Dr. Gordon Walker (FunGuy)

I have not personally found any morels yet this year, but here’s a little primer to get you excited about morel season. These are Ascomycete mushrooms that tend to fruit in the spring. True morels (Morchella) tend to fruit in association with their host tree when the soil hits 50-60F after sustained cold periods (winter). As far as I understand it, most Morchella are not ectomycorrhizal, but instead live as asexual anamorphic (1n) endophytes within the tissue of their host tree (part of the trees microbiome), while forming sclerotia on the roots. When the host tree dies the sclerotia grows out mycelium, which goes dormant over the winter. In the spring, the mycelium activates, sucking up all the available nitrogen and forming the sexual teleomorphic phase we know as morel mushrooms. This complicated life cycle is part of why it can be so difficult to cultivate morels. . There thousands of species of morels, but they fall into 3 main classes: black/grey morels, blonde morels, and landscape morels. The blacks are more common on the west coast with fire, the blondes are more common across the Midwest/east coast, while landscape morels appear to grow saprotrophically and can randomly pop up in woodchips virtually anywhere. . If you want to learn more about morels and how to hunt them, check out my “Morels On the Mind” episode 15 of the Fascinated By Fungi Podcast. . . . . #morel #morels #morelmushrooms #morchella #oddlysatisfying #opinel #morelseason #mushroomasmr #tappingasmr #asmrtapping

“Is that a morel?” Morels (Morchella) are Ascomycete mushrooms with a conical shaped caps coveted deep honey comb holes. The inside is completely hollow, no pith, no folds. Hunting for morels can be extremely tricky, one because they are tempermental and need just the right conditions and habitat to fruit, but also because they can be darn tricky to spot! The texture and color of morels helps them blend in with the forest floor, making every single stick, pine cone, and leaf look like a potential mushroom to the excited mushroom hunter. With careful observation, practice, and good lighting you can spot morels from a distance, but this is a skill you need to develop. Here’s a video to help you get your head into morel hunting mode as the season kicks off here in California. . . . . #morel #morels #morchella #morelmushrooms #mushroomhunter #mushroomforaging #morelseason #foragetok #wildmushrooms #mycology

Foraging for burn morels (Morchella), delicious edible culinary mushrooms. . . . #morels #foraging #morchella #mycology

I drove up to the Sierra foothills to hunt for morels, but they weren’t the only mushrooms growing up in the mountains. Here’s a selection of other fungi I spotted while out hiking, many of which are good habitat indicators for morels. There was a good diversity of Ascomycetes including #CarbonCups #Geopyxiscarbonaria, #PurpleCrownCup #Sarcosphaeracoronaria, and plenty of the toxic #Lorchell #Gyromitraesculenta. There were also some Basidiomycete mushrooms, which aren’t necessarily indicative of morels, but are a sign that conditions are permissive for fungal activity. I saw an #InkCap #Coprinellus, #Coltricia, #RedBeltedConk #Fomitopsismounceae, and #Amanitagemmata. . Hope you enjoy this quick guide to what I found in the mountains! . . . #morel #morels #morchella #morelhunter #foragingtiktok #mushroomhuntingtips #ascomycota #mycology #mushroomidentification #mushroomedu

Happy St. Patrick’s Day, shout out to @Dropkick Murphys

With the coming of spring, new life springs eternal - heralded by the appearance of morel mushrooms (Morchella). These are some of the most sought after wild edible mushrooms, they are absolutely delicious when cooked (but are toxic raw). There are hundreds of species of morels that occur around the world in different habitats, but they all have roughly conical caps covered in deep honey comb pits and are hollow inside. . There’s a lot of confusion out there concerning “false morels” which is an imprecise name applied to other Ascomycete mushrooms like Lorchells (Gyromitra), Thimble “morels” (Verpa), and Elfin Saddles (Helvella). In this video I show you a Morchella versus a Gyromitra, which has a darker brown cap, is not hollow inside, and has a fundamentally different feel and smell. Both these mushrooms contain potentially hazardous hydrazine toxins, but thankfully thorough cooking of morels blows off this volatile toxin. The smaller darker brown Lorchels (Gyromitra esculenta/infula) have high amounts of this toxin and should avoided. There are larger lighter brown Gyromitra species (like G. caroliania/montana) that can be cooked and consumed without ill effects. . Hoping this video will help clarify the differences between these types of Ascomycete mushrooms. . . . . #mushroomedu #mushroomidentification #morel #morels #morchella #gyromitra #falsemorel #falsemorels #lorchel #morelseason #LearnOnTikTok

“Mushrooms Are Hot Right Now” a mini-documentary about sustainable fungal technologies by @Matador | Travel + Adventure, featuring Dr. Gordon Walker and Mario Gabiati. Directed by Kati Hetrick. . . . #fascinatedbyfungi

This enormous fluffy marshmallowy mushroom is the #PineConeAmanita #Amanitamagniverrucata, which fruits in association with pine (P. radiata & bishop) as well as Live Oak (Q. agrifolia) here in California. The look, feel, and smell of this mushroom remind me of the Coker’s Amanita (Amanita cokeri) I saw growing with pine out in North Carolina last summer. This similarity makes me think that this Amanita belongs to section #Roanokenses, which are generally whitish large chonky inedible/potentially poisonous Amanita species. . I wish I didn’t have to make this disclaimer, but I know it comes up every single time I post one of these ASMR type videos. In this pine habitat, these mushrooms are very common and grow all over the place. They are not rare, threatened, or endangered. I picked this mushroom to document it, then cut it up and left the trimmings for the bugs and slugs to eat. No harm to nature was done, please be kind with your feedback and reserve your judgment for more worthy causes. Interacting with one mushroom is not what is causing systemic global climate change, direct your frustration at governments, and corporations, instead of pick shaming in my comment section. I am a scientist and educator who cares deeply about conservation, sustainability, and acting as a steward of natural spaces. Thank you 🍄✌️ . . . . #mushroomasmr #oddlysatisfying #mycology #mushroomidentification #mushroomedu #marshmallow

Modern Man intermission, a mycology tribute to George Carlin. . . . #mushrooms #mycology #georgecarlin #fascinatedbyfungi #modernman

I was out hiking in Napa when I found some of my favorite mushrooms, Amanita velosa the Springtime Amanita (correction, it is part of Section Vaginata). These are ectomycorrhizal mushrooms that associate with Coast Live Oak (Quercus agrifolia) and can fruit from winter well into the spring if there’s enough rain. Under conifers and oaks you’ll also see Amanita vernicoccora, which has similar features but is generally larger and has a brighter yellow cap. . The Destroying Angels in section Phalloides have a well earned reputation for being deadly toxic because they contain Amatoxins; small circular peptides that inhibit RNA Polymerase II in your liver, stopping all liver functions. In contrast Amanitas in Section Vaginata and Caesareae are all safe to consume and absolutely delicious with meaty texture. In this video I am teaching you all of the features of an edible Amanita species, but PLEASE DO NOT go out and try eating Amanitas unless you are an expert or you could end up making a deadly mistake. It took me years of foraging and learning about mushrooms to feel confident in harvesting this mushroom as food. I have enough experience to recognize the deadly toxic Amanita species and am always careful to check the morphological feature of my mushrooms. Look for the sac-like volva, thick white membrane on the cap, striations on the edge of the cap, lack of a partial veil, creamy gills, uniform stem (no bulbous base), and hollow pith filled stem. . This mushroom truly is delicious, it has the best meaty texture and sweet nutty umami flavor that is my favorite. Let me know if you all like seeing me find, identify, and cook mushrooms. Check out my UToob for more cooking content! . #amanitavelosa #amanitavernicoccora #amanitaocreata #mushroomidentification #mushroomeducation #foraging #mycology #napa #napavalley #coastliveoak #ediblemushrooms #toxicmushrooms #LearnOnTikTok

Last April, I got some plugs spawn from @North Spore and used it to inoculate a bunch of oak logs. Compared to cultivating mushrooms in sawdust or grain, growing mushrooms on logs takes significantly longer for the mycelium to work its way through the wood and produce mushrooms. However, logs will produce more mushrooms for longer than less dense forms of substrate. I stacked these logs in my yard and kept them on a mister that goes off four times a day for 20 minutes. It’s been a long time to pay off, but I am very excited for these beautiful shiitake mushrooms thanks to North Spore. . If you want to get your own plug spawn and inoculate logs in your yard, you can use my discount code “FASCINATEDBYFUNGI” on NorthSpore.com to save 10% on your order. Spring is a great time to inoculate logs and build mushroom beds in your yard, get started growing your own mushrooms today! . . . #spreadthespore #northspore #shiitake #Lentinulaedodes #plugspawn #growyourownmushrooms #logcultivation #mushroomcultivation

The fly agaric (Amanita muscaria) and King Bolete aka porcini (Boletus edulis) are often found growing near each other in the same habitat and season. The fly agaric is mildly toxic, but can be boiled in water several times to remove the toxins. King boletes are delicious sweet nutty meaty mushrooms, one of my favorites. #mushrooms #mycology #mushroomasmr #amanitamuscaria #boletusedulis #porcini