May Speaker
Mike McCurdy Female Mushroom Hunters
of Zambia
Food, Medicine and Livelihoods
Mai Lovaas
May 20, at 7:30 PST
Monthly Meeting at Randall Museum, San Francisco
Far West Fungi 2nd Annual Mushroom Festival
Happening May 3rd and 4th
There will be cooking demos, cultivation workshops,
panel discussions, live music, and much, much more!
Tickets
Volunteer Appreciation Picnic
Natalie Wren Huge thanks to Elizabeth for the very successful picnic!
I have heard lots of feedback about how appreciated fungus fair volunteers felt at the Appreciation Picnic.
Thanks also to Maria for providing a great playlist and unreal cake, thank you to Paul for grabbing forks and plates at the last minute so we didn't have to eat Maria's delicious candy cap tres leche cake with our hands (but we would have, if we had to).
Looking forward to our general membership picnic at the same location in July-don't forget: it's a potluck-please bring something super delicious to share and amaze all your fungal friends : )
MSSF Annual Election
At its last meeting, the MSSF Council nominated the following MSSF members to serve as the Officers and elected Councilors for the term commencing July 1, 2025:
President: Mike McCurdy
Vice-President: Maria Pham
Secretary: Colleen Sudekum
Treasurer: Pascal Pelous
Councilors at Large:
#1: Tyler Taunton
#2: Liz Vermillion
(The terms of Councilor at Large #3, Stephanie Wright, and Councilor at Large #4, Tiffani Chu, automatically continue for another year.)
The election will be held at the May 20 General Meeting.
(Pursuant to Article V, section 5, of the MSSF Bylaws) |
President's Message
Sarah Ruhs
 Greetings MSSF Members, Spring has finally sprung! I hope that you are all getting outside and enjoying the greenery and the bursting flowers. Be mindful of the trees during the wind storms. I’ve seen more fallen trees in the past couple of years than ever. One night it was so windy that I thought I was going to wake up in Oz. I didn’t.
With spring comes one of the most fascinating edible mushrooms in California, the MOREL!  Like a phoenix rising from the ashes, comes forth one of the most flavorful, fairytale-looking fungi. Many of you were able to watch the very informative and interesting webinar by Trent Blizzard on hunting burn morels, my favorite mushroom to hunt. If you missed his talk, or want to watch it again, it’s on youtube~
Stay tuned for upcoming morel forays, or plan your own adventure into our beautiful Sierras. Play the game of, “oh that’s just another pine cone..” and “ooh that’s NOT a pine cone!” Get out there, when the weather is right, and have a fungtastic adventure, regardless of what you may or may not find.
Culinary Corner
Dinna Davis Oh, Spring, How I Love Thee! Bright blooms abound and the spore-cast indicates perfect conditions ahead for the Marvelous Morel!
With the nights remaining cool, I wanted to share a beautiful, flavorful recipe that combines current foraged finds and wild foods – and this recipe from Alan Bergo does just that. Pasta, Morels, and Three Corner Garlic!
Dyeing Workshop
Carol Reed Mayumi Fujio instructed us in a variety of techniques to produce very creative dye patterns.
The dye class was held at the Randall Museum using natural mushroom dyes and featured shibori folding techniques.
Hunting the Wild Mushrooms of New York City
Andy Newman - New York Times There are thousands of species of fungus in the city, with names like American dyeball, dingy twiglet and devil’s dipstick. Some even glow in the dark.
2025 Mendocino Woodlands Camp
Save the Date!
MSSF Mendocino Woodlands Camp Foray
November 14-16, 2025
Hey MSSF Members,
As you get ready for your upcoming springtime morel forays, be sure to also mark your calendars for the 2025 version of MSSF Mendocino Woodlands Camp! We’ll be back in Camp 1 of the Mendocino Woodlands from Friday 11/14 through Sunday 11/16. A reminder that the foray will once again be a MSSF Members Only Event. If you’re looking to join us at Mendo Camp this year, please make sure your MSSF membership is in good standing before camp registration opens in late September/early October. The official Mendo Camp announcement will be in the September issue of MycenaNews.
For the interim and to get your enthusiasm flowing for some fall Mendocino mushroom potential, here is the link to 2024 Mendo Camp Species List on the MSSF Groups IO account. Thank you to Else Vellinga, Mendo Camp mycologist, for compiling the list.
Looking forward to seeing you all there,
David Gardella, Mendocino Camp Co-Director |
