KB News Desk
A giant mushroom described as a globally rare species has been found for the 13th consecutive year at a farm near Mount Jiri in southwestern South Korea, local officials said Thursday.
The white, ball-shaped mushroom, known in Korean as daenggual, was discovered recently by 63-year-old farmer Ju Ji-hwan at his black raspberry farm in Sannae-myeon, Namwon, North Jeolla Province, according to the city government.
The mushroom typically measures about 30 centimeters in diameter and has a white surface that later begins to turn light brown.
The site was previously used as an apple orchard before being converted into a black raspberry farm. Two of the mushrooms were first found there in 2014, and they have appeared every year since.
Only two or three were typically found each year at first, but the number has recently increased to between five and eight annually, the city said.
The mushrooms have also been found for more than a decade at an apple orchard in nearby Hwasin village, at the foot of Mount Jiri.
Experts believe fungal mycelium remains in the soil and produces mushrooms each summer when temperature, moisture and other growing conditions are favorable.
“The recent monsoon rains caused the mushroom to grow rapidly in just a few days,” Ju said. “They usually begin appearing from late July to early August, so I expect several more to emerge.”
The mushroom grows during summer and fall in organic-rich areas such as bamboo groves, grasslands and mixed forests. It is known for its large size and rapid growth and has traditionally been associated with hemostatic and detoxifying properties.
