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1Spring 2006 No. 1www.wildmushrooms.ws
(The Macrolepiota rhacodes ...continued on page 3)
2006 No. 1
FEATUREMUSHROOMMacrolepiotarhacodes... pg 1
RECIPE
... pg 5
PRESIDENT’SMESSAGE
Welcome to2006 andanother success-ful year... pg 2
WEIRD & WACKY.. pg 4
WHAT IS A FORAY?.. pg 5
Macrolepiota rhacodes usually appear in groups and are easy to identify but can be mistakenfor a non-edible variety. Photo courtesy: Loretta Puckrin.
UPCOMINGEVENTS
... pg 9
MEDICINALMUSHROOMS
... pg 11 & 12
AGM
What a way tostart the year off... pg 6 & 7
NAMA FORAY.. pg 10
When asked what theirfavourite edible mushroom is,many people say the old standards;morels, king boletes, portabellas,etc. But when I am asked,eyebrows either lift in interest orare furrowed in confusion when Iunequivocally state “Macrolepiotarhacodes”. Most edible mushroomsare a variation on the theme of thebasic mushroomy flavour – some alittle more earthy like morels,some a bit sweeter likechanterelles, others with differenttextures - and although there’scertainly nothing wrong with amushroomy flavour, it can get alittle old. You can spice them upand cook them in creative ways tobe sure, but the great thing aboutthe Shaggy parasol is that youdon’t have to! They have a uniqueand delicious nutty flavour thatstands out on its own, and makesany mushroom dish unique. So,being a bit of a unique person (read“oddball”) myself, I can’t help butlove the “shaggies”.
Another great thing aboutshaggy parasols is that when youfind just one, you’ve got a meal. Nocoming home from a foray with
two morels or one hedgehogthinking, “What am I going to dowith this puny thing?” With asingle mature shaggy in hand, youhave to think, “What will I do withthe leftovers?” And I dorecommend waiting until they aremature – you get a bigger meal,they rarely go buggy, and they tastejust as good big in my humbleopinion. As if you needed more
reasons to love them, theyalmost always appear in largegregarious groups, produceseveral crops per year, and comeback year after year. It shouldbe noted that some people havegastric reactions to shaggies,and it is best to cook them withhigh heat because they canbecome a bit watery.
Macrolepiota rhacodes,
The Shaggy Parasol(a.k.a. Lepiota rachodes, Macrolepiota rachodes)
PAST EVENTS
Polypore Foray... pg 7
FORAY 2005
UPDATE
page 8
2 Spring 2006 No. 1 www.wildmushrooms.ws
President’s Message 2006 ExecutiveEdmonton Mycological Society
President & Webmaster:Markus Thormann
(780) 432-1392
Past President: Peter Arabchuk(780) 479-6630
1st Vice President: Mike Schulz(780) 939-2106
Treasurer: Loretta Puckrin(780) 458-9889
Secretary: Melanie Fjoser(780) 987-4412
Membership: Alan Fleming(780) 463-8540
Foray Coordinator: Bill Richards(780) 998-3507
Program Director: Martin Osis(780) 987-4412
Communications Coordinator:Robert Simpson
(780) 481-7905/ Wk: (780) 420-6850
Newsletter Editor: Geri Kolacz(780) 475-7927
Mailing: Diane Murray
Directors-at-large:Pieter Van Der Schoot
(780) 696-2436Robert Rogers
(780) 433-7882David Rowe(780) 469-7187
George Litven(780) 476-7912
MAILING ADDRESS:
Edmonton Mycological Society1921, 10405 Jasper Avenue
Standard Life BuildingEdmonton, AB T5J 3S2
WEBSITE ADDRESS:www.wildmushrooms.ws
Markus Thormann, president of theEdmonton Mycological Society
○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○
Welcome to 2006! I hope youall had a fantastic break over thewinter months and are sharpeningyour knives and cleaning yourbaskets in anticipation of anothermushroom season. We have hadvery little snow so far, which doesn’tbode well for fungi, but we still havea few months of “winter” left. So,let’s all hope for some snow (or rain)between now and our first foray inthe spring.
Your executive has already mettwice this year. On January 13th and14th, we had a Board Developmentmeeting at the Northern ForestryCentre. This meeting was organizedby Chris Floden and DougLedgerwood and sponsored byAlberta Community Development,Grant MacEwen College, and TheWild Rose Foundation. Ourorganization has been growingsubstantially over the past couple ofyears and our projects have equallygrown in size and complexity. ThisBoard Development meeting wasdesigned to streamline theEdmonton Mycological Society andformalize some of the moreimportant aspects of ourorganization. We are currentlydeveloping some policies which willachieve those goals and make us amore efficient and effective society.More recently, we met to discuss the
upcoming year and develop theagenda for the Annual GeneralMeeting, which many of youattended. This year, we adopted adifferent format, making it a full-dayevent with various speakers and apot-luck lunch. We hope this formatwas well received. Please let usknow if you would like to seesomething different next year.
This year promises to be anexciting one. We are hoping tocomplete the “Pick a WildMushroom, Alberta” event, co-hostthe North American MycologicalAssociation foray near Hinton, holdthe 2nd Annual Alberta Foray in thefoothills of the Rockies, have anotherfantastic “City of Champignons”Mushroom Exposition at theDevonian Botanic Garden (this yearon July 30th – mark it on yourcalendars), and have a series of localforays to satisfy your mushroomneeds and desires from botheducational and culinaryperspectives. Don’t forget ourregular meetings though. They willonce again be held from 7:00 to 8:45p.m. at the Riverbend Public Librarymeeting room every 4th Wednesday ofthe month. Please check our website at www.wildmushrooms.ws forregular updates and informationabout your Edmonton MycologicalSociety.
Our newsletter, the SporePrint, has evolved over the pastyears and is the best natural historyclub newsletters I have seen!!! As anew feature, I am planning onwriting a regular series of shortarticles highlighting some of theweird and whacky characteristics offungi. Well, they’re weird andwhacky only to the uninitiated! Asan example, you may already knowthat the honey mushroom,Armillaria spp., is a major globalplant pathogen (kills primarilyconifers in Canada), it is a deliciousedible (with caution for somepeople), glows in the dark(bioluminescent), and is mycorrhizalwith some plants. I will expand onthis unique fungus in a futurenewsletter in more detail, but it isthis “strange” combination ofcharacters that would qualify it forone of my articles. In this issue, Idelve into the world of smells,odours, and mimicry of fungi…
Once again, I hope you’re allready for a great mushroom season.Our first regular meeting will be onApril 26th. Hope to see you all then.
Cheers and happy ‘shrooming,
3Spring 2006 No. 1www.wildmushrooms.ws
Macrolepiota rhacodes(continued from page 1)
The gill structure of the Shaggy Parasol is strongly notched with varying length of gills.Although the gills detach very easily, they shold be taken as part of the harvest. On maturespecies, the stipe may be very fibrous, so, some people only pick the caps.
Now that I’ve got youcompletely convinced of thesuperiority of M. rhacodes you ofcourse want to know where to findthem. First shot: check your yard:I found my first shaggies growingin mine. Then check yourneighbours’, the park down theroad, or other disturbed areas,especially near conifers, shrubs,and compost (but in woods andfields occasionally too).
Shaggy parasols are prettyeasy to recognize, if you know whatto look for. If not, you couldmistake it for a deadly Amanita orLepiota and die: not therecommended course of action.Their size is the first clue. Thecaps are 5-20 cm across (althoughI’ve rarely seen a maturemushroom less than 15 cm across),and lack an umbo (a swelling orbump at centre of cap). Thesefeatures distinguish it from thegenerally smaller and usuallyumbonate Lepiotas. The caps havea whitish background with large,light to dark brown scales that go
fairly equally all the way to themargin – again unlike mostLepiotas, which have smaller scalesthat tend to be concentratedtowards the middle in maturemushrooms, although this may notbe clear until the cap is fullyextended. Note that they are scales(sections of cap that have curledup), and not warts (sections ofuniversal veil that sit relatively flaton the surface, and start loose butmay become attached with time)like the poisonous Amanitas.Shaggy parasol scales are soft andfragile and come off easily; justlightly rubbing the cap is usuallyenough to get your hand covered inthem. Like Amanitas and Lepiotas,however, the gills are free and thespore print is white. The sporeprint becomes very important ifthe mushroom is found in agreenhouse, by a recently-plantedplant, or in warmer climates, asthe poisonous Chlorophyllummolybdites is virtuallyindistinguishable aside from itsgreen spore print; however, C.molybdites does not appear to beable to survive in our cold climate.
Like the cap, the stipe or stalkof the shaggy is also huge (5-24 x 1-3 cm, although again I’ve neverseen them below 10 cm tall). It issmooth (no scales!), hollow, andwhitish becoming reddish brown inage. On the stipe is a huge, thickannulus - a biteful in itself! - thatis collar-like (not skirt-like) anddouble-edged. The stipe base isalways thick and bulb-like (to 7cm), and may be mistaken for an
indistinct volva; however, the capfeaturing darker scales on alighter background instead oflighter warts on a darkerbackground, as well as theannulus characteristics, reliablydistinguish M. rhacodes fromsimilar Amanitas. Anotherdistinguishing characteristiccomes when you cut themushroom, and the white flesh ofthe cap, gills, and the entire stipequickly turns reddish, especiallyaround the edges.
So there you have it. Theshaggy parasol is big, beautiful,and delicious. If you haven’t triedone yet, get going! Then, the nexttime someone asks you what yourfavourite mushroom is, you mightjust move some eyebrows.
Michael J. Schulz
The Shaggy Parasol with one of the near‘look alikes’. The cap is not as scaly and theveil is substantially different. This particularlook-alike is non-edible and tends to growshorter than the average parasol mushroom.
One of the characteristics of the ShaggyParasol is the rapid staining whichoccurs when the mushroom is cut.
4 Spring 2006 No. 1 www.wildmushrooms.ws
Weird and whacky fungi
– how some fungi and some plants mimic each other
(Weird and Wacky ...continued on page 10)
Mimicry from abiological perspective isdefined as “theresemblance of oneorganism to another or toan object in itssurroundings forconcealment andprotection frompredators”. You probablyhave seen the “walkingstick insect”, whichresembles a twig on aplant, or heard of somebutterflies that resembleother butterflies withknown defensemechanisms, such asspines or toxic chemicalson their exoskeletons.There are thousands of examplesworldwide. In all cases, mimicry inanimals is used as a defensemechanism to avoid being eaten bya predator. Well, there’s a new kidin town…
Flowering plants produceflowers and scents to attractpollinators, such as insects or bats.In some cases, these scents aredelightful, in others they’re putrid.In any event, they get the job doneand the plant can produce seedsfollowing pollination. From areproduction perspective, usuallyonly the plant benefits from thisinterplay (although the insects oftenget some nectar as well). Here iswhere it gets interesting. Someflowers emit scents and produceflowers that mimic mushrooms toattract specific pollinators. Classicexamples include fungus gnatflowers, such as species belonging tothe flowering plants Asarum (wildgingers), Aristolochia (dutchman’spipe or pipevine), Arisarum (mouseplant), Arisaema (jack-in-the-pulpitor cobra lilies), and Dracula (orchid,sorry, it grows in South America,not in Transylvania). Almost all ofthese plants have some species
growing in North America, includingCanada.
For example, Draculachestertonii, common in theColombian Andes, is an orchid thatgrows a large lip that resembles theunderside of a gilled basidiomycete(Figure 1; Kaiser 2006). Along withthe emitted mushroom scent, femalesof the fungus fly are attracted to thevisual and olfactory cues of thisflower, lay their eggs into the lip, andpollinate the flower at the same time.Sadly, the eggs never hatch. Otherspecies of Dracula, such as D.vampira and D. chimaera, use asimilar approach to attain pollinationat the expense of fungus flies. Thereare four chemicals that constituteabout 70% of the volatiles this plantemits to attract the insects (Kaiser1993). The names of these chemicalsare not important, suffice it to saythat they are complex organicmolecules also produced by fungi.
Another striking example ofmushroom mimicry is that ofAristolochia arborea, a small treegrowing in the Central Americanrainforests. It produces flowers atthe base of its stem, which are perfectimitations of Marasmius fruiting
bodies (Neinhuis etal. 1994). To attractpollinators, againsome poor fungusgnats, the flowersemit an earthy,meaty, mushroomscent. The majorvolatiles are allterpenoids, which arecommon in manyessential oils derivedfrom plants, e.g.,camphor.
So, some plantscan mimic fungi.What about the otherway around – fungimimicking plants?The rust fungi, a
group of pathogenicbasidiomycetes, are experts atmimicking plants. Rust fungibelonging to the genus Uromycescan form impressivepseudoflowers when they infectEuphorbia cyparissias (Cypressspurge, common to North Americaand Eurasia; Figure 2). Like thetrue flowers of this plant, the rustfungus’ yellowish pseudoflowersproduce a flowery scent andsweet-smelling nectar on itssurface to attract insects, whichend up transferring fungalreproductive structures to otherplants (Pfunder and Roy 2002).The chemical constituents of thesevolatiles vary and are quitecomplex in nature, often varyingslightly among regions and amongthe species of the rust fungi.
Witch’s Broom, caused by therust fungus Puccinia arrhenatherion Berberis vulgaris (barberry), isanother example of a fungusmimicking a plant to further itsown cause, namely dispersal ofpropagules (Naef et al. 2002).Infected leaves of barberry appearyellowish, reminiscent of flowers,and emit a strong fruity and/or
Figure 1. The Dracula chestertonii has developed features and scents thatattract fungus flies and help pollinate the flowers.
5Spring 2006 No. 1www.wildmushrooms.ws
When my sister and I firstjoined the Edmonton MycologicalSociety we did so to enlarge ourknowledge of edible mushrooms. Weknew that there were manymushroom which we were notpicking as we weren’t comfortablewith identification. In our opiniongoing to the foray was to find greatpicking locations and have a timelyharvest of edible mushrooms.
Although this can happen welearned that we were wrong in ouridea of the purpose of EMS forays.
Think in terms of a field studyrather than a harvesting session.
The forays are wonderfulopportunities to increase yourknowledge of fungi – and not just theedible kind. The diversity is trulyamazing! As you learn more aboutidentification you will find that it isnot as simple as seeing anillustration in a book andunderstanding which mushroom topick. If that were the case therewould be no need of identificationforays. Some varieties are easy tospot while others requiremicroscopic, or even DNA testing, tomake the identification reliable.
Fortunately there are a largenumber of fungi that are more easilyidentified. It is those which theforays address.� Be prepared to pick one sample of
a mature member of each newspecies (new to you that is) andbring them to the common areafor identification. Youngspecimens are not normallydeveloped enough to identify.
� Be prepared to spend the entireday on site to allow for adequatetime for the foray, identificationand meals.
� Be prepared to learn.� Be prepared for identification with
your mushroom key, mushroombook and magnifying glass. Asharp knife to bisect the fungi is
also a handy tool. Normal hikingitems such a bottled water, sunhat, sun screen, insect repellent,wet weather gear, camera ordrawing materials, etc. arealways handy on a foray.
Use the foray to increase yourknowledge and help the associationincrease the data about fungi inAlberta. We have been discoveringnew species and species never beforerecorded as growing in Alberta.Sometimes these discoveries aremore of a reward than finding a fieldof edibles.
The primary result of ourforays is an enjoyable day withpeople who have similar interests inthe great outdoors. Come rain, comeshine – the forays will happen andthe fun will flow. And at the end ofthe season you will find that instead
of knowing only 3 ediblemushrooms you will havediscovered and developed comfortin positive identification of morethan 10 edibles. You will havelearned what type of terrain yourfavourite varieties prefer. You willbe well on your way to finding yourown ‘private’ sites to fuel yourharvesting trips. Come, enjoy andlearn – the mushrooms will follow.
Loretta Puckrin
Recipe
Mushroom SoupIngredients:1 cup each of both Shaggy Mane and Shaggy Parasol mushrooms. Keep the mushrooms separate. Chop each into bite-sized pieces4 tbsp butter1 medium onion chopped1 clove garlic - crushed3 3/4 cup of stock (chicken is preferred but any stock will do)4 tbsp of cream2 tbsp of lemon juiceSalt and Pepper to taste
1. Take 1/2 of the butter and fry the Shaggy Mane mushrooms with theonion and garlic until all are soft.
2. Add the stock and bring to a boil. Simmer for 15 minutes.3. Put in a blender and liquify.4. Melt remaining butter and cook the Shaggy Parasol mushrooms until
soft. Add the parasol mushrooms to the liquified stock. Bring to aboil.
5. Add cream and lemon juice.6. Serve with additional cream swirled into the soup for contrast.7. Serve with parsley or garlic bread.
Recipe courtesy of Loretta Puckrin
What to expect from a
Mycological Foray
Photos courtesy:Loretta Puckrin
6 Spring 2006 No. 1 www.wildmushrooms.ws
Another First and a Huge Success
The Edmonton Mycological Society’s First Full Day Annual General Meeting
The Edmonton MycologicalSociety Annual General Meeting
was held on Saturday, February25, 2006 in the Pine Room at theNorthern Forestry Centre.
The all day event had manyinteresting and informativemoments.
The meeting began with thePresident’s report. Markushighlighted our manyaccomplishments of 2005 anddiscussed some year end goalsand long term goals that heenvisions for the Society. Amongthe year end goals were:increasing membership to 175;more members from outside theEdmonton area; the conclusionof the Provincial Mushroom
Campaign headed by PAWMA.Among the long term goals
were: becoming the leadingauthority on mycology in Albertaand Western Canada; a namechange that would be more
inclusive of Albertans; chapters
in other major centres; amembership goal of 500;
scholarship fund for mycologystudents.
Reports from the othermembers of the executive followedincluding our financial status.
The first presenter of the day
was Dr. Adrianne Rice and hertopic “Blue-stain fungi associatedwith mountain pine beetle inAlberta” was both informative andof concern to all of us who love towalk in the Albertan forests and
pick mushrooms and enjoy nature.The combination of the mountainbeetle and the blue-stain fungi hasdecimated huge areas of lodgepolepine in British Columbia and thereis a fear that they will attack ourjack pine here in Alberta. Evidencehas already been documented oftheir destructive powers here inAlberta. Research is being done tosee what can be done and whatenvironments the beetle and thefungi need to flourish.
Robert Rogers had apresentation of “Hallucinogenicmushrooms” and for all those whohave asked “What are they?”; “Dothey grow in Alberta?”; “”What arethe effects?: -- well, they shouldhave attended the AGM. We have awealth of psycho-active mushroomsin this province that need furtherinvestigation especially the partthey may play in our evolution.
Our third presenter wasMelissa Day on “Fungal diversity inarctic and alpine ecosystems”. Hertalk was both humourous and
informative on the relationshipsbetween various groups of fungi andtheir effect on the ecosystems thatthey inhabit.
Melanie Fjoser updated us onthe “Pick A Wild Mushroom
Association” progress and surprisedus with the official unveiling of “AProvincial Mushroom” poster andbookmarks. Everyone who attendedthe meeting were given both postersand bookmarks to take home and
give to friends and businesses (seeour website for more information onwhat they are and how to get some).
Martin Osis providedinformation on the upcomingNAMA Foray that will be held
in the Hinton area August 17-20, 2006. Some of the best scientistsfrom around the world will be thereto identify the mushrooms that arefound during scheduled forays invarious areas around Hinton and
William A. Switzer Provincial Park.We will be able to obtain photos,learning about identifyingmushrooms and attend lectures thatwill be given throughout theweekend.
Our club will be involved to acertain degree and Martin will need
Some of the members that attended our first all day annual general meeting
7Spring 2006 No. 1www.wildmushrooms.ws
many of us to volunteer in variousareas:
�a need for Foray leaders.
�members to man the registrationtables.
�transportation coordinators
�members to man the vendortables.
These are some the main areasthat volunteers will be needed. Ifyou can make a commitment, pleaselet Martin know.
The Photo Contest 2005Winners were also shown as well assome examples of what to do whentaking photos and what not to do,
The fronts of our newbookmarks. On the backsof each bookmark there isinformation on themushroom that appearson the front.Also a look at our newposter.The PAWMA Committeehas done an excellent joband deserve a hugeTHANK YOU.
especially if you are entering thecontest. We are encouraged to take
our cameras into the field and getpictures. These will be invaluable asour database is being setup andphotos are very important.
There will be a Photo Contest2006 as well. For updates on the
contest and to see the 2005 winners,please access our website:www.wildmushrooms. ws
Oh yes!!! and then there wasthe Potluck Lunch. It wasmushroom heaven. The number ofdishes that arrived containingmushrooms was awesome and all thefood was excellent.
Geraldine Kolacz
Whitemud
Creek Foray
- February 26, 2006
As a follow-up to theAnnual General Meeting,members of the EdmontonMycological Society met atWhitemud Creek for a Sundaymorning Polypore foray. First, Ineed to apologize to anyone whomay have come and missed theparking lot as I had propagatedsome misinformation that I hadreceived.
In all five people showedup for the walk in the oldgrowth forest along theWhitemud Creek. In total 16species were identified. In
addition, five unidentifiedspecies were collected for futuredetermination.
Species List
Bisporella citrina
Chlorociboria aeruginascens
Exidia truncata
Fomes fomentarius
Fomes pinicola
Fomitopsis cajanderi
Ganoderma applanatum
Hypoxylon mammatum
Hypoxylon cf. fragiforme
Phellinus punctatus
Plicaturopsis crispa
Nectria cinnabarina
Spongipellis unicolor
Stereum hirsutum
Stereum striatum
Trametes elegans
Bill Richards
8 Spring 2006 No. 1 www.wildmushrooms.ws
Foray review 2005
As most of our membership knows, we tryto maintain a fairly active foray schedule,
which we hope to continue into the future.
Annual ForaysThe introduction of a Winter
Polypore Foray several years agohas extended our season severalmonths and allows me at least tospend more time in the “bush”. OnMarch 12 we had approximately [I doa better job of recording the fungithan the forayers’] 14 members out toPoplar Creek Natural Area, west ofBreton. Twenty-three species werenoted, some of which were notpolypores, like Russula nigricans,which we found because of the lowsnow cover under the white spruce.No unexpected polypores were seen.
Our Annual Morel Foray onMay 14 in Jackpines ProvincialGrazing Reserve, south of Gainfordwas a huge hit even if the morels werefew. I was unfortunately not availablebut the 30 or so participants had agood time by all accounts. From amycological standpoint, it was veryinteresting with a wide arrangementof ascomycetes available forimmediate comparison. Theseincluded Gyromitra esculenta, G.gigas, Morchella elata, Verpabohemica and V. conica.
Thirty participants attended ourPoplar Creek Oyster MushroomForay held June 18-19, where we hadweekend campout and pig-roast withother great foods and many fungi. Itwas wet, however and why thatshould disturb mycophiles, I willnever know. Thanks to Pieter forarranging the warm dry New MooseHill Hall for our use and to all theother organizers and participants.Identification sessions and lectureswere also provided. Oystermushrooms were among the 51species found but their low numbersattest to the continual habitat changeof the area.
Our New Members FieldOrientation on July 9-10 at AshlandDam gave new and old members 45species to study. The king bolete failedto show to the disappointment of allwho were expecting his presence, butthis king does no one’s bidding.
The August 6 forays “to varioushabitat” for the pre-expositions
collections were very productive, Ihave yet to see a final species countbut collections were a great successagain.
Our Foothills Foray took us toLambert Creek and area on August27-28. A species new to most of usChanterelle tubaeformis was found,and a Boletus sp., which has yet to yetto be identified. Most of the 14participants camped out giving usmore time to identify 43 species.
Our First Alberta Wide Foraywas an exceptional success. It washeld in the vicinity of Crimson LakeProvincial Park on Sept 3-5. Weacquired a collection permit, whichallowed us to collect within the park. Thanks to all those who participatedand a special thanks to Dr. LeonardHutchison who assisted with theidentifications. We had phenomenalsuccess with over 220 speciesidentified (all groups); 120 species ofCortinarius identified to genera; 20species of Russula identified togenera; six Lactarius speciesidentified to genera and nearly 200more specimens yet to be determined.We may even have some new speciesfor the province and possibly one newto North America. We also foundsome truffles thanks to Dr.Hutchison.
A much smaller group again metat the Lambert Creek area onSeptember 10. As it was wet, we did anon-scientific pot collect only.
Summer Evening ForaysWe had four well-attended
evening forays. The first was atSherwood Park Natural Areaon June 8. Nearly a dozenparticipants braved the fewmosquitoes and cool evening (forsome) to find 17 species assortedfungi. June 29 was a more pleasantevening and ten of us found ourway to North Cooking LakeNatural, and searched 29identifiable species. OurBoulevard Blitz brought out theaverage complement of forayers onJuly 13 in the Mill Creek area. Itwas the intent to search lawns andboulevards but the good citizensmust be conserving water, as fewfungi were on the lawns so weretreated to the slightly moisterwoods along the creek, where 11species were found. Our lastsummer evening foray of 2005 tookplace on August 17. Markus ledthese eager 12 participants toWhitemud Creek Ravine for asuccessful hunt of 27 species.Thanks to the foray leaders who picked upthe slack in my frequent absences. Inaddition, a special thanks to all themembers and guests who make theseforays worth the effort of arranging. Hereis to an equally good 2006 foray season.
Bill Richards, EMS’s Foray coordinator, studies his books as heidentifies the varied mushrooms that were picked by EMS members ona foray. Photo courtesy: Loretta Puckrin
Bill Richards
9Spring 2006 No. 1www.wildmushrooms.ws
AugustNorth AmericanMycologicalAssociation(NAMA) Foray
Mushroom: Mushroom Collection forthe Database.
Location: Hinton & Area
Meeting:Talk and presenter TBA
Summer Evening foray inthe Edmonton River ValleyMushrooms: Various
Location: TBA
SeptemberFoothills Campout andForayMushroom: Honey
Mushrooms, Hedgehogs and
Chanterelles
Location: Lambert Creek Area
Meeting: Honey mushrooms -the multiple faces of Armillariaby Markus Thormann
OctoberMeeting: Scary and nastymushrooms by Martin Osis
NovemberPresident’s Dinner
Meeting: Mushroomidentification DVD/Video byTaylor Lockwood
JulyNew Members FieldOrientation and Camp-outMushroom: Various seasonal
Location: Ashland Dam Site
Mid-Summer Evening Foray inthe Edmonton River ValleyMushrooms: Various
Location: TBA
Foothills ForayMushrooms: Leccinum,Russula, Lactarius andother Agarics
Location: Bow Valley Provincial Park
Meeting: Mushroomidentification aids - stains andother chemicals Final discussions and plans for themushroom exposition at theDevonian
Pre-exposition forayMushrooms: As many differentvarieties as possible.Location: Members choice.
“City of Champignons” MushroomExpositionMushrooms: Any and all typesof fungi
Location: Devonian Botanic Garden
MarchMeeting: New memberorientation by Alan Flemingand Introduction to FieldGuides by Martin Osis
AprilMeeting: Foray FashionShow and some do’s anddon’ts by Bill Richards
MayAshland Parkland / BorealForest RegionsMushrooms: Morels, Verpasand Spring AgaricsLocation: Rannach
Provincial Grazing Reserve
Meeting: Morels and otherspring mushrooms by MikeSchulz
JuneVolunteer StewardCommitmentMushroom: VariousseasonalLocation: Poplar Creek
Natural Area
Summer Evening Foray in theEdmonton River ValleyMushroom: Variousseasonal
Location: TBA
EMS Calendar of Events for 2006
General Member Meetings
Fourth Wednesday of every month -March 22th is our first meeting for 2006
Time: 7:00 pm Location: Riverbend Library
Please Join Us!!All forays are undertaken at your ownrisk. You are responsible for transpor-tation and accommodation.
22
26
13
24
17
21
28
8/9
19
29
30
26
21/22
17-20
13
9/10
30
28
25
TBA
10 Spring 2006 No. 1 www.wildmushrooms.ws
Martin Osis
Weird and Whacky (continued from page 4)
Literature cited:
Connick, W.J. and R.C. French. 1991.Volatiles emitted during the sexualstage of the Canada Thistle rust fungusand by thistle flowers. Journal ofAgricultural and Food Chemistry 39:185-188.
Kaiser, R. 2006. Flowers and fungi usescents to mimic each other. Science311: 806-807.
Kaiser, R. 1993. The Scent of Orchids.Elsevier, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.pp. 31-34.
Naef, A., Roy, B.A., Kaiser, R., and R.Honegger. 2002. Insect-mediatedreproduction of systemic infections byPuccinia arrhenatheri on Berberisvulgaris. New Phytologist 154: 717-730.
Neinhuis, C., Roth, D., and W. Barthlott.1994. Aristolochia arborea: the biologyand thread of a remarkable rain foresttree from Central America. DerPalmengarten [The Palm Garden] 58:15-19.
Pfunder, M. And B.A. Roy. 2002. Pollinator-mediated interactions between apathogenic fungus, Uromyces pisi(Pucciniaceae) and its host plant,Euphorbia cyparissias (Euphorbiaceae).American Journal of Botany 87: 48-55.
herbaceous scent, which attracts avariety of insects. These insectsfacilitate the reproduction of thepathogenic fungus by dispersing itsspermatia (sexual reproductivestructures) as they visit these“flowers” in search of nectar.Canada thistle, Cirsium arvense, isa widespread weed and is also “usedand abused” by a rust fungus,
Figure 2. Rust fungi have pseudoflowers that attract insects,thus helping to carry the fungi to other plants
Pucciniapunctiformis. Here,the fungus colonizesthistle shoots andproduces a strongfloral scent to attractpollinators in orderto disperse its sexualreproductivestructures (Connickand French 1991).
So, both fungiand plants can“(ab)use” each otherto further their owncauses. Both can
produce volatile chemicals or formvisual attractants that attractvarious pollinators. By the way,these same scents can also elicitstrong human responses and areoften used as a base for newperfumes. Hence, in the end, wemay be the ultimate benefactors ofthese mimicking efforts by plantsand fungi.
Markus Thormann
The North American Mycological Association Foray
(NAMA) is coming to AlbertaNAMA is coming to Alberta for
their annual foray being held in Hintonfrom August 17th through to August20th!
As a club we are very excited aboutthis for several reasons. The mainreason is we get to mingle and learnfrom some of the best experts in theworld. If you aren’t familiar withNAMA, their annual foray is aninternational gathering of bothprofessional and amateur mycologistswho meet for both an extensive series ofpresentations as well as field gatheringand identifications as a result of dailyforays. NAMA is an organizationdedicated to, and to a large extend runby, amateurs who are interested in thefruiting bodies of fungi, the mushrooms.This is what interests most of us as well.
The second reason we are excitedabout NAMA coming to Alberta is thatthe foray leaves no mushroom
unidentified. We get the opportunity tosee and record the names ofmushrooms which we have never beenable to identify before.
Normally the NAMA foray is onlyopen to members but this year we havebeen given permission to invite allEMS members as well. For people whoare not NAMA members this forayrepresents a unique opportunity to bepart of an international event. Thebest way to get the most out of thisevent is to volunteer and become anintegral part of the organisation. Wewill be looking for local volunteers tohelp out in a number of areas.
Volunteers who could collect doorprizes and other sponsorship itemsas well as helping in the running ofan on-site market selling books,dvds, discs, drinks, poster and such.
Volunteers to help man registrationand information/ help desks.
Volunteers to help coordinate andlead forays making sure that no one isleft out in the woods.
Any volunteer participationusually has its own rewards and in theAlberta tradition of active volunteerismwe will make this event a great successfor NAMA, EMS and all our individualmembers.
Please contact Martin with anyquestions, comments and suggestions onhow you can help. Make your decision toparticipate soon and book youraccommodations early as, due toindustrial activity in Hinton, there isexpected to be a shortage ofaccommodation. We have identified andreserved a number of camping spots forthis event but hotel and bunkingaccommodations are only arranged forout-of-town participants.
11Spring 2006 No. 1www.wildmushrooms.ws
Medicinal MushroomsPart II (this article is being continued fromthe Winter Issue of Spore Print)
(Medicinal Mushrooms...continued on page 12)
Champex, a patented fieldmushroom derivative, is afunctional foodstuff designed todeodorize the body in the digestivesystem. It is 400% more effectivethan parsley seed extract.
As a nutritional supplement ithelps eliminate breath and bodyodour, improves intestinal functionand regularity, helps blood cleansingand detoxifies the kidney and liverby suppressing the increase ofserum levels of creatinine.
It has been clinically proven torepress production of indole andtryptamine in-vivo.
In pets, it helps reduce fecal/ammonia odour, and suppressesodours internally, resulting incleaner litter.
Dr. Tatsuo Shiigai of TorideKyodo General Hospital, found thatserum creatinine levels, a measureof the progress of kidney failure,was significantly suppressed by usedChampignon extract. Six of ninepatients with glomonephritis thatdid not respond to a low proteindiet, were helped by the extract. Itis possible that the mushroomextract works, in part, by reducingthe production of nephrotoxicsubstances in the intestines.
It is extremely safe with aLD50 value of >50,185 mg/kg (LDstands for lethal dose for 50% of testsubjects).
Work by Werner and Beelman,Int J Med Mush, 2002,4:2, foundselenium enriched buttonmushrooms can be produced for thefunctional food or nutraceuticalindustry. Mushrooms containing20% of RDA of selenium could bemarketed as an excellent source ofthis important mineral.
In Traditional ChineseMedicine, the button mushroom isused to regulate body energy, andremove phlegm from the body. It isalso good for the stomach andintestines, measles, contagioushepatitis as well as coughs andhiccoughs.
According to one report, apolysaccharide from button
mushrooms can be used to treatleukocytopenia, inhibit bacterialgrowth and reduce blood sugarlevels. They can also be taken aftercancer operations to preventmetastasis.
Experiments by Wardle andSchisler in 1969, shows that thegrowth of mushroom mycelium invitro was stimulated by the additionof lipids. Safflower oil added to thecultivated mushroom enhanced thegrowth and size. It appears thatlinoleic acid stimulates bothmycelial growth and initiation offruiting bodies.
The compound lenthionine isbelieved a contributing factor in theflavour of the wild buttonmushroom.
Cremini and Portabellamushrooms are variations of theButton with richer, meatier flavour.Crimini is high in crude protein(43.5%) and acid hydrolyzed fat.
Portabella is a large brownform previously thought un-saleable, and taken home bymushroom pickers. Today, throughgood marketing, and a growingappetite in North America for morefungi variety, the Portabella isavailable at supermarkets yearround.
It contains compounds thatinhibit aromatase, an enzyme
associated with tumour formation,also found in stinging nettles. Theinhibition of aromatase is directlylinked to prevention of breast andprostate cancer.
Portabella contains about 8%chitin. This substance has valuableapplication in chemistry,biotechnology, agriculture,dentistry, food processing,environmental protection andtextile production. Chitosan, aderivative, is a supplement used tolower cholesterol and promoteweight loss.
Work by Beelman et al., Int JMed Mush, 2003, 5:4 favorablycompared nutritional andmedicinal benefit of Portabellamushrooms to shiitaki and oystermushroom.
Portabella contains significantamounts of mannose, glucose andsugar alcohols.
Agaratine, one of thehydrazines, is a powerful mutagen,activated by tyrosinase, amushroom enzyme that makes itheat stable. The mushroom’s SODand aromatase inhibitors may helpneutralize some of agaratine’spotential danger.
One Swiss reported suggestedthat four grams of A. bisporus daily
12 Spring 2006 No. 1 www.wildmushrooms.ws
Agaricus(continued from page 11)
led to the lifetime risk of cancer oftwo cases per hundred thousandlives.
Tyrosinase, on the other hand,helps lower blood pressure and isused in treating hypertension.
It is prudent to not eat thismushroom raw. Cooking onlyreduces the carcinogenichydrazines by 25%, however.
In France, another fungi orgreen mold called Trichoderma isused as a spray concentrate as analternative to the systemicfungicide, benomyl, to controlVerticillium fungicola, a seriouspathogen of A. brunnescens.
Flat Top is widespread but notcommon, and recognized by itsblack scales over a beige base.Studies by Cochran in 1978indicate anti-viral potential, andcontains the steroid ergosterol, thatconverts to vitamin D.
Yellow staining Agaricus (A.xanthodermus) and Felt RingedAgaricus (A. hondensis) are notrecommended edibles and havephenolic and metallic odoursrespectively. The yellow stainingvarieties tend to concentrate heavymetals, another reason to avoidthem.
The closelyrelated Winecoloured Agaricus( A.subrutilescens) ofthe B. C.rainforest isreported to beanti-fungal (Minet al., 1996).
Agaricusblazei, fromBrazil, isattracting a lot ofattention fromthe myco-medicalcommunity. It hasbeen found tocontain many ofthe samepolyhydroxysteroidsas Turkey Tailand has betaglucan levels from9-14%. Itspolysaccharidespromote naturalkiller cells thatare selective totumour cells, butthe mushroom also possessesimmune modulating properties.Like other Agaricus, it inhibitsaromatase and a rising star in thepotential treatment of cancer.
It is a semi-tropical speciesthat is cultivated under controlled
conditions similar to A.brunnescens. The mushroom is verypopular in Japan, and known asHimematsutake. It possesses amild, but distinct, sweet almondflavour.
Local commercial buttonmushroom producers willeventually discover the marketingopportunity this fungus presents.
Robert Rogers is the author ofMedicinal Mushrooms of thePrairies and ten other books relatedto health benefits from regionalplants. He is a professional memberof the American Herbalist Guild,Fellow of the International Collegeof Nutrition, and past chair of theAlberta Natural HealthAgricultural Network. Robertteaches plant medicine at bothGrant MacEwan College and theNorthern Star College of MysticalStudies. He can be contactedthrough Earth Medicine Consultingat [email protected] or 1-780-433-7882.
This article on Medicinal Mushrooms
is provided through the courtesy of
Robert Rogers, author of Medicinal
Mushrooms of the Prairies.
Agaricus campestris(field mushroom,
meadow mushroom, ghost ears)Agaricus arvensis(horse mushroom)
Agaricus brunnescensAgaricus bisporusAgaricus hortensis
(wild button mushroom, cultivatedmushroom, portabella, crimini)
Agaricus bitorquis(spring agaricus
Agaricus placomycesAgaricus praeclaresquamosus
(flat top)
