Generally, mushrooms are spore- producing fungal growths, some of which are edible. The most popular ones have a very distinguishable shape, typically a dome cap with gills or lamellae on the underside along with a stem. Though some mushrooms fit that description there are actually many variations in the mushroom family. They come in an assortment of colors, some are bell shaped, others flat, some have stems, some don’t, some are edible, some aren’t, and some grow in the moist earth while others grow on their food source.

That fruity, fleshy part we know as the mushroom is actually the fruit of the fungus; the sprouting of these spore laden fleshy mushroom ensures the continuation if its species. The main body of the fungus lies beneath the earth in a complex network of minute threads known as Hyphae, when more than one hyphae connect; they are referred to as Mycelium.

Mushrooms are broken down into two major groups called are Basidiomycetes and Ascomycetes. The former are the fungi that produce their spores on dedicated cells called ‘Basidia, singular Basidium. This compares with the Ascomycetes that produces their spores in sac like cells called ‘Asci, singular, Ascus. These classifications are further broken down as we learn more about the intriguing organisms.
Let’s explore some of the different types of mushrooms. First let’s start with those classified under Basidiomycetes.