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Richard Walker

"Turkey Tail"

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We found this striking Turkey Tail fungus Trametes versicolor growing on a dead log in our garden.


From Wikipedia, it is found world-wide and lives by digesting lignin, a key structural component in plants= tissues. The fungus has been used in traditional Chinese medicine and a range of beneficial properties have also been claimed for it in the setting of conventional medicine. For a summary see this article. I haven't read enough to assess how strong the evidence is, and I think opinion is probably divided.

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