The Western world holds a few idols in the psychedelic realm. Ram Dass, Timothy Leary, and Alan Watts are often mentioned in conversations on the topic. When it comes to mushrooms, psilocybin included, references to Paul Stamets are indeed in the mix. The mycologist has authored 11 books with a new one on the way in June, frequently speaks at conferences, and teaches groups. His life has long been dedicated to the field of fungi.
His latest work, Psilocybin Mushrooms in Their Natural Habitats: A Guide to the History, Identification, and Use of Psychoactive Fungi, showcases this dedication. Fellow psychedelics proponent Dennis McKenna referred to the extensive international psilocybin mushroom field guide Stamets’s “magnum opus.”
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Psilocybin Mushrooms adds new layers to the field
Psilocybin Mushrooms provide a wide-lens view of magic mushrooms that gets microscopic by the end. It begins with the history of Indigenous communities, the resurgence of Western psychedelia, and today. Then, Stamets lunges into a well-researched, easy-to-digest, and comprehensive handbook to identifying, foraging, and cultivating wild psilocybin. He encourages curiosity and safety throughout the text, often calling back to the ultimate rule of psilocybin: respecting the powerful organisms.
Stamets wrote in the introduction: “Our collective duty as psilocybin allies is to create networks of collaboration that benefit the Commons while respecting Indigenous traditions, whose histories go back hundreds, if not thousands, of years.”
This reverence comes with a relevant warning from the jump: never eat or give someone a mushroom without being absolutely positive about its identification. One mistake in this department could lead to death. While that message is dire, it is necessary. And luckily, the rest of the book is a breath of fresh air providing clarity on an often opaque field.
Chew on the hearty details
The history section is followed by a look at the habitats where psilocybin fruiting bodies are known to grow. Then, it gives a brief introduction to morphology and identification before explaining how to create a magic mushroom patch outside.
Stamets nods again to the respect concept in the chapter “Knowing if psilocybin is right for you.” This section discusses how people experience the mushroom versus a pure psilocybin molecule and shares research on whether people enjoyed or disliked their trips. The information prepares people for what they may embark on, giving permission to back out of plans to journey at any point.
Next, the manual speaks on dosing, of course, touching on the famous Stamets Stack. This mathematical chapter opens the gateway for over 100 pages of psilocybin mushrooms. A photo of each mushroom appears next to information on the morphology, natural habitat, microscopic features, and additional observational comments. This may be a text mycologists have been waiting for for generations.
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Extensive information in a digestible package
Those who appreciated Stamets’s famed Psilocybin Mushrooms of the World field guide published in 1996 will want this new release on their shelves. The fact-heavy book contains special touches like a recipe for “blue juice,” a cold water extract that comes out a deep, beautiful blue color.
“There have been many books published on the psilocybin-active fungi; none has woven all these divergent threads together in the way that Psilocybin Mushrooms in Their Natural Habitats does,” McKenna wrote in the foreword. “It is simply the definitive work on the subject of psilocybin mushrooms—and is likely to remain so for decades.”
Mushroom enthusiasts, plant people, and the average forager will find valuable information in this considerable text from America’s favorite mycologist. The book is available for pre-order now and releases on June 10 in most places books are sold.
