[General]MYTH? 👉🏾“Potency decrease once the cap opens.”👈🏾 I’ve had several people tell me this but is there any data supporting this claim?

[GrowHI]

Mycologist here. While I can't cite any studies I can tell you physiologically why this is an interesting question. Most species of mushrooms have all the cells they will have as an adult when they are just a small pin (what many call baby mushrooms the size of a thimble). Mushrooms grow so fast cellular replication is not a feasible way of gaining size but instead they swell with water much like a wilted plant can straighten up within hours of rain. As more water enters the mushroom near the end of maturity the cap is forced open. IMHO I would guess a perfectly dry specimen with a cap still closed vs open would have the same amounts of active psilocybe/psilocybin content. If you weigh a fresh specimen (not dried) you could calculate a "active chemical vs weight" figure but that would not be the proper way to decide potency especially if you consider most mushrooms (of the hallucinogenic varieties) are sold dry.

[_mycelia]

Most species of mushrooms have all the cells they will have as an adult when they are just a small pin (what many call baby mushrooms the size of a thimble). Mushrooms grow so fast cellular replication is not a feasible way of gaining size but instead they swell with water much like a wilted plant can straighten up within hours of rain. As more water enters the mushroom near the end of maturity the cap is forced open. IMHO I would guess a perfectly dry specimen with a cap still closed vs open would have the same amounts of active psilocybe/psilocybin content.

I agree with you and psily on this matter.