Category: Blog
Can Golf Balls Grow On Trees?
Although they resemble golf balls, this is actually the mushroom Cyttaria darwinii (Darwin’s fungus). Cyttaria darwinii grows in the southern tip of South America. It was collected and described by Charles Darwin. It’s edible and can grow in large quantities, with dozens of mushrooms…
Pucciniales (Rust fungi)
Although Pucciniales (Rust fungi) are tiny — often appearing as just discolorations on leaves — they have some of the largest fungal genomes, with a complicated and fascinating life cycle, and are an important plant pathogen. To learn (a lot) more about them, try…
New OMS ID badges are here!
OMS Members can find ordering instructions here.
Know your trees
Many mushrooms, including some of our prime edibles, are associated with particular kinds of trees. The ability to identify trees can help you identify mushrooms and narrow your search for edibles. In order to help OMS members with tree ID, OMS has held specialized…
Morels: Where did they start?
With the start of Morel season, it’s interesting to contemplate where Morels themselves started. Studies published within the last 11 years suggest that Morels originated in North America. A Study published 18 March 2021 reexamines the evidence. There are over 80 Morchella (Morel) species…
A Bolete Story: 50 Years of Macrofungi
A March 12 talk by Roy Halling, a world-renowned bolete expert, has been put online by the New York Botanical Garden (NYBG). Dr. Halling explores some highlights of 50 years of researching boletes and other macrofungi, including photos of some of the species he…
2021 NAMA Mushroom Poisoning Report
The North American Mycological Association periodically issues reports on mushroom poisonings in the NAMA database. These well-written and lively reports always make for interesting and informative reading. The 2021 report covers cases from 2018 through 2020. You can find the Executive Summary in the…
Improve Your ID Skills With Quizzes
It’s tough to improve your mushroom identification skills when there are no mushrooms around and you can’t discuss ID’s in person. One thing that can help is a computerized quiz. Here are two to consider. MycoMatch Quiz MycoMatch (MatchMaker) is a wonderful, free application…
Hydnum (Hedgehog Mushrooms)
Slides of the August 27, 2018, presentation — Mushroom of the Month – Hydnum (Hedgehogs) in the Pacific Northwest — are now available. Logged in members can click here for a pdf of the slides.
