GROWING GOURMET - Anto2ni.it

GROWTH PARAMETERS 327
The Caramel Capped Psilocybes
(Pacific Coast Teonanacatis: Mushrooms of the Gods)*
of the Genus Psilocybe
For millennia, Psilocybes have been used for spiritual and medicinal purposes. Curanderos—
Meso-American shamans—relied upon them to diagnose illness and to prognosticate the future.
Through the works of R. Gordon Wasson, Jonathan Ott, Andrew Weil, Terence McKenna and others,
these mushrooms became well known to North Americans. In the mid 1970's, a group of dedicated
mycophiles from the Pacific Northwest of North America pioneered the outdoor domestication
of the temperate, wood-loving Psilocybe species. From these species, many imaginative cultivators
learned techniques applicable to the cultivation of many otherwoodland gourmet and medicinal
mushrooms. Since I have studied this group for many years and since this constellation of
species has become the template for natural culture in North America, it seems fitting that this
species complex be explored further.
P cyanescens complex iruiting on aider wood chips overlayed with a thin layer of straw.
* The Genus Psilocvbe as monographed by Guzman (1983) has species which contain indole alkaloids (psilocybin,
psilocin) that are known to be "psychoactive". Many species in the Genus Psilocybe do not possess these pharmacologically
active compounds. However, in addition, a number of mushroom species unrelated to Psilocvbe alsocontain
these indoles. This section is offered for its academic value and does encourage the violation of any ordinances
restricting the possession or propagation of any illegal substance. Readers should further note that some individuals
react negatively from the ingestion of psilocybian mushrooms. The author's research on this group was conducted
under the provisions of a Drug Enforcement Administration license.
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