September 9, 2026
Welcome to Cordyceps Fungi! Our goal is to build a knowledgeable, friendly, and useful community for people interested in mushrooms, mycology, cultivation, foraging, identification, medicinal fungi, photography, research, and everything in between. Whether you're a complete beginner or have decades of experience, you're welcome here. To keep the community useful and enjoyable for everyone, all members are expected to follow these rules. 🍄 1. Be Respectful Treat other members with respect, even when you disagree. Healthy debate and correcting misinformation are welcome. Personal attacks are not. Do not engage in: Harassment or bullying Name-calling or personal insults Threats or intimidation Hate speech or discriminatory attacks Deliberately provoking other members Repeatedly following another member around the forum to argue with or harass them Attack the argument, not the person. Disagreement is part of learning. Hostility doesn't need to be. 🌱 2. Beginners Are Welcome Everyone started somewhere. Do not ridicule someone because they ask a basic question, misidentify a mushroom, use the wrong terminology, or are new to cultivation or mycology. If someone is mistaken, explain why. We want Cordyceps Fungi to be a place where people are comfortable asking questions and learning. 🍄 3. Mushroom Identification — Safety Comes First Mushroom identification can have serious consequences. When asking for an identification, provide as much useful information as possible, including: Clear photographs Photos of the cap Underside/gills/pores Stem and base Approximate size Location or general region Habitat What it was growing on or near Spore print, when available Any noticeable bruising, staining, odor, or other characteristics Never consume a wild mushroom solely because someone online identified it from a photograph. Members offering identifications should clearly communicate uncertainty when they are not confident. Statements such as "probably edible" should never be treated as confirmation that something is safe to eat. When in doubt, do not consume it. ⚠️ 4. Medical & Health Information Discussions about medicinal mushrooms, supplements, traditional uses, research, and personal experiences are welcome. However, Cordyceps Fungi is not a substitute for professional medical care. Do not present unverified medical claims as established facts. Members should distinguish between: Personal experiences Traditional uses Preliminary research Established scientific evidence Do not tell someone to stop taking prescribed medication or disregard medical advice from a qualified healthcare professional. 🔬 5. Science, Evidence & Misinformation Mycology is an evolving field, and disagreement is perfectly acceptable. Whenever possible, support scientific or medical claims with reliable evidence. If you're sharing an opinion, theory, anecdote, or personal experience, make that clear. Members and moderators may challenge inaccurate information. Being corrected is not a personal attack. We would rather correct misinformation than allow something potentially dangerous to remain unchallenged. 🌲 6. Responsible Foraging Respect the environment and the laws governing the places where you forage. Members should: Obtain permission before entering private property Follow local collecting regulations Respect protected areas Avoid unnecessary habitat destruction Leave an area in good condition Avoid revealing sensitive locations when doing so could result in environmental damage or irresponsible harvesting Learn the rules where you live or forage. Regulations differ between locations. 🌱 7. Cultivation Discussions Discussion of mushroom cultivation is encouraged. Share your grows, techniques, successes, failures, contamination problems, equipment, experiments, and lessons learned. Constructive criticism is welcome. Remember that techniques that work for one species, climate, substrate, or grow environment may not work identically for someone else. When giving advice, explain your reasoning whenever possible. ⚖️ 8. Follow Applicable Laws Members are responsible for understanding and following the laws that apply to them. Do not use Cordyceps Fungi to arrange, facilitate, or promote illegal transactions or other unlawful activity. Laws involving mushroom species, cultivation, collection, possession, and sale can differ significantly depending on location. "Someone on the forum said it was legal" is not legal advice. 🚫 9. No Spam or Excessive Self-Promotion We want members who participate in the community—not accounts created solely to advertise. Do not: Repeatedly advertise products or services Post the same content across multiple categories Send unsolicited promotional private messages Post referral links purely for personal gain Create accounts primarily to drive traffic elsewhere Flood discussions with unrelated links Sharing a relevant website, video, business, research paper, product, or resource during a genuine discussion is fine when it contributes to the conversation. 💰 10. Buying, Selling & Trading Unless Cordyceps Fungi provides a specific marketplace area with separate rules, do not use ordinary discussion topics or private messages as an unauthorized marketplace. Never attempt to buy, sell, or trade prohibited or illegal substances through the community. If marketplace features are introduced later, separate marketplace rules may apply. 📸 11. Post Content You Have the Right to Share When uploading photographs, graphics, articles, or other material, make sure you have permission to share it. Your own mushroom photography is highly encouraged. If something belongs to another creator, give appropriate credit and link to the original source when possible rather than pretending the material is your own. 🔒 12. Respect Privacy Do not publicly post another person's private information without permission. This includes things such as: Home addresses Phone numbers Private email addresses Private conversations Financial information Personal identifying information Do not repost private messages publicly simply to embarrass another member. If a private message violates the rules, report the situation to the moderation team instead. 💬 13. Keep Discussions On Topic Post topics in the most appropriate category and try to keep conversations reasonably related to the original discussion. A little natural conversation is fine. Deliberately derailing threads, repeatedly posting unrelated material, or creating duplicate topics may result in posts being moved, locked, or removed. 📝 14. Use Clear, Useful Topic Titles Titles such as: "HELP!!!" or "WHAT IS THIS???" don't tell members very much. Instead, use descriptive titles such as: "Help identifying orange mushroom found on hardwood in Ohio" or "Lion's mane fruiting blocks developing yellow spots" Better titles make the forum easier to search and help you get better answers. 🖼️ 15. Graphic or Disturbing Content Do not post gratuitously graphic, violent, sexual, or otherwise inappropriate material. If an image is legitimately relevant to a scientific, medical, ecological, or identification discussion but could reasonably disturb people, provide appropriate context or a warning. Pornographic content is not permitted. 🤖 16. AI-Generated Content AI tools may be useful, but members are responsible for what they post. Do not flood the forum with automatically generated content. Do not present AI-generated mushroom identifications, scientific claims, citations, or medical information as verified facts without checking them. AI should never be treated as the final authority on whether a wild mushroom is safe to consume. 👤 17. One Person, One Community Identity Do not create additional accounts to: Evade moderation Manipulate discussions Artificially support your own arguments Harass another member Circumvent a suspension or removal Accounts created for ban or moderation evasion may also be removed. 🚩 18. Use the Report System If you see something that violates these rules, report it. Please don't turn a problematic post into a 30-message public argument. Reporting gives moderators an opportunity to review the situation and take appropriate action. Do not abuse the report system simply because you disagree with someone. 🛡️ 19. Moderators May Intervene Moderators are here to keep discussions productive and protect the community. Depending on the circumstances, moderators or administrators may: Edit or remove inappropriate content Remove replies Lock discussions Review reports Issue warnings Restrict participation Remove members from the community Moderation decisions should consider context, severity, history, and the safety of the community. Not every mistake requires the same response. 🚪 20. Serious Violations May Result in Immediate Removal Some behavior may warrant removal without multiple warnings, particularly serious cases involving: Credible threats Severe harassment Hate speech Scams or fraud Dangerous intentional misinformation Illegal activity conducted through the community Spam operations Ban evasion Deliberate attempts to harm the website or its members The administrator retains final authority over membership and community moderation. 🍄 Our Community Philosophy Share what you know. Ask about what you don't. Correct mistakes respectfully. Stay curious. Mycology has an incredible ability to bring together scientists, cultivators, photographers, foragers, researchers, hobbyists, and people who simply looked down on a hike one day and thought: "What the hell is that mushroom?" 😂🍄 That's exactly the kind of curiosity we want here. Help us build a community where knowledge is shared freely, beginners become experienced members, experienced members continue learning, and everyone can enjoy exploring the fungal world. Welcome to Cordyceps Fungi. 🍄 Learn. Share. Cultivate. Explore.