by Helium01

Created on: April 07, 2011

It's almost that time of year again, when otherwise sane people will leave the comfort of their homes and the compensation of gainful employment to wander through the woods, scanning the ground for any sign of the legendary morel mushroom.

In Michigan, the first tiny little micro mushrooms (smaller than a dime even) will show up in mid-to-late March, just barely after the winter snow has receded. In fact, it is not uncommon for the first morels, the black ones, to appear shortly after a snowfall.

There is a small window of opportunity for the morels to appear and if the conditions of moisture and proper temperature are not present or are insufficient, there won't be as many of them that year. The entire season (including blacks and yellows) is only about four weeks.

Unless you know of private land where you will be welcome to hunt, it is best to look for public (state or federal) land. Most people don't like trespassers anyway but if you're also going after the morels on their land you could be in trouble.

Just about any gas station will have a state map book that will show public land, as well as the access roads for them. Be careful about taking small backroads, though, especially in the spring as most are unpaved and can be very muddy. The state has several mushroom festivals in the spring and if you choose state land near the areas that host these festivals, you'll at least know you are in or near the right terrain.

It is helpful to have a backpack for the hunt, with items such as a mesh bag for the mushrooms (to spread spores as you carry them), bug spray, water, snacks and, most importantly, a compass or GPS for navigation back to your car at the end of the hunt. The best and cheapest bags for carrying morel mushrooms are the small cloth mesh laundry bags you can find in dollar stores; they also don't cut up the mushrooms like onion bags can.

Although you can occasionally find them near pines, black morels prefer hardwood forests. The yellow morels, which begin appearing as the black morels are ending, also like the hardwood areas but can also be found in more open grassy areas; abandoned orchards are an especially good area to look for the yellows.

Once you find one morel mushroom, get down on your hands and knees (at mushroom level) and look in every direction. You will usually find at least one more in that area, if someone else hasn't found it first! Tap the top of the mushroom (to loosen any spores in it) and then cut or pinch it cleanly above the soil line so that you don't get dirt in your bag. Cover the rest of it with leaves or dirt to protect the mycellium, which is the fungus that lies under the soil and creates the mushrooms.

Hunting for morel mushrooms in Michigan is a wonderful way to spend some family time. If you live in the area or are just passing through, why not stop and have a look? You might be surprised at what you find.

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