Have you ever wondered just what Lingzhi is? Is Lingzhi a medicine? Is it good for our bodies? Which is better, cultivated or wild Lingzhi?
Actually, it's not just drugs that have medicinal effects, foods do too. As for which kind of Lingzhi is best, in fact there are many different and be as useless as a piece of wood. No wvarieties of Lingzhi: some wild varieties may be in good quality, some may be ineffective, and some may even be toxic. What's more, Lingzhi that has not been harvested at the right time will toughen onder people question the benefits of poor-quality Lingzhi. Some Thoundsand Years Ling zhi actually has been recommend as poor ling zhi since the Ling Zhi structure has been woody and no treatment effect.
While research done in China and the West over thousands of years has affirmed the benefits of Lingzhi, it is no magic cure-all; certainly persons with acute conditions must seek medical treatment from a physician. But you will find that Lingzhi offers great benefits with regard to maintaining good health and preventing disorders.
An "Efficacious Medicine"
According to the famous Chinese medical classic Herbal Compendium of Shen Nong, Lingzhi (also known as Ganoderma, Reishi, or Reishi Mushroom) is one of the most esteemed and potent herbal medicines. Considered an efficacious "divine" medicine used for health maintenance, Lingzhi is entirely without side effects even when taken in large amounts over long periods of time. It is able to regulate and normalize a person's physical constitution, and is amazingly effective against many hard-to-cure conditions.
Lingzhi belongs to the genus Ganoderma, which is distinguished by an egg-like form, yellowish-brown color, and a basidiospore with a two-layer wall. The various species in the Ganoderma are identified by the external form and internal structure of their fruiting bodies. Because the fruiting bodies have evolved to perform reproductive functions as the fungi adapted to different kinds of environment, the fruiting bodies of different Lingzhi species have very different forms and internal structures.
Dissecting LingZhi
The fruiting body of Lingzhi (Ganoderma) is generally annual and consists of a cap and a stalk.
The cap is semicircular or shaped like a kidney or seashell. The surface features concentric rings or radiating longitudinal lines. Apart from G. applanatum, most possess a glossy varnished-looking surface that is whitish-gray, yellowish-brown, reddish-violet, or reddish-black in color. The cap may sometimes have patches of different colors reflecting different states of maturity. Because Lingzhi ordinarily grows from the lower rim of the cap, the cap is typically palest at the rim and grows darker towards the interior.
The stalk also possesses a glossy varnished-looking surface with colors similar to or darker than those of the cap. In addition, in some species, such as G. applanatum and G. fornicatum, the fruiting body is directly attached to the host, and the stalk is reduced or absent. The internal structure of the Lingzhi fruiting body is an important means of identifying different species. A section of the cap shows three obvious layers: From the top to the bottom these are the upper crust, the central context layer, and the lower tubular layer.
The color and microscopic structure of the fungal flesh, the length and color of the tubular layer, and the size, shape, and density of the tubule openings are important indicators distinguishing different species. There are currently approximately 150~200 reliably attested Ganoderma species with specimen records.
Shuang Hor
