Fungal life cycle

The sequence of growth, reproduction, and spore formation in fungi. It commonly alternates between filamentous growth and stages that produce or disperse spores.

Hypha: A threadlike fungal filament that grows at its tip and forms the body of many fungi. Hyphae extend and branch to build the growing fungal body.
Spore: A reproductive or dispersal cell that can develop into a new organism without fusion with another cell. Fungal cycles use spores to disperse and begin new growth.
Mushroom cultivation: The controlled production of edible or medicinal mushrooms from fungal spawn and a suitable substrate. Cultivators manage mycelial growth and fruiting conditions to trigger harvestable structures.
Asexual reproduction: Reproduction that produces offspring without the fusion of gametes or nuclei from two parents. It can rapidly produce fungal spores without the mating stages of a sexual cycle.
Mycelium: A network of fungal hyphae that absorbs nutrients and can spread through a substrate. This interconnected growth phase is the main feeding stage in many fungal cycles.
Germination: The resumption of growth by a dormant propagule, such as a spore, under suitable conditions. A fungal spore germinates into a growing cell or hypha.
Fungal infection: An invasion of host tissue by a fungus that causes disease or tissue damage. Infection often depends on spores germinating and hyphae entering or spreading through a host.
Sexual reproduction: Reproduction involving genetic recombination through the fusion of cells or nuclei. Its plasmogamy, karyogamy, and meiosis contrast with direct asexual spore production.
Plasmogamy: The fusion of cytoplasm between compatible fungal cells, without immediate fusion of their nuclei. It begins the sexual cycle and can create cells containing two genetically distinct nuclei.
Fruiting body: A multicellular fungal structure that produces or supports spore-producing tissues. It is the visible reproductive structure in many mushrooms and other fungi.

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