Time for some fun, guys
The Mushroom Show pops up afresh in Depoe Bay
Lincoln County Mycological Society member Tripp Mikich holding a Sparrassis radicata or "cauliflower mushroom" • Photo by Regina Moore
By Gretchen Ammerman
Oregon Coast TODAY
You’re wandering through the forest, your eyes alert to a particular color, shape, even just a disturbance on the forest floor that could indicate the presence of your prey just under the duff. You arrive home exhausted but happy, with edible treasures to add to that night’s meal and a few new species to look up in your mushroom-identification book.
It was such experiences that inspired Lincoln City resident Freda Holloran to create the Lincoln County Mycological Society in 1974. Now, 46 years after the first Mushroom Show in Lincoln County in 1977, the group returns to its mycorrhizal roots by reviving the show at the Depoe Bay Community Center this Saturday, Nov. 11.
The one-day event will focus on mushroom and fungi identification and education, with displays and explanations of dozens, possibly hundreds, of species of local fungi that are popping up all over Lincoln County and Oregon these wet fall days.
“We are here for any level of mushroom enthusiast,” said society member Tripp Mikich. “Even the complete beginner.”
Tables will be laid out with species identified by local mycologists from the Lincoln County Mycological Society and guest experts from the Cascade Mycological Society in Eugene.
“I’ll be out gathering and other people will be too,” Mikich said. “So, we should have a nice variety of local fungi for people to see.”
Color-coded cards will identify various species as “edible,” “edible with caution” and “toxic or poisonous” with additional information provided by experts. Guests are also encouraged to bring along mushrooms that they have discovered in their yards, local fields and forests and submit them for identification.
“There's so much going on on social media of people getting misinformation out there,” Mikich said. “There are literally thousands of people posting pictures asking, ‘Can I eat this?’ That’s not even the right question. The right question is, ‘How do I identify this?’ It's not that difficult, although it gets more difficult as you get more into it, but there are basics. The most important thing is don’t eat it if you aren't 150 percent sure it is the correct mushroom.”
Colorful displays will show how to identify mushrooms step-by-step, charts showing various mushroom and fungi types, alongside clippings on the mycological society’s history.
“The main narrative for this show is that this is coming back to our roots,” Mikich said. “It’s just really focused on education and fun.”
The show includes a special Children’s Area with pages of mushroom drawings to color, and an area where adults and children can learn to do spore prints, a colorful and fun technique that is an essential tool for mushroom identification.
For sale will be a number of the best and latest mushroom identification books for the region; wild mushroom cookbooks full of delicious recipes; and “fungi best-sellers” like Merlin Sheldrake’s “Entangled Life.” There will also be a selection of mushroom knives especially designed for harvest of wild mushrooms.
At roughly 10 am, a free, short foray will take visitors out to a nearby location to hunt for mushrooms, which will be brought back for identification and added to the display tables.
“If we get lots of people that want to go on the walk we will likely add more society members so that we can accommodate as many people as possible,” Mikich said. “But it’s still a good idea to sign up in advance.”
To register for the foray, email lcmycosociety@gmail.com or call 530-748-9365. The show and foray are free and everyone is welcome, regardless of age or mushrooming experience.
The Mushroom Show runs from 9 am to 4 pm at the Depoe Bay Community Center, located at 220 SE Bay Street.
For more information, go to lcmycosociety.org.