Spring fever (chapter 2)

In addition to the soil and temperature maps there are also morel distribution and progress maps to be found on the internet. You can find the maps here. There should be a correlation between soil moisture and temperature and the actual sightings of morels. Should be...morels can grow anywhere but they don't grow everywhere.

Dick Dougall is going to talk about mushrooming and the internet at our first meeting.

by Joe  Contact Me

Grow Morel Mushrooms In Your Own Back Yard

We provide the spawn and easy to use instructions on how to prepare an outdoor morel mushroom habitat. You just sow the morel mushroom spawn, maintain the morel habitat, and pick and enjoy pounds of fresh morels each Spring.

Well that caught my attention. Most of the time I thumb thru the gardening advertisements that I receive in the mail and then toss them but this one looked so interesting that I visited their website to check it out. I've seen mushroom kits advertised in gardening catalogs. Years ago we purchased a mushroom kit but never got a single mushroom. We have had success, and a lots of fun, with the kits that we have gotten thru the club.

This kit is different. What caught my attention is that they provide spawn that produces morels in a morel garden or habitat. Wouldn't it be nice to have a morel garden in the orchard near the asparagus patch? There are no details on the website about constructing the morel habitat so I have no clue on how much digging is involved.

Another bad year in the woods and I could be tempted into this. Here's the link to their website if you're interested in checking this out. http://www.gmushrooms.com/MHK.HTM

by Joe  Contact Me

Spring fever (chapter 1)

As the days lengthen and the temperature rises I begin to get antsy at this time of the year. Very soon I'll be starting seeds in flats for the garden and by mid April they arrive. When for sure will the morels arrive? How good will the harvest be? Only the Good Lord Himself knows but there are some clues to be found in soil temperature and soil moisture. Check this out.

by Joe  Contact Me

US police catch suspected mushroom thieves

Reuters recently reported that "A gang accused of stealing prized mushrooms from Southern California ranches has been apprehended." They had been stealing chanterelles.

They found "journals with mushroom locations and sheets documenting more than $10,000 (5,700 pounds) worth of sold stolen mushrooms."

What I found truly amazing is that chanterelles are fruiting in Southern California.

Check this out.

by Joe  Contact Me

Executive Board Meeting

We had our first executive board meeting for 2006 at my house on the last Sunday in January. I took a few photos that I'd like to share with you.

 

by Joe  Contact Me

Second opinion

Six more weeks of winter! Perhaps we should ask Gus for a second opinion.

I didn't see my shadow when I went out to get the newspaper this morning.

by Joe  Contact Me

Is it too early in the season to look for morels?

It is never too early or too late in the season to look for morels. Looking too early or too late may not produce the much cherished morels but it can provide you with locations. How I would like to find the perfect wooded glen lined with morels, the field that is snow white with horse mushrooms or the hillside where the chanterelles grow like wild flowers. Take a moment and picture those in your mind's eye.

Tomorrow the furry prognosticator is going to tell us how many more weeks of winter remain. Will he predict six more weeks of the non-winter we experienced from late December thru the present or the end of winter? Is there any difference in the two? Could we see the return or real winter weather?

That's my prediction based on gut instinct and tidbits of info garnered from Accu-weather and some of the other weather sites. A shift in weather patterns over the north pole could be the harbinger of winter as it should be. My prediction is that we will go back into winter, have two weeks of spring and then jump into summer. Perhaps it's time to recondition the cross country skis.

by Joe  Contact Me