Golden Teacher Mushrooms: The Complete Strain Guide

Golden Teacher is one strain in the species, Psilocybe cubensis, which is the most widely studied and cultivated magic mushroom species worldwide. Because Psilocybe cubensis is a species classification, all cubensis mushrooms have the same higher order classifications, like Genus, Family, Order, Class, and Division. What sets different strains of cubensis apart is a miniscule fraction of their genetics. This tiny fraction is mostly responsible for minor variations in phenotype (meaning observable traits) like color and size. Although these differences seem major because they’re the main ones we can see, these are actually extremely minor differences genetically speaking, and the vast majority of genetic material stays the same across all strains of Psilocybe cubensis species.  .

Golden teacher’s caps change throughout different stages of fruiting. When fruits are young, the caps are typically broad and convex, but as the mushroom matures, the caps flatten and even develop a slight depression in the middle. The caps range in diameter from 40-80 mm, but can grow even larger depending on environmental conditions. The color can range from a vivid golden yellow, to pale caramel or cream colored, with more pigmentation at the center of each cap. The caps are smooth, with relatively uniform and saturated coloration compared to other cubensis varieties which often show more speckled or olive-toned traits. 

Golden Teacher’s stems are relatively robust, reaching between 10 and 20 mm in diameter, thickening towards the base of the mushroom. Their length can vary greatly; it’s typical to see stems anywhere from 40 to 150 mm. Stems are typically white to off-white, so the majority of the strain’s pigmentation can be seen in its caps rather than its stems. Like all magic mushrooms, the flesh bruises to a blue-green color when handled, due to the oxidation of psilocin. This blue-green color is a reliable signal of psilocybin related alkaloids in species like Psilocybe cubensis. 

This strain features close-set gills, which are pale grey while the fruit is young, but gradually darken to deep purple or black as spores mature and drop. The gill shape can be adnate to adnexed, meaning they can be broadly attached to the stem, or that they narrow before reaching the stem. Golden Teacher also has a partial veil which covers the gills before full maturity. As the mushroom grows, the veil breaks, and remains on the stem, forming a “skirt-like” structure called an annulus. 

Golden Teacher produces dark purple and brown spores in heavy, dense deposits that are easy to collect as spore prints. The strain’s reliable spore production makes it one of the best strains for making spore prints.

Under the microscope, Psilocybe cubensis spores, including Golden Teacher spores, are ellipsoid to subellipsoid in shape, meaning they are oval-shaped, but vary a bit in terms of their length to width ratio. They typically measure around 11.5–17 × 8–11 micrometres. Psilocybe cubensis spores have thick, smooth walls, and when clustered together, spore deposits will look dark purple or brown. Their basidia usually produce four spores each, with each spore bearing half of the genetic material needed to create a new mushroom. 

No magic mushroom spores contain psilocybin. Psilocybin is produced when a spore grows into a mushroom. In terms of potency, Inoculate The World’s Golden Teacher spores themselves contain no psilocybin, or other active compounds that mushroom fruiting bodies contain. The main source in most mushroom genetics products is the mushroom spore, which is well known not to contain any active compounds. This is why mushroom spores are legal for microscopy and research purposes in the United States. These compounds, such as psilocybin, are only found in the later stages of some species’ life cycles, such as a Psilocybe cubensis mushroom’s fruiting stage. 

Many genetics companies encounter gray areas with liquid cultures containing active compounds, but you can rest assured that all of our products, including isolated syringes (comparable to liquid cultures), have none of these active compounds inside the syringe. Our spore syringes are produced with special ingredients to prevent these compounds from forming inside the liquid itself, and we thoroughly test our products to verify this. Our recent certificate of analysis from Tryptomics confirms it.

This is the standard we hold all of our products to. Across the board, all of our isolated syringes test at zero for psilocybin, psilocin, and other psychoactive compounds found in the fruiting bodies of mushrooms.

Readers can explore more on Golden Teacher with Inoculate The World’s educational resources. A general history of mushroom spores compliments a deeper investigation on Golden Teacher’s origins and history. You can also explore why Golden Teacher became so popular with our brief guide to the Golden Teacher mushroom’s history. 

Golden Teacher is a strain (sometimes called a variety or cultivar) of Psilocybe cubensis, the most widely cultivated and studied psilocybin mushroom species. The strain is named for its gold-capped fruiting bodies, and it has become well- known as one of the most accessible and consistent cubensis strains available. Researchers appreciate its pleasant phenotype, from its gold-colored caps to its large size, as well as its reliable spore production, which makes it useful for all levels of microscopy research. 

Golden Teacher produces fairly typical looking Psilocybe cubensis mushrooms. The strain produces broad, convex (rounded) caps ranging from 40–80mm in diameter, with a distinctive gold or caramel color that is more uniform and saturated than most other cubensis strains. The stem is thick and paler than the cap (typically white or off-white), and the flesh bruises blue-green when handled. The spore print is dark purple or brown, and often looks black depending on how you look at it. 

The two most well-known Golden Teacher variants are Leucistic Golden Teacher (LGT) and White Golden Teacher. LGT is leucistic, meaning it has reduced pigmentation, and produces pale fruiting bodies while still creating a standard dark spore print. White Golden Teacher is a further-selected strain with an almost complete loss of pigmentation on its cap. Both are available from Inoculate the World.

Because spores do not contain psilocybin, magic mushroom spores are legal to purchase in most U.S. states. Researchers can legally buy and own these spores for microscopy and research purposes, because the spores themselves do not contain active compounds. Spores are illegal in a few US states, like Georgia, and Idaho, and cultivation is illegal in most U.S. states. Always verify your local laws before purchasing.

A spore syringe contains spores suspended in sterilized water. Even if all the spores in a syringe come from a single mushroom spore print, that syringe still has the potential for genetic variability. Each spore produced by a single mushroom is genetically unique, and contains half the genetic material needed to make a new mushroom. This means that formats like spore syringes contain the genetic variability of the thousands of spores and their thousands of potential combinations.