Laetiporus portentosus

Beech whiskers

A white, spongy polypore of Australia, New Zealand and southern South America that grows high on eucalypts, southern beech and hutu. It decays heartwood and was used for centuries as slow-smouldering tinder. It is not known in cultivation, so home growing is experimental.

Laetiporus portentosus — Photo: claire, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

At home, aim for

Day Cool-growingTargets in Plantistry

Night Close to the dayTargets in Plantistry

Humidity Very humid airBand in Plantistry

Light Dappled lightDLI and PPFD in Plantistry

No rest period

Where it grows wild

Bracket-like masses 10–30 cm across, usually several metres up trunks of living or dead Eucalyptus, Nothofagus and Ascarina lucida; a strong decayer of heartwood.

Recorded at 30–1400 m, median 349 m (41 records).

AustraliaNew ZealandSouthern South America

🔒 Growing it like that

The wild conditions above, turned into targets for a shelf, a tent or a greenhouse. The full profile has:

✓ Day and night temperature targets, and the limits it tolerates

✓ Humidity band, and how to hold it

✓ Light as DLI and PPFD for a grow light

✓ Wet and dry seasons, and whether to rest it

✓ Substrate and airflow

✓ A step-by-step setup to grow it like the wild

Grow Laetiporus portentosus? Add it to a free garden and its full profile opens. Pro opens all 38,374 profiles in the library, plants and fungi.

Start free Sign in

More Laetiporus

Laetiporus sulphureus Laetiporus cremeiporus Laetiporus conifericola Laetiporus gilbertsonii Laetiporus montanus Laetiporus ailaoshanensis Laetiporus caribensis Laetiporus huroniensis Laetiporus zonatus Laetiporus dilatohyphus Laetiporus discolor Laetiporus flos-musae All 17 →

Profiles are drafts built from measured range and climate and from published sources; each section carries its own confidence in the app. Photo from Wikimedia Commons, used under its CC BY 4.0 licence, unmodified.