What started as a fun and tasty culinary trend – growing exotic mushrooms at home from a simple storebought or online kit – has become another threat to Michigan’s natural resources.
A recent article published in “The Conversation” describes U.S. Forest Service researchers’ findings regarding the impact of golden oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus citrinopileatus) on Wisconsin forests.
Native to Asian and Russian hardwood forests, these imported mushrooms are now growing in the wild in areas of the Midwest, including Michigan’s southern Lower Peninsula.
Golden oyster mushrooms, known for their bright yellow caps and nutty flavor, are featured on restaurant menus and in cooking videos. The mushrooms became popular among DIY enthusiasts with the introduction of grow kits in the early 2000s. By 2010, they began appearing in U.S. forests.
According to Aishwarya Veerabahu, a graduate student in the Department of Botany at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, “No one knows exactly how golden oyster mushrooms escaped into the wild, whether from a grow kit, a commercial mushroom farm or outdoor logs inoculated with golden oysters – a home-cultivation technique.”
To assist with research efforts, Michiganders are encouraged to report any sightings of golden oyster mushrooms in the wild. Observations can be recorded at iNaturalist.org.
Veerabahu and colleagues sampled fungal communities in forests around Madison, Wisc., and determined that in logs colonized by golden oyster mushrooms, only half the expected diversity of native fungal species was present.
“Fungi are sources of revolutionary medicines, including antibiotics like penicillin, cholesterol medication and organ transplant stabilizers,” said Veerabahu. “The value of undiscovered, potentially useful chemicals can be lost when invasive species push others out.”
Veerabahu recommends that people consider refraining from using golden oyster mushroom grow kits to prevent any new introductions.
“For people who make a living selling these mushrooms, consider adding a note that this species is invasive and should be cultivated indoors and not composted,” she said. “If you enjoy growing mushrooms at home, try cultivating safe, native species that you have [lawfully] collected in your region.”
New species are often introduced by people long before the species’ invasive qualities are known. To avoid introducing or spreading species that may be invasive, never release pets, aquarium plants or other species into the wild, choose native species for gardening, and keep exotic plants – and fungi – indoors.