Growing Difficulty:

Easy - One of the easiest mushrooms to grow. Inoculate a partially shaded patch in your garden and keep topped up with fresh chips or straw to enjoy year after year.

Wine Cap mushroom Health Benefits:

Reduces blood sugar and cholesterol levels, reported cancer fighting properties.

Yellow Oyster (P. Citrinopileatus)

A very beautiful and striking species of oyster mushroom. A wonder to look at and comparable to a bouquet of yellow flowers. Yellow oysters have a lovely scent of freshly cut watermelon! Like pink oyster the lovely bold and distinct colour is unfortunately lost on cooking.

Taste profile:

Yellow oyster mushrooms have a nutty roasted cashew flavour when sautéed, they can also be consumed raw making a spectacularly beautiful display in cold garnishes and salads

Growing Difficulty:

Easy - Like all the other oyster mushrooms can be grown on a diverse and wide range of substrates and conditions, such as straw, logs, supplemented sawdust, cardboard and coffee grounds.

Yellow Oyster mushroom Health Benefits:

Chicken Of The Woods (P. Sulpheurus)

Could it be true? A mushroom substitute for chicken? A fan like edible mushroom described by many as tasting very like chicken... Google "KFC chicken of the woods" It has the same texture as chicken and is good in stews as a veggie ‘meat’. Best eaten young as the older specimens become woody and acrid to the taste. Should be cooked before consumption to avoid stomach upset.

Taste profile:

Chewy meaty texture often described as "Succulent" with a chicken taste and mouth feel. The ideal vegan meaty substitute!

Growing Difficulty:

Moderate - Best grown on large hardwood logs or stumps outdoors, which can easily be inoculated. Difficult/Unknown how to grow inside in controlled conditions.

Chicken Of The Woods Health Benefits:

Antioxidant, antibacterial, hormonal balancing, anti-inflammatory are all noted health benefits of this also tasty fungi.

Black Poplar or Pioppino (P. Sulpheurus)

Black Poplar, or “Piopinno” in Italian, is a clustering, meaty mushroom, it prefers hardwood logs half buried lengthwise in a wooded or garden setting that is shady and can sometimes naturalize into wood chip piles outdoors. Another delicious, edible medicinal mushroom! This one can be chopped and sautéed in oil and pepper, sprinkled onto a cold salad with feta cheese and a herbal vinaigrette. Also wonderful sautéed and added to gravies for meat dishes.

Taste profile:

Nutty crunchy earthy flavoured which can be used in a wide variety of dishes. Well worth a try!

Growing Difficulty:

Moderate - Best grown on large hardwood logs or stumps outdoors, which can easily be inoculated. Can also be grow inside in controlled conditions on supplemented hardwood sawdust.

Black Poplar Health Benefits:

This mushroom has shown a significant immune boosting function concentrating on anti-fungal properties.

White / Pearl Oyster Mushroom (P. Ostreatus V. Florida)

The White or Pearl oyster mushroom, is a common edible mushroom. It was first cultivated in Germany as a subsistence measure during World War I and is now grown commercially around the world for food. Very clean looking bright and fresh looking gourmet mushroom.

Taste profile:

Slightly sweet and woodsy taste, mild and tender.

Growing Difficulty:

Easy - Like all the other oyster mushrooms can be grown on a diverse and wide range of substrates and conditions, such as straw, logs, supplemented sawdust, cardboard and coffee grounds.

Oyster Mushroom Health Benefits:

Chaga Mushroom (Inonotus Obliquus)

Chaga is a type of fungus that grows mainly on the bark of birch trees in cold climates, such as Northern Europe, Siberia, Russia, Korea, Northern Canada and Alaska. It resembles a dark clump of dirt more than a mushroom, but is distinguished from other growths by its orange internal tissue

Taste profile:

It has a somewhat earthy flavour with a slight bitterness. It also contains a naturally occurring form of vanillin, the same as what is found vanilla bean. You can drink Chaga mushroom straight, but the flavour may not be appealing to most, so can be mixed with other flavour enhancers.

Growing Difficulty:

Difficult - Chaga grows on birch trees, so in order to establish a Chaga plantation, you should have a 0,25-2 ha forest with birch trees. Boggy areas are good as well. The mushroom can be grown on birch trees at least 10 years old, with a minimum diameter of 10 cm, where the trees can be inoculated.

Chaga Mushroom Health Benefits:

Immune system support, Anti Inflammatory potential, potential anti-cancer, lowers cholesterol, DNA protection from free radicals.

Nameko (P. Nameko)

Nameko is a small, amber-brown mushroom with a slightly gelatinous coating that is commonly used as an ingredient in Miso soup and nabemono.

Taste profile:

This mushroom is a wonderful compliment for meat, fowl, and game. Nameko is popular in Asia where it is a standard ingredient in Miso soup. Firm texture with a slightly fruity forest flavour, and a stunning accent of amber colour. Pair with Pinot Noir. it likes shallot, dark green vegetables, miso & red meats.

Growing Difficulty:

Moderate to difficult - Nameko can be cultivated on hardwood supplemented sawdust mixes. They prefer cooler temperatures and need a constant humidity, so growing conditions have to be tightly controlled.

Nameko Mushroom Health Benefits:

Said to combat Cancer, prevent diabetes, boost immunity and bone health, said to slow the aging process, lowers inflammation and boosts brain function.

Giant Puffball (Calvatia gigantea)

Commonly found in meadows, fields, and deciduous forests usually in late summer and autumn. It is found in temperate areas throughout the world. Most giant puffballs grow to be 10 to 50 centimetres (4 to 20 inches) The large white mushrooms are edible when young.

Taste profile:

Excellent - All true puffballs are considered edible when immature, but can cause digestive upset if the spores have begun to form, spores forming are indicated by the colour of the flesh being not pure white (first yellow, then brown) inside. The puffball can be sliced and cooked, or scooped out and used as an edible bowl. Can be sliced and fried like a steak or breaded and fried for a better texture.

Growing Difficulty:

Difficult - Grown on rich and fertile outdoor grassy areas. This could be forced by inoculating a patch of desired grass or land in your garden.

Puffball Health Benefits:

Puffball spores were also used in Native American folk medicine as a coagulant to slow bleeding and help blood to clot.

In Chinese medicine, puffball mushrooms are called Ma Bo and they’re similarly used to treat bleeding and haemorrhages.

Modern medicine confirms that compounds in some species of puffball mushrooms have a haemostatic effect and are particularly effective at slowing and stopping nasal and oral bleeding.