The Network That Connects: From Ancient Forests to Modern Farm 4.0 at Houby z Vršovic

Meet the Earth’s Hidden Giant

When most people think of the largest living thing on Earth, they picture a blue whale or a giant redwood. But here’s a fun fact: the real heavyweight is hiding beneath our feet. Deep in Oregon’s forests, a fungus called Armillaria ostoyae—nicknamed the “Humongous Fungus”—spreads across more than 9 square kilometers. It weighs an estimated 35,000 tons and could be over 8,000 years old. That’s older than most civilizations, quietly running its underground network while humans went about their business.

This fungus isn’t just a one-off marvel. Variants of honey mushrooms appear across Europe, thriving mostly on dead or weakened conifer trees, especially spruce. Yes, they can attack tree roots, but they’re also key players in forest ecology, breaking down wood and returning nutrients to the soil. In a way, they’re part villain, part superhero of the forest.

For the kitchen adventurer, a word of warning: honey mushrooms are edible, but only if cooked properly. Raw or undercooked, they can upset your stomach. Cook them well, though, and they’re surprisingly versatile and delicious—crispy, earthy, and full of flavor. We even have a recipe to get you started: Honey Mushrooms: How to Cook Them.

At Bohemian Fungi, this quiet giant inspires our approach. Nature has been running the ultimate efficiency experiment for millennia, and we take cues from it. Our Farm 4.0 merges cutting-edge technology with the wisdom of the forest to grow mushrooms sustainably, efficiently, and with a touch of magic—all right here in Prague.

If you want to know more about our Farm 4.0 read the following article :
The Network That Connects: Our Modern Farm 4.0 at Houby z Vršovic

And if you want to learn more on those surprising fungi you can check this out : Wikipedia