Lion’s Mane Agar Plate

Description

Hericium erinaceus (also called lion’s mane mushroom, monkey head mushroom, bearded tooth mushroom, satyr’s beard, bearded hedgehog mushroom, pom pom mushroom, or bearded tooth fungus) is an edible and medicinal mushroom belonging to the tooth fungus group. Native to North America, Europe and Asia it can be identified by its long spines (greater than 1 cm length), its appearance on hardwoods and its tendency to grow a single clump of dangling spines.

H. erinaceus contains diverse phytochemicals, including polysaccharides, such as β-glucan, as well as hericenones and erinacines. From its essential oil, 77 aroma and flavor compounds were identified, including hexadecanoic acid (26% of total oil composition), linoleic acid, phenylacetaldehyde, and benzaldehyde, and other oils, such as 2-methyl-3-furanthiol, 2-ethylpyrazine and 2,6-diethylpyrazine.

The fruit bodies of H. erinaceus are mainly produced annually from September through November. It was observed that H. erinaceus could fruit intermittently for 20 years on the same dead tree. It is hypothesized that H. erinaceus can survive for 40 years.

Some photos of this product in its wild-foraged form are sourced from iNaturalist, taken by daniacervantes, Alison Northup, and others. Licensed by CC-BY4.0.