Albino Penis Envy (APE) is a variety of Penis Envy mushroom (PE) that lacks pigment. This ghostly white shroom shares PE’s same phallic shape but is less potent and cultivation tends to be more demanding.

In terms of growth habits, APE has a domed cap that’s minutely wider than the thick stem. This strain doesn’t usually sporulate due to the veil that rarely separates from the underside of the cap. These features give many of the strains in the Penis Envy family an unusual penis look.

Although the APE strain is just as potent as Penis Envy and can give good yields over several prolific flushes, it’s much harder to grow. Albino Penis Envy is prone to aborts, is slower to colonize, and is far more susceptible to mold growth.

This strain is definitely not one to be approached by the beginner cultivator. Instead, it’s more suited for the experienced grower that wants a challenge. Provided the cultivator gets through the first flush, the three to four following flushes can be extremely fruitful — producing large, highly-potent albino shrooms.

Albino Penis Envy Magic Mushrooms Specs

History of the Albino Penis Envy Magic Mushrooms Strain

Albino Penis Envy was supposedly created by the team at Sporeworks. They isolated and stabilized an albino mutation until reliable spore samples were produced. The strain is now available worldwide from a variety of different spore vendors.

Albino Penis Envy’s history is pretty dull and rather short, but the history of its mother strain Penis Envy is anything but dull…

The original Penis Envy strain, at least its lost wild relative, was part of the McKenna brother’s stock. Supposedly, Dennis and Terence McKenna discovered it in the early 1970s when they were exploring the Amazon in search of psychedelic plants and fungi.

The Penis Envy strain we know today is likely very different from the original, which would not survive in the wild because it doesn’t naturally sporulate. How did it morph into something so different?

It’s widely believed that Steven Pollack received a sample of the original Penis Envy spores from the McKenna stock and isolated the strain that we know. However, rumors say he was mysteriously murdered, and the PE mushroom was clutched in the hand of his lifeless body when the police arrived on the scene.

At least, that was the story for a long time. In 2009, Vice published an article written by Hamilton Morris, who explained this story in-depth. Ten years later, the psychedelic journalist revisited the article in an interview with Mr. Richard Guiterrez.

Hamilton’s 2009 article said Rich Gutierrez was mysteriously sent a spore print of the strain after Steven Pollock was murdered. However, Rich explained in the interview that this was untrue, and Pollock didn’t even know where he lived.

Gutierrez claimed to be PE’s creator and provided some pretty solid evidence in the interview. He said it did originate from McKenna’s Amazon stock, but he genetically manipulated the strain to create Penis Envy as it is today.

Rich provided Hamilton with one of the books he wrote in 1976 (five years before Pollock’s mysterious death), showing the first pictures of what was undoubtedly the Penis Envy strain, although it wasn’t named at this time. This basically proves that Rich created the Penis Envy strain, or at the very least proves it wasn’t created by Steven Pollock.

Albino Penis Envy Magic Mushrooms Potency & Psilocybin Content

This popular mushroom is certainly stronger than the average Psilocybe cubensis, but it’s not nearly as potent as it’s parent, the original Penis Envy mushroom.

For quantitative information on magic mushroom strain potencies, we turn to events like the Psilocybin Cup — which allow entrants to submit samples for testing. The samples are sent through high-performance chromatography to rank the potency of psilocybin, psilocin, and various other psychoactive tryptamines.

So far, APE has been entered in this competition 32 times.

Out of all these tests, the average psilocybin content was found to be around 0.93%. The average psilocin was 0.14%. And the average total tryptamine levels were 1.10%.

The highest concentration recorded was 2.34% in a sample submitted by Dr. Greythumb in spring 2021.

Albino Penis Envy is reliably strong, but not the strongest. It produces a strong body high with waves of euphoric energy and intense closed- and open-eye visuals. This strain is definitely for those who are experienced with psychedelics. It’s not recommended for first-time trippers or beginner growers.

Albino Penis Envy Variations & Genetic Relatives

Albino Penis Envy is a non-pigmented variant of the original Penis Envy strain. Penis Envy genetics are extremely popular, and several variations exist, including:

• Penis Envy (original)
• Penis Envy #6
• Penis Envy Uncut
• Old Dirty Penis Envy
• Tidal Wave
• Melmac
• Trans Envy
• Trinity
• White Rabbit

Where to Buy Albino Penis Envy Spores

Albino Penis Envy is almost as popular as the original Penis Envy strain. Its genetics are available from several different spore vendors that ship to the United States, Canada, and most of Europe.

If you live in Canada, you’ll find Albino Penis Envy Spores available from Sporeworks or Premium Spores. Spore samples come in the form of spore-filled syringes.

If you’re in the United States, you can buy Albino Penis Envy spore-filled syringes from Sporeworks because they ship to Canada and the US.

For those of you in Europe, you’re out of luck. We have yet to find a European vendor that stocks these genetics, but Sporeworks will ship to the UK and mainland Europe. However, shipping can take over six weeks, and you run the risk of the package becoming damaged or lost.

How to Grow Albino Penis Envy Mushrooms

The original Penis Envy strain is surprisingly easy to cultivate. Albino Penis Envy is also relatively easy, but there are some challenges associated with growing it since it’s an albino variety.

APE is very prone to aborts and early pinners. Unfortunately, these are difficult to get around because they’re part of the strain’s nature, but there are ways to minimize the chances.

During the incubation phase, keep the inoculated jars in complete darkness until the mycelium has completely colonized the substrate. This will help reduce the chances of early pinning and allow the mycelium to mature fully without disturbance before fruiting.

You can grow this strain using the simple PF-Tek method — an easy method suitable for cultivators of all levels, including absolute beginners. You can read our guide on how to grow magic mushrooms, but for now, we’ll give you a brief rundown.

PF-Tek requires you to inject sterile substrate-filled jars with spores. Rye grain, bird seed, or a mix of high mountain compost and vermiculite are the best substrates for Albino Penis Envy. Leave the inoculated jars in a dark, warm place until the spores develop into mycelium and colonize the substrate in its entirety.

After two or three weeks of incubation, the jars should be ready to fruit. Open the jars and carefully tip the mycelium cakes out into a fruiting chamber — essentially a box with a layer of substrate on the bottom.

Control the moisture levels inside the fruiting chamber with a misting spray bottle and adjust the temperature by using a heat mat. The humidity should be kept high, and the temperature should be between 23-28 degrees ℃ (73-82 degrees℉).

You should begin to see small mushrooms form after only a few days. You’ll need to harvest the shrooms as they mature by delicately picking them off the mycelium cakes. You should be able to harvest several mushrooms over the following weeks.

Eventually, the mycelium cakes will succumb to mold, and they’ll stop producing mushrooms.