TL;DR: Mushrooms and plants share a 460-million-year-old symbiosis called mycorrhizal association. Fungi extend the surface area for nutrient and water uptake through underground mycelium networks, and plants supply carbohydrates from photosynthesis in return. Roughly 90% of all vascular plants depend on this partnership. Verdoie hand-harvests every mushroom used in Le Shroom Stack™ from an eco-vertical farm in France, supporting soil restoration through regenerative cultivation.
What is a mycorrhizal association?
Mycorrhizal association is the symbiotic relationship between fungi and plants. The earliest fossil evidence of these partnerships dates back roughly 460 million years, which means fungi have been quietly enabling global plant distribution since long before forests existed in their modern form.
It works through mycelium, thread-like fungal filaments that form an underground network. The network dramatically increases the surface area available for plants to absorb nitrogen, phosphorus, and water. In exchange, plants share the sugars they make through photosynthesis.
How widespread is this partnership?
According to the New York Botanical Garden's International Plant Science Center, approximately 90% of all vascular land plants live in some association with mycorrhizal fungi.
That number reframes how we think about plants. The forests, grasslands, and farms we see above ground exist because of the fungal networks below them.
Why are fungi so important for biodiversity?
Mycorrhizal relationships let plants thrive, which in turn provides habitats and food for diverse organisms. Beyond that, fungi are decomposers: they break down complex matter and recycle nutrients back into the soil, increasing availability for everything else that grows there.
Healthy fungal networks improve soil structure, increase water retention, and maintain the conditions other organisms need. Without them, soils degrade quickly.
How does Verdoie protect this underground ecosystem?
Verdoie sources the organic mushrooms used in Le Shroom Stack™ through soilless cultivation at our eco-vertical farm in France. By using a regenerative cultivation method that doesn't require tillage of farmland, we contribute to the active restoration of fertile soil and free agricultural land for other uses.
Mushrooms also use the least land, least water, and emit the least CO2 of any agricultural crop on Earth. Building skincare around them is one of the lowest-impact ways to source ingredients at scale.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Are mushrooms plants?
A: No. Mushrooms belong to the fungi kingdom, separate from plants, animals, and bacteria. Unlike plants, fungi don't photosynthesize. They absorb nutrients by breaking down organic matter.
Q: Do mushrooms help plants grow?
A: Yes. Mycorrhizal fungi extend a plant's effective root system through their mycelium network, increasing access to water and nutrients (especially nitrogen and phosphorus) that are otherwise hard to absorb.
Q: Why is soil health relevant to skincare?
A: Skincare ingredients sourced from healthy, regenerative soil tend to be more nutrient-dense and have a smaller environmental footprint. Verdoie's eco-vertical mushroom farm is designed to actively restore soil rather than deplete it.
Q: Where are Verdoie's mushrooms grown?
A: At an eco-vertical farm in France, using soilless cultivation that supports biodiversity and regenerative agriculture principles. Every mushroom used in Le Shroom Stack™ is hand-harvested.
Author: Verdoie Team
Last updated: April 2026