tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32979156.post3658154386054958885..comments2024-03-22T19:30:54.485-05:00Comments on Mid Missouri Morels and Mushrooms: ahistoryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07272777202863968238noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32979156.post-72462535173523545272008-04-08T11:33:00.000-05:002008-04-08T11:33:00.000-05:00that link didn't work, but I dug it up and decided...that link didn't work, but I dug it up and decided to post it as a comment so all can read it:<BR/><BR/>Mad about morels (from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch)<BR/><BR/>04/07/2008<BR/><BR/>Since there's no shortage of damp places in Missouri these days, thanks to weeks of wet weather, it would stand to reason that there would be plenty of fungus among us.<BR/><BR/>But a scientist with the Missouri Department of Conservation said recent flooding could reduce the number of morel mushrooms found this spring.<BR/><BR/>Morels are a honeycomb-shaped edible mushroom prized by many chefs. It often attracts a devoted group of mushroom hunters. In Missouri, April is often the best time to find morels.<BR/><BR/>Missouri mushroom hunters, however, may have their work cut out for them this year, said Bruce Moltzan, a resource scientist and mushroom expert for the state Department of Conservation.<BR/>Advertisement<BR/><BR/><BR/>He explained that morels emerge each spring from bodies known as sclerotia, a brittle mass of spore-like cells. When warm, moist weather arrives, the sclerotia invest their stored nutrients by either producing root-like structures to draw in water, or by growing primordia, the familiar sponge-like cones that mushroom hunters seek.<BR/><BR/>"Morel sclerotia are amazing survival structures so flooding should not kill them," Moltzan said. "However, if during the formation time sclerotia are sitting in flooded areas, it is likely they won't form primordia this year."<BR/><BR/>The good news, Moltzan said, is that a poor morel crop this year probably would boost next year's production.<BR/><BR/>But for mushroom hunters focusing on this year, there are many ideas — much of it is folk wisdom — regarding the best places to find morels. Most mushroom hunters look for them in areas where trees have died or have been logged recently. Much depends on the weather.<BR/><BR/>Some believe that adding two weeks to the date of the last frost is the best way to predict when morels will arrive.<BR/><BR/>"Predicting the timing of morels is very complicated," Moltzan said. "To quote a prominent mycologist, 'The thrill of the hunt is what makes morelling so exciting and often so frustrating.'ahistoryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07272777202863968238noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32979156.post-79787772442830485622008-04-08T11:29:00.000-05:002008-04-08T11:29:00.000-05:00cool, I had not seen this. Thanks for sharing it.cool, I had not seen this. Thanks for sharing it.ahistoryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07272777202863968238noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32979156.post-71511391775536644462008-04-08T10:18:00.000-05:002008-04-08T10:18:00.000-05:00Here is a link to an article from Saint Louis Post...Here is a link to an article from Saint Louis Post Dispatch talking about how this years flooding will hurt the morel harvest this year.<BR/>http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/0/c09ab191d660a0da86257424001010e9?OpenDocument&Click=Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com