Chaga

People have become more and more aware of Chaga also in this country recently. It is a wood-rotting mushroom known for its high content of bioactive substances, the enzyme superoxide dismutase being the best known among them. The name of Chaga stems from Russia where it occurs most frequently, having been an integral part of the natural medicine of local population since the old days. It grows mostly in Siberia and is therefore also called the Siberian Chaga. It constitutes a specific growth stage of the Clinker Polypore (Inonotus obliquus) during which no spores are generated. It grows on birch trunks (mostly in the Siberian zone) and forms a big spherical black body with a characteristic surface and interior (gold-rust) structure. The Chaga is a wood-decaying non-green organism which draws all of its active substance from birch trees in which they are contained naturally. Thus, the mushroom has developed into a medium between the tree and out world. Figuratively, it is a bridge between the tree and us and, at the same time, a natural strength provider.