About the Book
A full-color guide to psilocybin mushrooms—how to forage, identify, grow, and use them—with detailed descriptions, 300 stunning photographs, tips for dosing safely, and more, from a world-renowned mycologist.
The past decade has seen an explosion of interest in using psilocybin (aka psychoactive or “magic”) mushrooms for recreational and medicinal purposes.
In this comprehensive, full-color reference, Paul Stamets offers descriptions and 300 photographs of more than 60 psilocybin varieties and their lookalikes common to North America, Europe, and Australasia. He outlines the history and cultural use of magic mushrooms in traditional rituals and ceremonies, their natural geographic distribution and habitats, and keys to growing your own mushroom patch. But perhaps most important, Stamets explains how to reliably distinguish between a non-poisonous, psychoactive mushroom and one of its highly toxic, even deadly, lookalikes.
Packed with a lifetime of scientific and real-world research, Psilocybin Mushrooms in Their Natural Habitats brings depth and understanding to an often-misunderstood topic. Revealing the potential of these powerful, mind-awakening fungi to help us live better, happier lives through micro- and macro-dosing, this handbook is an indispensable—and potentially lifesaving—addition to mushroom field guides from the biggest name in mycology.
About the Author :
World-renowned mycologist Paul Stamets is the author of seven books and a sought-after international speaker. His research and lectures demonstrate how mushrooms can greatly enrich the health of both people and the planet. Stamets is also the founder of Host Defense Mushrooms, the #1 bestselling mushroom-based supplements brand in the U.S., and Fungi Perfecti, a family-owned business dedicated to promoting the cultivation of high-quality gourmet and medicinal mushrooms.
Review :
“Visually stunning and nourishing to your mind, Psilocybin Mushrooms in Their Natural Habitats is essential reading for all those interested in psilocybin mushrooms, from mycologists to therapists to physicians. I highly recommend this epic book!”—Andrew Weil, MD
“Stamets is a world expert on the identification and cultivation of psilocybin mushrooms, and here provides a guide to almost every aspect of their lives, from ecology, to evolution, to the histories and mysteries of their relationships with humans. A rich hybrid of memoir, field guide, and cultivation manual, Stamets offers a wide-ranging and unique perspective on these remarkable organisms.”—Merlin Sheldrake, author of Entangled Life
“Paul Stamets is without question the world’s best-known mycologist and the world expert on psilocybin-containing mushrooms. This book is a remarkable blend of the eminently practical and the just plain glorious. It is everything you want to know and considerably more. Wonderfully written and beautifully illustrated, it is an instant classic.”—James Fadiman, PhD, microdose researcher and author, with Jordan Gruber, of Microdosing for Health, Healing, and Enhanced Performance
“In a unique combination of deep ethnomycological research, psychedelic science, field guide, and much more, Paul Stamets has once again produced a seminal book that will guide the path of many generations to come.”—Giuliana Furci, foundress of the Fungi Foundation; fellow, International Mycological Association; National Geographic Explorer; and fungal activist
“Psilocybin Mushrooms in their Natural Habitats is a feast for the heart, mind, intellect, and soul—and a deft and dazzling combination of ecology, chemistry, history, healing, and more. Highest recommendation!”—Mark Plotkin, PhD; ethnobotanist, Amazon Conservation Team; and former research associate, Harvard Botanical Museum
“For nearly fifty years Paul Stamets, an inspired scientist and scholar, has been the avatar of the fungal realm, a mycologist on a mission to discover and celebrate fungi that can feed our bodies, heal our souls, transport our minds to places of ethereal wonder. This book, his opus, is destined to be a classic.”—Wade Davis, professor of Anthropology, University of British Columbia
“In the first half of Psilocybin Mushrooms in Their Natural Habitats, Paul explores the evolution of these species and the origins of human use; he also cautions us on who should not use these mushrooms. The second half is a field guide to psilocybin species—and the ‘tricksters’ one does not want to mistakenly consume. Paul’s lifelong fascination with psilocybin- and psilocin-containing fungi shows clearly in this must-have book.”—Michael Beug, PhD, author of Mushrooms of Cascadia, Second Edition
