Volume 29 Number 2 April 2002 - Online Version
April 2002 Newsletter Contents
President's Message
The Deer Classic
MMS - Morel Foray Schedule
Meeting at REI
Are Morels Safe To Eat?
A Sign of Spring
Dancing Mushrooms (Recipe)
Mushroom Events Calendar
Return to MMS Website
After a record breaking warm winter, except for an unusually cold March and a snow filled April, I know we are all more than ready to get out and about in the woods looking for morels. The first foray will be held on May 4 at Beaver Creek State Park near Caledonia in the Southeast corner of Minnesota. The foray will start at 11:00 AM so be sure and leave early from the Twin Cities so you can get in as much time as possible searching for morels. Our first Spring Meeting will be held on May 6 beginning at 7:00 PM at Hodson Hall on the St. Paul campus of the University of Minnesota. The weekend of May 11th and 12th will be the club's Morel Overnight. I suggest that you bring with you two box lunches for the two days of this event. We will meet Saturday morning at 11:00 AM in Elba near Whitewater State Park. Lee Moellerman will lead the foray as we visit areas near Elba. After a full day of searching for morels, we will have dinner together at a nearby restaurant.
The White Valley Motel in St. Charles, Minnesota, located about 10 miles from Elba, will have rooms available Saturday night for those who wish to stay overnight in a hotel. The accommodation charges are:
One person, one bed -- $35.00 Two persons, one bed -- $41.00
Two persons, two beds -- $44.00 Three persons, three beds -- $50.00.
If you intend to stay over, I urge you to make your reservations at least two weeks or more before our visit to Elba, as that weekend is also during the turkey-hunting season. To make reservations for May 11th at the White Valley Motel call (507) 932-3142. Their web page is www.whitevalleymotel.com. There is also a bed and breakfast in St. Charles called the Victorian Lace Inn, located in a home built in 1860. It has four guest rooms and the charges are $85.00 for double occupancy and $55.00 for single occupancy. Both rates include a full breakfast. To make a reservation, please call (507) 932-4496. For those who wish to camp, overnight facilities are available at the State Park near Elba. You might like to visit a small Amish store and restaurant just off Interstate 90 in St. Charles that sells baskets of unusual and interesting designs. If you need a basket you may wish to visit to pick up one for the foray? Sunday morning we will begin our foray at 9:00 AM. It is our hope that with two full days to look for them, everyone will find an abundant supply of morels.
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On Saturday, May 18th we will have a foray starting at 9:00 AM at St. Croix Wild River State Park near Almelund, and on Saturday, May 25th, a foray will be held Lake Maria State Park near Monticello beginning at 9:00 AM. See the maps herein for directions to the foray sites described above.
I want to express the club's appreciation to Lee Moellerman, EvaVillanueva and Peggy Laine for manning the MMS booth at the Deer Classic. Lee said that several hundred people visited the booth and a good many of them took membership applications, and Peggy told me that she has recently received back several of those applications.
Just a reminder that the MMS Monday evening meeting of May 13 will be held at the RE I store in Bloomington. For more detail on this meeting, see announcement that follows.
I look forward to seeing you at the first club foray at Beaver Creek State Park. Lee has checked out the area and found the habitat to be in good condition, so if we are lucky the morels should be waiting for us there.
Bob Fulgency
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Participating in the Deer Classic on March 15th through the 17th was a most interesting experience for me. I discovered upon my arrival at the State Fair Coliseum that the main Deer Classic poster indicated that there would be morel mushroom presentations given by a duck caller. I have been called a few things in the past, but that was a first. Another snafu was a scheduled morel presentation at 12:00 PM Sunday that I had not been told about. One of the organizer's staff asked me "Where were you?" And I gave him a "Where was I - here at the booth of course!" Another surprise was that although I was supposed to be provided with a video player in the seminar room on which I had planned to show a morel video -- it did not happen. So I spent thirty minutes thinking up something to say about morels -- in other words I was forced to wing it. Judging from the applause that I received at the end of my third lecture, I had a clue that my presentation was just about down pat.
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There was great people watching at the event, most notable was the vendor from Sleepy Eye, Minnesota, who was peddling fur products -- coonskin, wolf, fox and bear caps. He dressed like Daniel Boone and looked the part of an authentic mountain man. He told me that if an animal eats a mushroom then it must be OK for humans. I pointed out to him that poisonous mushrooms may be flavorful, but they can kill you just the same, and that animals do on occasion die from eating poisonous mushrooms. Also that the animal may have the ability to handle the poison toxins in a mushroom and still survive because of an innate immunity not found in people. I like to believe that I may have saved him from a most unpleasant mushroom dinner?
There were other interesting vendors at the show. You could buy any type of wildlife painting, knickknacks, hats and a flashlight that works without batteries; you could even go trout fishing or walk across the corridor and have a custom set of ear plugs made just for you.
My special thanks to Eva Villanueva, Peggy Laine and Bob Fulgency. Eva helped on Friday and Saturday and Peggy and Bob helped on Sunday.
Lee Moellerman
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May 4th - Beaver Creek State Park - Meet at 11:00 AM in the picnic area parking lot. If you arrive late, look for the group in the park. To reach the park, take highway 52 south to Interstate 90 then east on 90 to highway 76 then south to Caledonia.
May 11th & 12th - Whitewater Wildlife Area-On Saturday, the 11th, meet at 11:00 AM in front of the church, which is located on the main street in the village of Elba. On Sunday, the 12th, meet at 9:00 AM, again at the front of the church. See map for directions.
Early Bird Special - Lee intends to visit the area early Friday morning to fish and make a preliminary search for morels in the foray area. If you would like to join him make arrangements to do so by giving him a telephone call or discussing it with him at our Monday evening meeting of May 6th.
May 18th - Wild River State Park at Deer Creek. Meet at 9:00 AM. If you arrive late, look for the foray group in that area. Do not go to the main park entrance, but after leaving Almelund take a right on highway 16 and go east about 3.5 miles to Deer Creek. See map for directions.
May 25th - Lake Maria State Park. Meet at 9:00 AM at the picnic area. If you arrive late, look for Lee's green metro automobile to find the group's location. See map for directions.
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On
May 13th, the club will hold its regular Monday evening meeting at the REI
facility at 750 West 79th Street, Bloomington (at the intersection of I-494
and Lyndale Avenue and south across the freeway from the Shops at Lyndale shopping
center) instead of Hodson Hall. The meeting will begin as usual, at 7:00 PM
in the first floor conference room. I hope you will be able to attend this meeting;
if you have any questions, please give me a telephone call.
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Morels are the most commonly collected mushrooms in Minnesota. During the morel season, even those who would not consider collecting any other edible mushrooms can be found hunting morels. It is generally believed that the morel is the best and the safest edible of the kingdom fungi.
In Minnesota the tradition of morel hunting began in earnest probably
around the 1970’s when the Dutch elm disease, spreading from the east, reached
our state. The elms died, the morels fruited. In those early days of the epidemic
morels were so plentiful, it is said, that you could sit on the ground with
your basket at your side and fill it up with morels without moving an inch.
I was not living in Minnesota at the time; I don’t know how true all this is,
but those who collected morels in those days still lament the time of plenty
even in the years in which we late comers to the state consider the morel fruiting
excellent.
Although touted as the safest edible mushroom, morels have a sinister side. When eaten raw or undercooked they can produce symptoms severe enough to send you to the emergency room. Diarrhea, vomiting, profuse sweating are some of the symptoms attribute to poisoning by morels, yes by the true morels, Morchella esculenta. Fortunately, the symptoms subside within a day without further complication. The cause of the poisoning, the toxic compound, has not been identified.
People who have collected morels for years will confess to have experienced at least one unpleasant episode of gastrointestinal discomfort following a hurriedly prepared meal of morels. Unfortunately, incidences like those are seldom reported when they occur, perhaps to avoid embarrassment, or because they are attributed to other causes especially if the affected person had eaten morels in previous years without ill effect. Usually viral infection is suspected, and the true reason is uncovered only when the infliction revisits the same person following another meal of morels. Eating it raw or under cooked is most often the cause, but allergic reaction may also be the problem in some individuals. It is best to be cautious when eating morels. Cook them well, and start with a small amount to test your sensitivity; gradually increase the amount. It is recommended that morels be cooked for 8-10 minutes. Smart people learn from the mistakes of others. Be smart, and be safe. Cook your morels well and enjoy them for many years to come.
Anna Gerenday
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I have been a subscriber of the NAMA E-mail Forum since its inception, and I am delighted when it brings news about mushroom fruiting from other states, especially the surrounding ones. I took it as a sign of spring when on March 15 I read a message from Sybilla Brown from south central Iowa about her finding Urnula creterium, the devil’s urn, so early in the spring. According to Sybilla, this was about two weeks earlier than in other years, when it appeared early to mid April.
I never looked specifically for Urnula before. When
I did find it, it was while hunting for morels, what I do mostly on mothers’
day or later. I suppose, in Iowa even morels appear earlier than in Minnesota
probably by 2 weeks or even more. But now Sybilla’s report made me curious.
How far behind can we be? I live southeast of St. Paul, in a valley where spring
lags behind St. Paul’s, by as much as 10 days in some years, and I would expect
that any unusual fruiting, such as the one Sybilla discovered, would lag behind
by at least as much. 
The brief spring of early March was followed by a snowstorm, followed by some of the coldest temperatures of the winter. Then the snow melted, and we had another storm. It was 30th of March when I finally ventured to the far corner of my property where in previous years I found Urnula. Urnula is hard to see. Finding it takes more looking than finding morels. It usually grows on buried, well-decayed wood, and its smoky brown color blends in with the substrate amazingly well. The place where I was looking is where year after year we deposit dead branches. Previous owners of our place used the same spot, and now wood debris has accumulated there for at least 2 decades. And I never checked. It was near this spot where I first saw Urnula, but even then it was a chance encounter. Now I was looking with a purpose. It took me only a few seconds to discover one growing next to a dark wet branch. Not completely open, but there, and a few seconds later my eyes perceived two more, one smaller than the other, right next to the first one. Fifteen days later than Sibylla’s Urnula, but definitely early by Minnesota standards. I was happy about my discovery, and I was going to track the growth of these fungi. More snow and more cold weather followed before spring like weather and lots of rain visited us again. I checked my site, and yes, some growth was evident. They were bigger and more open. Then I noticed a few more specimens close by, and they were about the same size as the ones I found the first time. Was I not seeing everything that was there? I kneeled down and scrutinized the ground under the pile of branches and was finding more and more – up to 3 dozen specimens by the time I decided that I have found enough.
Anna Gerenday
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This dish is a major hit as an appetizer, but can also be the start of so much more. Try it tossed with cooked spring peas, served over pasta, or piled on a burger or steak.
Prep: 15 minutes; Cook: 12 minutes
In a large skillet cook garlic and shallots in hot oil over medium-high for
at least 2 minutes. Add maitake mushrooms. Cook stirring occasionally, for
10 to 12 minutes or until tender. If using oyster or button mushrooms, add
them during the last 6 to 8 minutes. Add shiitakes during the last 4 minutes.
Stir in herbs, salt and pepper. Makes 6 to 8 side-dish servings.
Nutrition facts per serving: 74 cal., 5 g total fat (1 g sat. fat), 0 mg cholesterol, 86 mg sodium, 6 g carbohydrate, 1 g fiber, and 3 g protein. Daily Values: 3 % vit. A, 5 % vit. C, 1 % calcium, and 6 % iron.
Better Homes and Gardens, April 2002
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May 6: MMS meetings begin.
May 11: Morel Foray. Overnight in southeastern Minnesota.
May 13: MMS meeting at REI (750 West 79th Street, Bloomington)
May 18: Paul Bunyan Group/Cass County Extension Morel Class & Foray, Hackensack, MN.
Oct 10-13: The 2002 NAMA Foray will be held at Diamond Lake, Oregon. A descrition and a registration form are now available on the NAMA web site: www.namyco.org.
Sept 19-22: The Northeast Mycological Foray (NEMF); New York Catskills. Information: Ursula Hoffmann, 212-734-2331 or hoffmann@lehman.cuny.edu.
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