Although fungi are not strictly plants, they so rarely get any publicity that they deserve an article to themselves, even under the Plantwatch label. This has been a good autumn for fly agaric, the mushrooms with beautiful scarlet caps splashed with splodges of white. They also contain powerful, mind-bending chemicals, muscimol and ibotenic acid, producing dreamy feelings, euphoria and a sense of shrinking or growing huge, made famous for their appearance in Alice in Wonderland.
Fly agaric (Amanita muscaria) may also have been an inspiration for Father Christmas in his red and white tunic, flying through the sky in his sleigh with magic reindeer. Less inviting, the mushrooms can also cause muscle spasms and comas.
There are many other hallucinogenic fungi, and especially psilocybin, best known as magic mushrooms. They give hallucinations, feelings of euphoria and even a spiritual element, although the drawbacks can be paranoia and anxiety. But interesting research has tested psilocybin for treating mental disorders, such as depression, obsessive compulsive disorder, alcohol dependence and giving up smoking.
There are nearly 200 species of psilocybin mushrooms, but why the fungus evolved substances with such mind-bending powers in the first place is still uncertain. It may be a defence against insects, or possibly the complete opposite – a way of attracting some insects (PDF) to spread the fungal spores. But why many other types of mushrooms contain psychedelic chemicals remains a mystery.
•This article was amended on 21 November 2018 to add a note that fungi are not strictly plants.
