Here at the threshold, we aim to ground, orient, and equip with some of the basics and background of this world. Our humble fungi co-inhabitants come with a long, rich lore, offer meaningful sites of connection to our everyday lives, and carry untold implications for our future. We find that when life is open and connected to fungi, it becomes even more alive. Come on in.

What Are Fungi

Fungi are not plants or animals.¹ They are their own thing, and yet, some species share nearly half of our DNA, genetically appearing more similar to us than most plants. At this moment in history, we are aware of over 140,000 species of fungi, and within that, about 14,000 kinds of mushrooms.² They are found everywhere: land, sea, fresh water, air, and even inside plants and animals, and are inextricably connected to every ecosystem at every scale on Earth.

Humans have been slouching around this Earth for a few million years, but Kingdom Fungi has been shaping our world for an estimated billion and a half years, with fossil records showing their presence at least 400 million years ago, during which time they may have been the dominant life form on earth.

Our ancestors learned that these curious organisms possess the power to revive, destroy, and transform. Sourcing mushrooms for nutrition, medicine, and spiritual purposes have been traced as far back as the Stone Age through dental and art analysis. Mushroom cultivation only appears in the last 1000 years. In the last century, the industrialized world seized mushrooms from their vernacular and began to pursue their mysteries in earnest. In the last few years, myco-mania has officially taken off, and scientists, ecologists, healthcare practitioners, farmers, artists, engineers, and chefs are plumbing the depths and heights of fungal potential.

The scientific study of these fascinating fungal denizens is called mycology (“myco” from the Greek for fungus, “ology” from “study”), and a scientist in this field is a mycologist. The roles of fungi in nature are, most heroically and critically, in the processes of decomposing and cycling nutrients that sustain life itself. Their potential beyond their natural state is nearly endless. Fungi possess the power to heal, nourish, perpetuate, and radically change, and we have only scratched the surface of their wisdom.

Fungi in Practice

The applications of different species and parts of fungi range from the earthly and domestic (brown mushrooms on your pizza) to the mysterious and sublime (ticket to a mind-altering trip) to everything in between. There are more ways to eat and use mushrooms than ever before. Find some of the diverse portals into fungi below:

Culinary / Edible
You’ve most likely already engaged in mycophagy, that is, eating mushrooms. Chefs and food scientists across the globe who are developing and inventing new ways to source and cook with and new flavors to extract from mushrooms.

Functional / Medicinal
“Functional” mushrooms refer to varieties that have medicinal properties and unique benefits for health and mental wellness beyond their nutritional value and palatability. Lion's mane, reishi, chaga, shiitake, and cordyceps are common species of functional mushrooms you may come across in diverse forms within wellness communities and alternative medicine practitioners.

Psychedelic / Psychoactive
In the fifties, thanks to some shady colonialism, the phenomenon of consuming mushrooms with mind-altering effects reached the Global North, igniting a mainstream cultural narrative that continues to morph to this day. There are at least 200 varieties of “magic” aka psychoactive mushrooms naturally containing a compound called psilocybin that the body converts into a mind-altering psychedelic called psilocin. There is increasing scientific and anecdotal evidence that psilocybin works wonders for trauma and mental health. A resurgence of trials and studies in the 21st century has renewed the buzz around the potential of these groundbreaking therapies for everyone from artists to mothers.

Toxic
Not all fungi are friends. There are around 100 species that are downright toxic to human beings. Ingesting or even touching toxic species can turn into bad news, fast. Experimenting with magic mushrooms can be equally dangerous and always should be approached mindfully. If you’re ready to dip your toes in, it’s so important to do so under the eye of a trusted guide in both safe sourcing and experiencing. So whether you’re starting on this journey to forage wild mushrooms or delve into new psychedelic horizons, turn to the experts.

And Beyond… 
There is no end to the potential applications and inspirations of fungi and mushrooms in the worlds of art, construction, filtration, fashion, music, technology, ecological reconstruction, and philosophy.

Further Reading

Fungli is a universal basecamp for the best in mushroom intel, art, science, culture, products, and community. When fresh-to-fungi, we like to share all the best resources the field has to offer, so we have made a syllabus of content that started our love and deepened our learning about the world of fungi.