ScienceA rotten apple and a netizen-researcher collaboration produce a super mushroom

A resident in Zhejiang discovered an unusually rare Schizophyllum commune growing on a rotten apple in 2024 and sent the sample to researchers at the Kunming Institute of Botany. After eight generations of selective breeding and crossbreeding with space-bred strains from Shenzhou-12, the team developed the eighth-generation “king fruit mushroom,” which has few spores, a crisp sweet taste and a 15-to-20-day growth cycle. It is now being trial-grown and sold on a small scale in Yunnan.

scientific researchfungal breedingcitizen scienceking fruit mushroom

CCGTN★★☆☆☆2026-08-15 12:29Original