Article Archive
Harvard Forest Walk - Sunday, July 25th
Jul 28, 2010
About fifteen members gathered at the Fisher Museum at Harvard Forest (Petersham, MA) on a beautiful, mild day. Thanks to everyone who participated and helped to make it a successful day.
Mushroom Foray to Argentina
Jul 28, 2010
A little further out, early November to be precise, Fungi magazine embarks on it's first international exotic foray to...Argentina...during morel season (yes! in November!). About half the slots are already filled but there's still room on this rather affordable one week trip.
30th Telluride Mushroom Festival
Jul 28, 2010
Our friends at Fungi Magazine are sponsoring the 30th Telluride Mushroom Festival August 26th through the 29th.
http://www.shroomfest.com
Daniels Farm Walk
Jul 21, 2010
The BMC held a public walk at the Daniels Farm in Blackstone, MA on Sunday July 18th. About 20-30 people attended and there were many new faces. The weather was beautiful and warm. Coming out of a two week drought, there wasn't a lot of large fructifications, but there was enough to find and study. A few interesting and beautiful specimens included Lactarius volemus, Omphalotus olearius, Tapinella atrotomentosa, Xerula furfuracea, Agaricus campestris, Amanita volvata, and a Coprinus fungi on horse dung.
Many thanks to the great folks at Daniels farm for hosting us and our own ID committee chair George Davis for spearheading the ID session and table talk. Finally, thanks to all those enthusiastic 'shroomers who made the event a real success!
New Walk at Harvard Forest
Jul 19, 2010
New Walk at Harvard Forest, Petersham, MA
Date: Sunday, July 25. 10:30am - 2pm
Join us this Sunday for a Walk
Jul 12, 2010
The BMC will be gathering for a walk this Sunday, July 18, at beautiful, historic Daniels Farm in Blackstone, MA.
We'll be meeting at 10:30am in front of the big red barn at 286 Mendon St., Blackstone, MA
Morganella pyriformis, formerly Lycoperdon
Cornell Mushroom Blog
Apr 28, 2010
Just came across this wonderful blog from Kathie Hodge, mycology professor, and her colleagues in Cornell's Department of Plant Pathology.
The blog is aimed at amateur enthusiasts, with excellent articles on the weird, the wonderful, the edible and the not.
Check it out: http://blog.mycology.cornell.edu/
While we're on the topic of blogs...there's also MykoWeb from Michael Wood (http://www.mykoweb.com/blog/) and -- not really a blog, but too wonderful to omit -- Tom Volk's Fungi, a rich website: http://botit.botany.wisc.edu/toms_fungi/
What's your favorite mushroom blog or site? Let us know and we'll feature it.
Lead & Arsenic in Morels
Mar 19, 2010
BMC members Elinoar Shavit and Efrat Shavit have just published a paper, “Lead and Arsenic in Morchella esculenta fruitbodies Collected in Lead arsenate Contaminated Apple Orchards in the Northeastern United States – a Preliminary Study” (http://www.fungimag.com/winter-2010-articles/shavit-morels.pdf) in the latest issue of the journal Fungi (http://www.fungimag.com). The paper is based on Elinoar’s research funded in part by the BMC and 4 other mycological clubs in the Northeast.
This study seeks to answer questions raised in last winter’s edition of Fungi, in the article "Arsenic in Morels: Morels Collected in New Jersey Apple Orchards Blamed for Arsenic Poisoning" (http://www.fungimag.com/winter-08-articles/Rev_Medicinal.pdf): Do morels collected in Northeastern apple orchards concentrate arsenic and lead from their habitats, and if so, do they concentrate these heavy metals at levels that may pose health risks to people who consume them?
Shavit’s study investigates the relationship between the levels of lead and arsenic found in the morels and in the soil from which they grow, and discusses the toxicological implications of these findings.
BMC members look forward to hearing Elinoar Shavit's talk, entitled “Stories of Morel Mania: The Lore and Science of the Hunt for the Aristocrat of Mushrooms, and What We Should Keep in Mind before Consuming It,” on April 5.
At work in the kitchen
Winter Program Highlights
Mar 18, 2010
About 20 of us gathered in the teaching kitchen at the Cambridge Center for Adult Education on Saturday, January 16th for Cooking Mushrooms with Lisa Plato. Lisa was well prepared with detailed handouts of the recipes that we used.
We prepared Phyllo Beggars' Purses, Roasted Mushrooms, Mushroom Risotto, and Crepes with Wild Mushroom Duxelles. Lisa also prepared in advance a delicious Mushroom Soup and Mushroom stuffed avacadoes. We had wine and enjoyed the fruits of our labor in this four hour workshop.
Other events this past winter included our yard sale, a lively affair featuring loads of interesting mushroom related items brought by club members. A special thanks to Ben Maleson for all his contributions. We also screened "Mushrooms as Planetary Healers: From Toxic Waste Sites to Old Growth Forests," a lecture filmed in 2000 with Paul Stamets.
Foragers in the field
Chinatown Foray
Feb 21, 2010
A grand time was had by the 40 BMC members who gathered for the club’s Chinatown Foray in Boston. The object was to identify as many mushrooms as possible in Asian groceries and herbalist shops. We found lots! Dried, fresh, frozen and canned (see full story for a list of species).
After scouring the shops we all convened at a dim sum restaurant for a great feast that featured more mushrooms in dumplings and other dishes. As the picture attests, BMC folks know how to enjoy themselves!
Special thanks to Marcia and Susan for arranging the event, and to Ben Maleson for sharing his knowledge of both mushrooms and Chinese language and culture.
Polyporus squamosus, photograph copyright Stephen Gingold.
Winter Musings
Feb 13, 2010
On a cold winter's day it does our heart good to gaze upon a beautiful live mushroom, doesn't it? This photograph of the Dryad's Saddle (Polyporus squamosus) was taken by nature photographer Stephen Gingold and is used here with his permission. For more of his superb photographs, visit his website at http://www.stephengingoldphoto.com
To learn more about the Dryad's Saddle, check out Tom Volk's lively page about it: http://botit.botany.wisc.edu/toms_fungi/may2001.html.
Other good sites are Mushroomexpert.com: http://www.mushroomexpert.com/polyporus_squamosus.html
and
Roger's Mushrooms: http://www.rogersmushrooms.com (use the keyword search box).
Members: do you have mushroom photos to contribute? Let us know! And tell us when and in what environment you found them.
Learning Opportunity in Maine
Feb 08, 2010
Eagle Hill is a research and teaching institute on the coast of Maine near Acadia National Park that offers high-quality seminars in various aspects of natural history. For the past several years the BMC has offered a partial scholarship to a lucky BMC member.
The list of Eagle Hill seminars for 2010 is now available, including, among many others:
Mushrooms and Other Fungi
Aug 8 - 14. Rosalind Lowen and Dianna Smith
Lichens and Lichen Ecology
Aug 15 - 21. David Richardson and Mark Seaward
Toxic and Look-Alike Mushrooms and the Management of Mushroom Toxicities: A Seminar for Emergency Care and Health Care Providers
Sep 14 - 18. John Saucier, Tamas R. Peredy, and Lawrence Leonard
For more information, visit Eagle Hill's website: http://www.eaglehill.us/
Astraeus hygrometricus (earthstar). Photo by Bill Bynum.
NEMF 2009 a success
Oct 23, 2009
The Boston Mycological Club hosted the 2009 Northeast Mycological Federation (NEMF) Foray, bringing together 250 professional and amateur mycologists for 4 days of mushroom gathering, expert identification, photography, workshops, lectures by a faculty of experts from around the world, and fabulous feasting.
Our heartfelt thanks to the lead organizers, Tim Rose and Nina Roberts Rose, and their talented committee. Visit the NEMF website at http://www.nemf.org/files/2009/2009.html
Fall Beginner's Classes 2009
Sep 13, 2009
Mushroom Identification Classes
Three Monday evenings in the Harvard Herbaria Conference Room, 22 Divinity Ave, Cambridge, MA
September 14th, 21st & October 5th at 7:00pm
Curious about those mushrooms you see popping up in woods and yard? Wondering what all the fuss is about wild mushrooming? The Boston Mycological Club will present three lectures on mushroom identification this fall. The schedule is shown below. Please feel free to bring a few specimens of fungi that you’d like to show or identify as we may have time after the lectures to look them over.
The Wonderful World of Mushrooms……………………………………September 14
Past BMC President George Davis will give an overview of amateur mushrooming, and an introduction to the various forms of fungi found in our fields and forests.
How to Know the Gilled Mushrooms…………………………………….September 21
BMC member Noah Siegel will introduce you to all those mushrooms with gills. We will discuss their distinctive macroscopic features and how to identify them step-by-step to family, genus and finally to species.
Boletes and Polypores……………………………………………………. …...October 5
Notorious mushroom vendor and forager of fungi for local restaurants - Ben Maleson, will present a lecture on boletes and polypores as well as a few other interesting fungi, with a focus on edible, potentially edible, and poisonous species. Ben promises an exciting and graphic tale of severe Bolete poisoning from his own personal experience (what they mean by "it won't kill you, but you'll wish you were dead"). A Q & A session will follow the lecture.
For information on how to register, click "full story", or simply show up at a class.
2009 NEMF Registration Closed!
Jul 18, 2009
The response has been spectacular, and there are no more spaces, even for commuter registrants.
The Foray committee says:
Thank you for all that you did to help us publicize our NEMF 2009 Foray. Registration exceeded the stated maximum of 200, but by reorganizing the meeting room space and securing additional rooms at the Ocean Park Inn Motel next door to the Sheraton, we have been able to increase the number of registrants to 240. Unfortunately, even after accepting these additional forty registrants, there are still a good number on the waiting list, and we have closed the registration. We will be updating the NEMF 2009 Foray website shortly with more information about the faculty, talks, walks, and workshops. A registration letter with more details about the foray will be mailed to all registrants before October 1.
2009 - a great year for Mushrooms so far
Jul 10, 2009
The 2009 walk list has been finalized and mailed to members. Non-members can email (address given above) for more information.
The BMC to host the 2009 NEMF Foray
Jul 01, 2009
Sam Ristich Foray 2009
33nd Annual Northeast Mycological Foray
Save the Date
Boston Mycological Club sponsors
Northeast Mycological Foray, October 15-18, 2009
Eastham, Cape Cod, MA
For the first time, NEMF offers beach and boletes in the same weekend. This Foray is an unusual opportunity to discover mushrooms in Cape Cod’s special ecological niche. Fall on the Cape typically yields an abundant harvest. You’re likely to find Laccaria trullisata poking through the sand or Suillus salmonicolor under pitch pine, a tree endemic to the Cape. In the forest, lucky foragers may stumble on the prized Rozites caperata (Gypsy), Boletus edulis, and edible Leccinums.
For non-mycological companions, or for a Cape-break, slurp up local oysters at the annual Wellfleet Oyster Festival just down the road from our hotel. Comb the beach for shells, observe shore birds, take in fall’s kaleidoscope, or cruise funky Provincetown. Fish for stripers or go whale-watching.
Registration will open in February. For foray details, visit the NEMF 2009 homepage at http://www.nemf.org/files/2009/2009.html. Gene Yetter’s excellent description of Cape mushrooming is posted at http://nemfdata.org/CapeCodbookreview.htm.
Parking at the Farlow
Oct 13, 2008
While some attenders prefer trolling Oxford Street and Mass. Ave. for parking places, some will find the following easier:
PARKING AT HARVARD FOR SESSIONS AT THE FARLOW HEBARIUM:
1. The parking lot at 52 Oxford St is conveniently located. However, it is not directly on Oxford. It's really a continuation of Everett Street, which crosses Oxford.
2. Parking after 5pm weekdays and on weekends is only $5.
3. You can ONLY park there by purchasing a pass on-line in advance (or by going to the Harvard Parking Office on Blackstone St.). You cannot pay at the parking garage.
4. The website address for ordering the permit is:
https://www2.uos.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/permit/purchase.pl
5. Also keep in mind that resident parking in Cambridge does not apply on Sundays.
PLEASE NOTE Oct. 11 ID Change
Oct 11, 2008
The October 11, 2008 I.D. Session has been moved to Willard Brook. We will be doing an ad hoc walk at 10:30, to be followed by IDing.
Willard Brook State Forest
Rte. 119, Ashby & Townsend
978 597-8802
Park Directions
Willard Brook State Forest is located in north-central Massachusetts.
From the northeast: Take Rte. 495 to Littleton; take the Rte.119 Exit. Follow Rte 119 West approx. 21 miles through W. Townsend to the campground on the left
From the west: Follow Rte. 2 East to Rte. 31 North in Fitchburg. Follow 31 North through Fitchburg to the Town of Ashby and the intersection with Rte. 119 East. Follow Rte. 119 East approx. .5 miles to the campground entrance on the right.
From the east: Rte 2 West to Fitchburg and Rte.13 North. Follow Rte. 13 North to Rte.119 West in West Townsend. Turn left onto Rte. 119. Follow Rte. 119 approximately 4 miles to the park entrance on the left.
Talk, Free to members!
Oct 05, 2008
Platypus, Pademelon, Python and Plenty of Fungi
A slideshow by award winning photographer Noah Siegel, reflecting 4
months of travels through various Australian ecosystems clicking away
at the eye-catching and unusual. The show features images of
Australian flora, fauna, and especially fungi.
October 11, 7:30 p.m. at the Farlow.
Second Annual Fungus Fair
Sep 23, 2008
Brought to us by member Noah Siegel, and central MA mushroomers!
Interested in mushrooms? The Millers River Environmental Center is putting the fun into fungus with the Second Annual Fungus Fair to be held on Saturday, September 27th from 10am to 4pm at 100 Main St. in Athol, Ma. Respected mycologists from throughout New England will be on hand to share their knowledge. There will be morning and afternoon expeditions into the local woods to identify and collect mushrooms. Regional authorities will give talks throughout the day on topics including beginners mushroom identification, edible and poisonous fungi and all about morels. At lunch time, enjoy a wild mushroom cook-up.
The schedule is as follows:
10:00am Welcome
10:15 Morning Forays leave
10:30 Beginners Mushroom Identification, with Noah Siegel
11:30 Edible and Poisonous Mushrooms of Southern New England, with Bill Yule
12:30 Get a taste of some wild fungi at our Mushroom Cook-up
1:00pm Afternoon Forays leave
1:15 Stories of Morel Mania -where and what to watch out for when hunting for morels, with Elinoar Shavit
3:00 Table walk through, discussing the day's finds. Prizes for the Finds of the day
The event is free to participants. Beginner and experienced mushroomers welcome. Please bring lunch, a collecting basket with paper or wax-paper bags, magnifying glass, small knife, bug spray. For more information and directions visit www.millersriver.net
Fall Beginner's Classes Announced!
Sep 18, 2008
Mushroom Identification Classes
Boston Mycological Club
September 22 – October 13, 2008
7:00 PM
Four Monday Evenings
in the Harvard Herbaria Conference Room
22 Divinity Ave, Cambridge, MA*
Curious about those mushrooms you see popping up in woods and yard? Wondering what all the fuss is, about wild mushrooming? The Boston Mycological Club will present five lectures on mushroom identification this Fall. They will be held at 7:00 PM on Monday evenings in the Harvard Herbaria Conference Room, 22 Divinity Ave, Cambridge, MA. The schedule is shown below.
The Wonderful World of Mushrooms …….........................................September 22
Past BMC President George Davis will give an overview of amateur mushrooming, and an introduction to the various forms of fungi found in our fields and forests.
Poisonous and Psychotropic Fungi……………………………..…………………………September 29
Ellen Neelands, BMC President, will present a slide presentation from the North American Mycological Association.
Edible Wild Mushrooms …………………………………………………………………………October 6
BMC Members will review some common edible mushrooms in our area, with tips on cooking and preserving them..
Identification of New England Boletes ………………………………………………..October 13
Noah Siegel, nationally known award winning photographer and mushroom identifier has been mushrooming for almost twenty years. He will present and decode the variety and characteristics of the many boletoid fungi found in New England.
$10 per class, per person, for BMC members, $15 for non-members or $35 for the entire series for BMC members, $50 for non-members.
You may join the BMC at the time of registration. For a membership application form, click on "applicaton" at the right. Registrations will be received at the door.
* Note Parking in area is difficult to find. You may want to go to https://www2.uos.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/permit/purchase.pl to purchase a parking ticket.
Join us for an ID Session
Sep 05, 2008
We will gather informally to look at the mushrooms people bring in, and work on identifying them. There'll be some common, easily identified mushrooms and some which will require using keys and microscope. ID Committee members will be available to help.
We meet at the conference room at the Farlow Herbarium Seminar Room.
Harvard University
22 Divinity Ave.
Cambridge, MA, 02239
• Monday, September 22 at 7:00
• Saturday, October 4 at 1:30 PM
• Sunday, October 12, a 1:30 PM
• Monday, October 27, at 7:00 PM
• Saturday, November 1 at 1:30 PM
Upcoming Walks
Sep 05, 2008
Saturday, September 20, 10:30 AM
Collecting Area: Wompatuck State Park, Hingham, MA
Meeting Place: Parking area to left of Admin. Bldg.
Directions: Take Rt. 128/I-95 South to Rt. 3 toward Cape Cod. Exit in Hingham, Rt. 228 (signs to Nantasket). Follow Rt. 228 East/North for about 3.5 miles, to right at Free St. Go about one mile on Free St. to park entrance on right. Follow road to admin./parking area on right. If you wish to collect safe, fresh, spring water, bring containers.
Sunday, September 28, 1:30 PM
Collecting Area: Marconi Beach, Cape Cod Nat’l Seashore, Wellfleet, MA
Meeting Place: Marconi Site Headquarters
Directions: From Boston: Take Rt. 3 to Sagamore Bridge and on to Rt. 6 which is limited access until you get to the Orleans Rotary (which should take you approximately 40 minutes from the bridge). Take the rotary exit to Eastham and Provincetown. Do not turn off Rt. 6 at National Seashore Visitors Center. Proceed through Eastham toward Wellfleet. Marconi Site light and right turn is 8 miles from the rotary. Follow signs to Headquarters. Via Rt. 495: Use the Bourne Bridge to Rt. 6. This will take you to the entrance to the limited access road. The entrance, to the right, is at a traffic light and is well marked.
Special Weekend! October 10 to October 12, 2008, The BMC will host amateur mycologist Noah Siegel for Sunday walks to be announced, and a Saturday evening talk at the Herbarium at 7:00. ,PM. Noah will Join us for the October 11 Purgatory Chasm walk, as well.
Saturday, October 11, 10:30 AM
Collecting Area: Purgatory Chasm State Park, Sutton, MA
Meeting Place: The shelter on the hill above the visitor’s center. The mushroom hunting is done in an area of trails among mixed woods -- no climbing necessary. In addition to sorting our collections by the usual taxonomic and morphological criteria, we will draw an evolutionary tree of fungi on large sheets of paper and place representative specimens at the correct positions on the branches of the phylogeny. Some of the relationships may surprise you! This is a repeat of an exercise that got rave reviews.
Directions: Sutton, MA is southeast of Worcester off Rt. 146. Take Mass Pike (I-90) West to Exit 10-A. Follow Rt. 146 South. Follow signs on Rt. 146 to Purgatory Chasm State Park.
Sunday, October 19, 1:30 PM
Collecting Area: Bay End Farm, 200 Bournedale Road, Bourne, MA
Meeting Place: The parking area in front of the farm stand.
Directions: The walk will be at Bay End Farm, a 250 acre private conservation parcel with mixed pine and oak woods, and will take place at 1:30.
From Boston:
*Route 3 South* (Southeast Expressway) towards Cape Cod.
Look for sign “Exit 1 A-B-C Route 6 to 6A Buzzards Bay-Hyannis”.
Take *Exit 1A “Route 6 West Buzzards Bay-Falmouth Right Lane”*.
Drive on Route 6 West for aprox. 3 miles into the Bourne Rotary.
Drive 1/2 way around the rotary and take a right immediately after the Exxon gas station onto “*Head of the Bay Road*”. (look for the brown "Mass Wildlife" sign)
Drive for 1 mile, SLOW down, take right onto Bournedale Road -- the entrance is a few tenths of a mile down, on the left. Opposite is Grazing Fields Horse Farm.
From west of Boston:
Take Route 495 South to Route 25 East (495 turns into 25) - approx 1 hour.
Take *Exit 3 “Bourne & Hyannis”*
The off ramp will lead you into a rotary, take a right immediately after the Exxon gas station (look for the brown "Mass Wildlife" sign) onto *Head of the Bay Road.*
Drive for 1 mile, SLOW down, take right onto Bournedale Road -- the entrance is a few tenths of a mile down, on the left. Opposite is Grazing Fields Horse Farm.
From Rhode Island and points south
*Route 95 *to *Route 195 East t*o* Route 25 East.*
While on Route 195 follow signs for “Cape Cod and the Islands”.
Take Exit 22A “Route 25 East Cape Cod”.
(While on the highway Route 25 will end and merge into Route 495)
After driving 9 miles take *Exit 3 “Bourne & Hyannis”*
The off ramp will lead you into a rotary, take a right immediately after the Exxon gas station (look for the brown "Mass Wildlife" sign) onto *Head of the Bay Road.*
Drive for 1 mile, SLOW down, take right onto Bournedale Road -- the entrance is a few tenths of a mile down, on the left. Opposite is Grazing Fields Horse Farm.
Coming from Craigville:(and other parts of Cape Cod):
Take Rte 6 West until you come to the Cape Cod Canal. Right after crossing the canal on the “flyover,” take the Rte 6 (Scenic Highway) exit towards Buzzards Bay.
Merge onto Rte 6 (Scenic Highway) heading south along the Cape Cod Canal.
After about a mile, look for a stoplight and take a right onto Bournedale Road. Stay on Bournedale about 2 miles.
Enter the farm at 200 Bournedale Road. You will be directed to parking near the farmstand.
Spectacular Mushroom Season!
Aug 21, 2008
After several lean years, we have mushrooms! The great season even made the front page of the Boston Globe. See: http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2008/08/23/everythings_coming_up_mushrooms/