If morels are your thing, here are some tips for you to keep in mind while you’re out there searching for them. Here are some tips from the Mushroom Appreciation website:
- When wild mushroom hunting, carry your finds in a mesh bag. Wild mushrooms spread through the dispersal of spores, and the more spores you allow them to drop the better the chances of more mushrooms in the future! Baskets or paper bags don’t allow spores to spread, so find something with large holes in it.
- Don’t pick every last mushroom you see. I know, it’s tempting. But leave a few so they can continue to drop spores and you and others can enjoy them for years to come.
- Don’t litter. Mushroom hunters usually have too much respect for nature to do this but I have to mention it. It’s extremely disgusting behavior and you can be fined.
- Don’t directly ask someone where to find morels.Any mushroom hunter worth his/her salt won’t tell you, and depending on where you are you may make some enemies!
- It’s easy to get lost in the woods, especially if you’re looking at the ground for mushrooms. Know your area, or carry a map, compass, and GPS if you don’t.
- Bring a friend. Don’t wander the woods alone, and it never hurts to carry mace or pepper spray. Think me paranoid? You’ll be glad if you have the extreme bad luck of running into an angry moose, a mother bear, an aggressive dog, or an unstable human (most dangerous of all).
- Beware of ticks! Where I live in New England, Lyme disease is a growing problem. Always wear long pants, socks, and use some natural bug spray if you have it (DEET free please). Also check yourself when you come home and take a shower.
Don’t forget about the free morel mushroom clinic in Stevensville on April 5th, too! Click here for more info.
