Mycelium Running: How Mushrooms Can Help Save the World
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- Create Date：2021-09-16 08:54:30
- Update Date：2025-09-07
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- Author：Paul Stamets
- ISBN：1580085792
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Summary
Mycelium Running is a manual for the mycological rescue of the planet。 That’s right: growing more mushrooms may be the best thing we can do to save the environment， and in this groundbreaking text from mushroom expert Paul Stamets， you’ll find out how。
The basic science goes like this: Microscopic cells called “mycelium”--the fruit of which are mushrooms--recycle carbon， nitrogen， and other essential elements as they break down plant and animal debris in the creation of rich new soil。 What Stamets has discovered is that we can capitalize on mycelium’s digestive power and target it to decompose toxic wastes and pollutants （mycoremediation）， catch and reduce silt from streambeds and pathogens from agricultural watersheds （mycofiltration）， control insect populations （mycopesticides）， and generally enhance the health of our forests and gardens （mycoforestry and myco-gardening）。
In this comprehensive guide， you’ll find chapters detailing each of these four exciting branches of what Stamets has coined “mycorestoration，” as well as chapters on the medicinal and nutritional properties of mushrooms， inoculation methods， log and stump culture， and species selection for various environmental purposes。 Heavily referenced and beautifully illustrated， this book is destined to be a classic reference for bemushroomed generations to come。
The basic science goes like this: Microscopic cells called “mycelium”--the fruit of which are mushrooms--recycle carbon， nitrogen， and other essential elements as they break down plant and animal debris in the creation of rich new soil。 What Stamets has discovered is that we can capitalize on mycelium’s digestive power and target it to decompose toxic wastes and pollutants （mycoremediation）， catch and reduce silt from streambeds and pathogens from agricultural watersheds （mycofiltration）， control insect populations （mycopesticides）， and generally enhance the health of our forests and gardens （mycoforestry and myco-gardening）。
In this comprehensive guide， you’ll find chapters detailing each of these four exciting branches of what Stamets has coined “mycorestoration，” as well as chapters on the medicinal and nutritional properties of mushrooms， inoculation methods， log and stump culture， and species selection for various environmental purposes。 Heavily referenced and beautifully illustrated， this book is destined to be a classic reference for bemushroomed generations to come。
Reviews
Alex Hummel
，
Essential read for anyone interested in mycology and how it can help heal the earth and the people on it。
SM Zalokar
，
Inoculate the world with this book。 Mycilial dreams。
David
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Innovative and inspiring book。 I read this after I enjoyed Sheldon Mandrake's book Entangled。 My goal was to get a better understanding of the biology of fungi and learn how to grow mushrooms。 My expectations were met and exceeded。The book starts with a brief introduction to fungi biology in part 1， although this is not the focus。 This introduction gives you the understanding you need to appreciate subsequent parts of the book。 The really good stuff is in part 2， mycoremediation。 The ideas Paul Innovative and inspiring book。 I read this after I enjoyed Sheldon Mandrake's book Entangled。 My goal was to get a better understanding of the biology of fungi and learn how to grow mushrooms。 My expectations were met and exceeded。The book starts with a brief introduction to fungi biology in part 1， although this is not the focus。 This introduction gives you the understanding you need to appreciate subsequent parts of the book。 The really good stuff is in part 2， mycoremediation。 The ideas Paul Stamets shares about how fungi can be used to clean and maintain our environment are fascinating。 You'll get to hear about how certain fungi can digest petroleum， radioactive material， and other hazards to our environment。 In the hands of the right people， this book can be a catalyst for environmental revolution。I'll caution that portions of the book can be dry。 For instance， in part 3 you'll get to hear details about certain mushrooms including their nutritional value。 While interesting， I found myself skipping these sections because knowing how many grams of protein a certain mushroom provides was less engaging to me。 Could be interesting to others！Great book， it makes me grateful for people like Paul Stamets and hopeful for the day that we can do things like deploy fungal mats to suck up oil spills or find an extract from a mushroom that can help manage diabetes。 I hope that creative， motivated， environmentally minded people will read this book and answer the call to action。 。。。more
Dallas
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I dip to this once in a while， a reference not a read beginning to end and put down。
Andy Mendrop
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Good， clear book about all things fungi
Maria Casciani
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I really enjoyed this book， talking about all the amazing properties of fungi （especially their social network properties） and learning a bit about the eccentric Paul Stamets。
Stephen Chastain
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Cool content， but not my preferred writing style。 As a result it was difficult for me to get into， but the pictures are awesome。 The author's passion for mushrooms shows clearly in his prose and he's made me appreciate them more as well。 Maybe a bit hyperbolic about the potential benefits of mushrooms in places but we're talking about "unknown unknowns" so it's not like I know any better！ Cool content， but not my preferred writing style。 As a result it was difficult for me to get into， but the pictures are awesome。 The author's passion for mushrooms shows clearly in his prose and he's made me appreciate them more as well。 Maybe a bit hyperbolic about the potential benefits of mushrooms in places but we're talking about "unknown unknowns" so it's not like I know any better！ 。。。more
Stewart Cotterill
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A mind blowing type of book which explains how different mycelium and fruiting mushrooms can take on remediation of land and be used for their health properties and many other uses to。 It is a book that made me think about how mushrooms could help me。 There’s a sentence I didn’t think I’d ever type！
Claire
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First half was mind-blowing– nature really is the ultimate designer and the most innovative technologist。 Second half was just how to grow and ID shrooms。 Great to read in tandem with Omnivores Dilemma。
Ted Manahan
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Textbook， reference， and mushroom cheerleader。 Not good for reading， but excellent for anyone wanting deep information。
Malcolm Grant
，
references its self too much to be taken seriously as an academic book; that being said it was a very entertaining and informative read for non-fiction。 a much read for any shroomster！
Emily
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Lots of detail in here。 Would be nice to see an updated version as I’m sure there have been so many advances in mycological research in the past 15 years。
Joanne McKinnon
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I wanted to know more on how to use wild mushrooms to improve our garden and forest soil。 This is the best reference on the many benefits of fungi。 A must read for mushroom lovers。
Can Karakulak
，
Doğaya başka bir gözle bakmanızı sağlayan sayılı kitaplardan biri。
Joseph Gendron
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Lots of examples are given of the potential and unique ways mycelium can benefit human interests。 Directed more toward the student than the lay person。 Future opportunities look promising。
Klas
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The mushroom is important！
Nancy Lyles
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Every reader deserves to be immersed in the world of Paul Stamets， our world through the mycelial lens。
Dallas Anderson
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Engaging overview of all things fungal。
Cory Donavon
，
Super interesting book。 Stamets is a leading expert in mushroom science and did an excellent job writing this book。 I did not realize before reading this book that humans （and animals） are most closely related to fungi than to any other kingdom。 Also that virtually all plants and animals have been successful due in large part to their partnership with fungi。 The animals and plants that partner with fungi are generally more successful and without fungi， all ecosystems would fail。 Fascinating。 It Super interesting book。 Stamets is a leading expert in mushroom science and did an excellent job writing this book。 I did not realize before reading this book that humans （and animals） are most closely related to fungi than to any other kingdom。 Also that virtually all plants and animals have been successful due in large part to their partnership with fungi。 The animals and plants that partner with fungi are generally more successful and without fungi， all ecosystems would fail。 Fascinating。 It was a branch of fungi that led to the ability to capture nutrients by surrounding their food with cellular sacs， essentially primitive stomachs， rather than externally digesting food by secreting acids and enzymes into their immediate environs and then absorbing the nutrients。 Fungi led to the ability to digest food while on-the-go， leading ultimately evolving into animals。 The first two parts of this book， The Mycelial Mind and Mycorestoration， blew my mind constantly。 So much information。 Mycelial networks， fungus and fruiting mushroom bodies themselves are all so interesting and so useful。 We need to partner with mushrooms again if we are going to be successful as a species。 From utilizing mushrooms to help us clean up our pollution via mycoremediation to controlling insect pests on our crops and in our homes via mycopesticides to creating life-saving cures and antibiotics like Penicillin and even to helping us expand our neural networks that will allow us to be more conscious people via psilocybin-producing mushrooms， the fungus kingdom is our ally。 The third part of the book （the last 150 pages or so） are specifically for mushroom growers， which I don't intend to be anytime soon， so I skimmed through that part。 There were still some interesting tidbits in there for me， but I didn't give it as much attention as the first half of the book。 The book as a whole is diverse in its topics and is a wellspring of knowledge。 I would recommend this book to anyone even loosely interested in mushrooms （obviously）， but also anyone interested in plants， forestry， pollution-reduction， crop-growing， gardening and even the world's ecosystems and environmental challenges in general。 。。。more
Marissa
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Loved it！ Read before or after watching Fantastic Fungi the documentary。 A revolutionary read and if you let it， it will change the way you live your life！
Ruth
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The first part of the book - which went through the science of mycelium was amazing。 The later chapters I found a little more difficult to engage with so didn't finish the full book。 However， the first section is really mind-blowing for someone who has never thought about mycelium。 The first part of the book - which went through the science of mycelium was amazing。 The later chapters I found a little more difficult to engage with so didn't finish the full book。 However， the first section is really mind-blowing for someone who has never thought about mycelium。 。。。more
Christine Kenney
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Made the mistake of trying to take on Growing Gourmet and Medicinal Mushrooms first。 This is way more accessible as a reference-- more like a high school textbook。 Other reviewers disagree， but I loved the anecdotal speculation about unusual ways to recruit mycelial tools for our own objectives。 It was published 20 years ago but still reads as cutting edge and prescient， particularly the comment on page 44 about SARS， factory farming， and cruise ships as viral vectors that we need a better arsen Made the mistake of trying to take on Growing Gourmet and Medicinal Mushrooms first。 This is way more accessible as a reference-- more like a high school textbook。 Other reviewers disagree， but I loved the anecdotal speculation about unusual ways to recruit mycelial tools for our own objectives。 It was published 20 years ago but still reads as cutting edge and prescient， particularly the comment on page 44 about SARS， factory farming， and cruise ships as viral vectors that we need a better arsenal to fight back with。。。The first half of the book also left me curious about patent law as it applies to living organisms and how Stamets and others operate in this space。 Some things I wish were more solidified:1。 Common newbie mistakes in propagation， particularly as many pasteurization techniques are cost prohibitive for a small scale runner。2。 More support for determining what mushrooms are native to your area or could be cultivated outdoors in your climate--maybe a world map with annotations？ This is a concern for those of us in the arid southwest with less organic content in soils， bacteria-dominant carbon cycles， and not much of a cold season。 3。 Deeper list of spawn resources。 He lists only his company for this continent and they are moving away from kits and sold out of their catalog of spawn。 。。。more
Tom Stevens
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A good dive into mushrooms。 The book contains a great deal of fascinating information for example why it's so far been impossible to cultivate chanterelles。 Stamets shares his awe of the intricacies of the natural kingdom。 I came away feeling both a healthy respect for the way mushrooms work as well as a little apprehensive。 Mushrooms have powers that we don't fully understand。 It's wonderful， though， that Stamets is passionate about the subject and makes the science understandable for a lay per A good dive into mushrooms。 The book contains a great deal of fascinating information for example why it's so far been impossible to cultivate chanterelles。 Stamets shares his awe of the intricacies of the natural kingdom。 I came away feeling both a healthy respect for the way mushrooms work as well as a little apprehensive。 Mushrooms have powers that we don't fully understand。 It's wonderful， though， that Stamets is passionate about the subject and makes the science understandable for a lay person。 。。。more
Vitaliy Parshikov
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Very inspiring book that show a reader a fabulous mushrooms world
D。 Rogers
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'Mycelium Running' is a thorough introduction to the prodigious world of fungi。 Paul Stamets lays the groundwork for understanding both the biology and functions of fungi。 Important applications of fungi to our own complex biology and environmental healing efforts are discussed in great detail。 Paul， also， covers the recondite relationships between fungi and plants found in nature， which has the ability humble even the most anthropocentric reader。The book is filled with informative， well labeled 'Mycelium Running' is a thorough introduction to the prodigious world of fungi。 Paul Stamets lays the groundwork for understanding both the biology and functions of fungi。 Important applications of fungi to our own complex biology and environmental healing efforts are discussed in great detail。 Paul， also， covers the recondite relationships between fungi and plants found in nature， which has the ability humble even the most anthropocentric reader。The book is filled with informative， well labeled pictures， some serving as model photos of that particular organism。 Armed with cold hard facts， it is clear the author's intent is to inform， not to dazzle readers with wordplay; 'Mycelium Running' reads like a textbook。 Being originally published in 2005， many of the referenced studies are dated。 As a scientist-in-training， this lack of fresh research bothered me while reading。 I couldn't stop wondering what new and exciting scientific discoveries have been made in mycology since 2005。I recommend this book to anyone interested in the neglected field of mycology。 I'm convinced mushrooms can save the world。 I challenge anyone to read this book and manage to walk away without a newfound respect for our fungal allies。 。。。more
Brendan
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A little ranty and rambling， but in a charming way。 Excellent and approachable source of info。
Glenn Yu
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Okay， I fully admit that this is a really informative book about mushrooms， and I am better for having read it。 I was inspired to read it after seeing Fantastic Fungi， a great documentary film about Paul Stamets' research。 The book's subject matter is certainly worthwhile， and I am even more convinced now that mushrooms are the next frontier。But， how do I say this？ This is one of the least literate books I've read in a long time。 75% of my effort and concentration while reading this book was spe Okay， I fully admit that this is a really informative book about mushrooms， and I am better for having read it。 I was inspired to read it after seeing Fantastic Fungi， a great documentary film about Paul Stamets' research。 The book's subject matter is certainly worthwhile， and I am even more convinced now that mushrooms are the next frontier。But， how do I say this？ This is one of the least literate books I've read in a long time。 75% of my effort and concentration while reading this book was spent metatheorizing on what makes writing boring and flat。 I have a few theories， but nothing worth elaborating。 Let's just say that there are scientific books out there that don't make you want to run upstairs， spot pavement below， and jump out of your window。 This is not one of them。 From a stylistic perspective， you could say that this book has no style at all。 I'm probably being too harsh。 I don't know。 I guess part of me is just angry because I found I couldn't read more than 5 pages at a time without falling asleep， which subsequently led to the complete evisceration of a sleep schedule that I had taken a lot of care to cultivate。 I had a schedule before。 I'd wanted to read multiple books this week。 Now that schedule is ruined， and I've read nothing。 My life is in shambles all because of Paul Stamets' shitty adjectives！ *note to self: did not finish; only skimmed the sections about cultivation and taxonomy。 。。。more
Ben
，
I found this book fascinating， but also slightly frustrating。 The fascinating:- Stamets' detailed accounts of his own experiments and discoveries， and the broad possibilities these could create for the future of forestry， food and generally looking after the natural world。- The in depth practical guidance on growing your own mushrooms。 Whilst it's geared towards people with a fair bit of land， and isn't a "step by step" how-to guide， it gives a lot for gardeners to think about too。- The overall I found this book fascinating， but also slightly frustrating。 The fascinating:- Stamets' detailed accounts of his own experiments and discoveries， and the broad possibilities these could create for the future of forestry， food and generally looking after the natural world。- The in depth practical guidance on growing your own mushrooms。 Whilst it's geared towards people with a fair bit of land， and isn't a "step by step" how-to guide， it gives a lot for gardeners to think about too。- The overall impression and story that Stamets tells about fungi， mycelium and the role they have to play in the world。The frustrating:- Chapter 1: as a manifesto of possible things， it's a good read。 But there's a lot of conjecture， "I suppose it could"s and generally big ideas that have very little grounding in much apart from Stamets' own musing （which whilst undoubtedly have a basis in his own extensive experimentation， are pretty wild）。- The structure of the chapters， which often move from hyper-detailed analysis of a trial to unsubstantiated speculations on what could be possible in future。 The speculation isn't in itself always a problem， but being intermixed with such detail often gives it more weight than it deserves。- The speculation on medicine。 Interesting， but potentially irresponsible when there's not a lot of evidence to back it up。How valid some of these frustrations are definitely depend on the idea of where legitimate knowledge comes from。 Does the only source of truth come from peer-reviewed journals and establishment sources， or are there equally valid forms of knowledge creation that run in parallel with the scientific establishment？ Notwithstanding that it's not a simple binary， I found there was often not enough substance to validate some of Stamets' bolder claims， even though I think pretty much everything he's doing should be more heavily researched and tested （and I think in the years since first publication， there's been some vindication of his initial ideas and experiments）。As someone with an "entry level" interest and knowledge of fungi， I'd say this works well as a book to deepen my knowledge and offer guidance and ideas for further reading （and the start of cultivating my own fungi）。 However， the way the book is organized and the slightly jarring mixture of high-concept conjecture with extremely specific accounts of the author's experiments， may not be the best entry for people entirely new to the world of fungi。 。。。more
Barbaracase
，
This book was ok but it needed editing。 There have to be more straightforward texts on this enterprise。 Also， it seemed to assume a northwestern climate。
Laurelle Johnson
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