Robert Rogers - The Fungal Pharmacy: The Complete Guide to Medicinal Mushrooms and Lichens of North America

This book is dedicated to Laurie,
my best friend
and love of my life.

I would like to acknowledge the trail-blazing work of Paul Stamets and Solomon Wasser.

I greatly appreciate the fungal contributions of David Arora, Robert Blanchette, Ken Jones, Christopher Hobbs, Terry Willard, Andrew Weil, Clark Heinrich, David Law, Adrian Morgan, Bruno Boulet, Jim Ginns, Paul Kroeger, Leonard Hutchison, Michael Beug, Larry Evans, Bryce Kendrick, Britt Bunyard, Tom Volk, Gary Lincoff, Michael Kuo, and numerous other mycologists, herbalists, authors, and generally all-round fun guys and fun gals.

I would also like to thank fellow members of NAMA and the Alberta Mycological Society for their warm welcome and significant contributions to my mushroom studies over the past eight years. There are many to thank, but special appreciation should be given to Martin Osis, who has patiently mentored me and become a very special friend and forest forayer. Thank you. Please check out the Alberta Mycological Societys website at www.wildmushrooms.ws.

Thanks to Doug Reil, associate publisher at North Atlantic Books, and my editors, Erin Wiegand and Robin Donovan.

Thanks to all the photographers, especially John Plischke III, for their keen eyes and contributions.

A special thanks to researchers all over the world who have labored and studied and published papers that have contributed so much to our knowledge of the Fifth Kingdom.

Thank you.

W hile the fungi described in this book can be found throughout North America, the reader will note a regional tone, as my personal experience with fungi does not extend past western Canada. The reader will also note that information on inedible and poisonous mushrooms is included. These species contain medicinal compounds and are included for educational purposes only. This book is meant to encourage more research into medicinal mushrooms; it is not a how- to for picking and eating wild mushrooms. (Those interested in doing so can refer to the bibliography.) Remember, identification is critical, and it is best for amateurs to walk and learn with an experienced picker. Between fifty and three hundred people die every year around the world from misidentified specimens, especially from the Amanita genus. Please do not allow yourself to be added to the list.

This book is for educational purposes only and is not meant to replace the advice of a qualified health professional or diagnosis from a physician or medical mycologist or herbalist. The fact that a mushroom contains an interesting compound does not mean it is safe to ingest. Recipes are noted for historical record only. The author takes no responsibility nor encourages anyone to ingest, in any form, any mushroom based solely on information in this volume. The author and publisher are not responsible for any adverse effects or consequences resulting from the use of the information in this book.

I am the doctor. I am the man of medicines. I am. I am he who cures. I am the remedy and the medicine man. I am the mushroom. I am the fresh mushroom. I am the large mushroom. I am the fragrant mushroom.

I am the mushroom of spirit.

M AZATEC S HAMAN

Tricholoma ustale (Vilna, Alberta, Canada)

Contents

Cortinarius alboviolaceus

Foreword

M edicinal mushrooms have an established history of use in traditional and ancient therapies. Contemporary research has validated and documented much of the ancient knowledge. In the past three decades, the interdisciplinary field of science that studies medicinal mushrooms has demonstrated the potent and unique properties of compounds extracted from a range of mushroom species. Modern clinical practice in Japan, China, Korea, Russia, and several other countries rely on mushroom-derived preparations.

Ancient oriental traditions have stressed the importance of several mushroom species, especially the lingzhi or reishi mushroom