Reishi (varnished polypore)
Ganoderma lucidum
The 'ling zhi' of the Chinese pharmacopoeia, a mahogany-coloured lacquered polypore. Tough and bitter, it's consumed as a decoction rather than on the plate, and is grown on partly buried logs.
Partial shade
Role in permaculture
A decomposer of stumps and hard wood (white rot): it produces a traditionally renowned mushroom while recycling the wood, in the shaded, warm layer of the system.
Growing this mushroom
- Method
- Hard-hardwood logs, often partly buried after colonisation
- Substrate
- Hard hardwoods: sugar maple (reputed the best), oak, sweetgum. Fresh logs, bark intact, diameter ~10-20 cm.
- Where to place it
- A shaded, warm bed, cool soil: the north edge of a forest garden, under deciduous tree cover, a bed buried in a humid, sheltered corner. A wood saprophyte: it's installed for the shade and humidity of the system.
- Period
- Inoculation in spring, burial once the log is colonised; fruiting in summer-autumn (reishi likes warmth and humidity).
- Level
- Intermediate
Steps
- Inoculate hard-hardwood logs with seeded sawdust or dowels, then seal.
- Let it colonise until the mycelium shows at the ends.
- Lay the logs 'raft-style' in a shaded trench and half-bury them (top flush), pack the earth around: the soil keeps the humidity and gives fleshier fruit bodies.
- Keep very humid and in warm shade; harvest before hardening and release of the brown spores.
Precautions
Distinguish it from the other Ganoderma (the artist's bracket Ganoderma applanatum, or G. resinaceum in Europe): no deadly lookalike, but the identity of the strain matters for use. Never harvest polypores on treated or polluted wood. Medicinal caution (pregnancy, interactions with anticoagulants): refer to professional advice.
Sources: Paul Stamets, Growing Gourmet and Medicinal Mushrooms (Ganoderma lucidum) · Oregon State University Extension, EM 9364, « Reishi Mushroom Growing Guide » (Muhammad, Hopkins & Powell, 2022) · Alice W. Chen, « Natural-Log Cultivation of the Medicinal Mushroom Ganoderma lucidum » (mushroomcompany.com) · Tom Volk (University of Wisconsin), Fungus of the Month, mars 2005, Ganoderma lucidum
Good companions
Traditional companion planting (benefit not demonstrated)
Nutritional & medicinal properties
For educational purposes. Not a substitute for medical advice. Effects depend on the form, the dose and personal context.
Precautions & contraindications
Reserved for informed use, not self-medication. Cases of liver damage have been reported, including one death linked to a reishi powder (Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, 'About Herbs' database). It can increase the risk of bleeding and interfere with anticoagulants, as well as with immunosuppressants. Not advised as a precaution during pregnancy and breastfeeding; seek the advice of a doctor or pharmacist before any use, especially in case of ongoing treatment. Never harvest a bracket fungus (polypore) from treated or polluted wood.
Key takeaways
- • Prefers partial shade exposure.
- • Classic companion: Oak.