Meet The Fungi Foundry
Our story
The Fungi Foundry began as a hobby and passion project — a place to document experiments and learning through the YouTube channel, The Fungi Files.
What started as simple curiosity grew into a deep fascination with fungal biology, sustainable practices, and the potential for fungi to heal ecosystems.
Over time, that journey evolved into something more.
Founded in 2025, Fungi Foundry now provides lab-forged liquid cultures, eco-conscious cultivation tools, and educational resources to support growers of all levels - from kitchen cultivators to commercial farms.
At the core of everything we do is a commitment to quality, transparency, and sustainability - offering reliable genetics, reusable tools, and cultivation practices that respect fungi's vital role as nature's recyclers and healers.
We believe how we grow mushrooms should reflect their role in the world:
Resilient. Regenerative. Responsible.
Our Mission:
At the Fungi Foundry, our mission is simple but ambitious:
To explore the boundaries of indoor mushroom cultivation, empower sustainable growers, and uncover the hidden power of symbiosis.
While much of the mushroom industry focuses on fruiting fast and selling more, we’re taking a different path —
chasing the harder challenges of cultivating symbiotic fungi like Amanita muscaria, Boletus edulis, Morchella spp., and beyond.
These fungi:
Clean soils and waterways
Strengthen plants through nutrient exchange
Contribute vital compounds to medicine, agriculture, and industry
Sustain entire ecosystems through unseen partnerships
Yet they remain out of reach for most traditional cultivation methods.
We believe the future of sustainable agriculture, medicine, and ecological restoration lies in learning to grow with fungi — not against them.
Cultivating mycorrhizal fungi remains a cutting-edge challenge, and we view it as a long-term experimental frontier — one we are committed to advancing.
Our Philosophy: Growing Together
Curiosity and Learning
We are always exploring, experimenting, and sharing. Growth through knowledge - not just cultivation - is at the heart of our work.
Sustainability in Practice
Fungi thrive through balance - and so should we.
We minimize plastic use, focus on reusable cultivation supplies, and advocate for responsible, self-sufficient growing practices.
Empowerment Through Access
We believe that anyone, anywhere, should have access to clean cultures, reliable information, and the ability to grow their own food and medicine sustainably.
At Fungi Foundry, we’re not just cultivating mushrooms —
We’re cultivating a movement rooted in sustainability, science, and shared curiosity.
Our Genetics Program: Science in Action
Strain development at Fungi Foundry is not about mass production.
It’s about patient observation, deliberate selection, and a deep respect for the evolutionary potential of fungi.
Each liquid culture we offer is the product of careful isolation, hands-on cultivation, and generational refinement — developed through ongoing research and performance testing.
How We Develop Strains:
Spore Germination
We begin at the source: fresh spores, germinated on low-nutrient agar.
Spore germination allows us to start from entirely new, raw genetic material — unlocking natural diversity and reshuffling traits that cloning cannot achieve.
Monokaryon Isolation
From germination plates, we isolate individual monokaryons - fungal colonies containing only half the genetic material needed for full development.
Isolating monokaryons provides access to raw, untapped genetic diversity and prepares the foundation for new genetic combinations.
Crossing and Dikaryon Formation
Genetically distinct monokaryons are carefully paired.
If compatible, they merge into a new dikaryon - an organism with a dual-nuclei structure and a unique genetic makeup, opening the door to new traits and phenotypes.
Fruiting and Performance Trials
New dikaryotic strains are fruited across diverse substrates and environmental conditions.
We evaluate colonization speed, fruiting consistency, contamination resilience, morphology, and yield — ensuring performance across real-world cultivation scenarios.
Spore Collection and Advanced Crosses
After fruiting, we collect spores from superior performers and perform selective breeding crosses.
This allows us to reinforce desirable traits such as fast colonization, environmental resilience, or unique morphology — while unlocking new phenological expressions over successive generations.
Refinement and Stabilization
This cycle - germination, isolation, crossing, fruiting, and selection - is repeated across many generations.
Through this process, we stabilize high-performing traits, ensuring every strain we offer is vigorous, consistent, and ready to thrive.
Why it Matters
Strain development is slow by design.
It can take months to years before a strain is fully stabilized and ready for naming and release.
But each liquid culture we produce has been shaped by intentional breeding and real-world trials - not simply cloned and expanded.
By isolating monokaryons, crossing dikaryons, fruiting, and refining over generations, we unlock hidden genetic potential —
pushing mushroom cultivation forward while respecting the natural intelligence of fungi.
When you work with Fungi Foundry genetics, you are not just growing mushrooms.
You are growing innovation, sustainability, and resilience - one strain, one fruiting body, one generation at a time.
Looking ahead, we are building toward offering custom strains, expanding sustainable cultivation supplies, and growing into a larger educational and research hub — all rooted in the belief that fungi are partners in building a better world.
Why We Share It
We believe mycology belongs to the world — not hidden behind corporate gates or paywalls.
By openly sharing our research, failures, successes, and discoveries, we hope to:
Inspire new cultivators
Advance sustainable practices
Preserve fungal biodiversity
Heal ecosystems - one grower at a time
This isn't just a project.
It's a partnership between fungi, growers, and the future.
🌱 Welcome to the journey.
A journey to cultivate the uncultivable — and unlock the hidden power of symbiosis.
A belief that mushrooms can change the world, and that discovery belongs to everyone.
