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Mushrooms have been associated with many religious rituals as objects of mystery and fear. The Egyptians thought that mushrooms were a gift to man from the God Orsis. The Y'ongji mushroom (Ganoderma lucidum) is well known in China, so the Chinese Y'ongji is more widely sold than the Korean species. However, the efficacy of Korean mushrooms differs significantly from that of foreign species. The Korean Oak-mushroom is a very nutritious health food that is high in fiber, minerals, and vitamins.
Moreover, it is a favorite for many people and contains cancer-fighting substances, called lentinan and sterol , that lower both blood pressure and cholesterol. Since the oak-mushroom has recently been recognized as a health food by virtue of the reasons mentioned above, its consumption has been increasing. Yearly demand peaks just before and after the autumn autumn holidays, is low during the summer, and is normal in spring and winter. The number of oak mushrooms consumed was
almost zero in 1988, but showed a rapid increase after 1990, advancing an average of 50% every year.
Oak-mushrooms are classified as either agaric or walnut mushrooms. The oak-mushroom is one of the most popular mushrooms in Korea. Oak-mushrooms are widely found from East Asia to South-east Asia, even down to New Guinea and New Zealand in the Southern Hemisphere. They are usually found growing on broadleaf trees (e.g. oaks). However, they are sometimes found growing on needle leaf trees (e.g. pines or Japanese cedar) or in monocotyledones such as bamboos.
Each mushrooms consists of a nutrition organ (mycelium) and a fruit body that includes the reproductive organ and spores. The mycelium corresponds to the root, stem, and leaf of the higher plants and the fruit body is the same as the flower. Usually, people mistakenly think that the fruit body is the entire mushroom. In fact, we can see the fruit body for only a short time. For most of the year, the hypha, which looks like down-shaped thin thread, lives in organic materials such as humus soil or dead trees.
In fact, the hyphae cut a path in soil and the stumps and stems of trees. Furthermore, the hyphae secrete enzymes that turn complex substances into simple absorbable ones, thereby getting energy for growth. Mycelia exist as a fragile structure made up of thin hyphae. Therefore, they hide in the ground or trees to protect themselves from external stimuli. Once these mycelia grow to the stage of breeding, the fruit bodies begin to sprout all over from the mycelia. If there is enough moisture due to rain, for instance, fruit bodies suddenly sprout. These are the mushrooms that we can often see in the rainy season.
Unlike plants, mushrooms lack chlorophyll and cannot produce the nutrients needed for their survival through photosynthesis. The oak-mushroom is a saprophyte that absorbs nutrients from decaying organic substances or old living plants.
It has been only 20 some years since the Korean oak mushroom was first introdused to other countries, and its nutritional value is now recognizes by many. During this relatively short period, the Korean oak mushroom has become a highly regarded nutritional food and its market share has grown sharply.