While Lion’s Mane kits are relatively easy to fruit, getting the perfect white spiny fruit body can be more challenging. They are a bit “sensitive”. When conditions are just right, your Lion’s Mane will form one or several white balls that grow in size, and at the final stage dangling spines will form. If, instead of a nice white “pompom”, your Lion’s Mane branches like a coral or takes on an alien form, these deformed shapes indicate a build up of CO2 produced by the fungus. It’s probably too late to fix the issue for this mushroom, so harvest and enjoy, then plan to provide more fresh air exchange while growing your second crop. You can do so by poking more air holes in your humidity tent, propping up the tent bottom, or even providing a fan. To compensate for bringing in more dry air, you will also need to mist more to maintain the high humidity. A pinkish hue is very normal for young Lion’s Mane, and not at all a concern. As your mushroom matures, you may find they turn a yellow or brown hue before the spines elongate. This discolouration can be caused by misting water directly onto the Lion’s Mane mushroom, or it can be caused by air currents that dry it out. Lion’s Mane with some discolouration are still good to cook and eat, as long as they don’t have mushy brown rotting sections!