Spore Prints

Agnes A. Sieger, Editor

MEMBERSHIP MEETING

Tuesday, November 14, at 7:30PM at the Center for UrbanHorticulture, 3501 NE 41st Street, Seattle

What are some of your favorite mushroom-huntingmemories? Stumbling onto that mother lode of matsutake? Finding outat a PSMS potluck that your kid's dinner consists exclusively offive kinds of chocolate cake? The family pet deciding to teach askunk who's boss? Everybody has their favorite stories.

Our program for November is titled ``MemorableMushroom Experiences.'' In it, PSMS members Lynn Elwell, DV Corey,Russ Kurtz, Pat Murosako, Hildegard Hendrickson, Joanne Young, andLisa Bellefond will reminisce on some of their most memorableadventures. These are some of the most noted (some might saynotorious) mushroom hunters in PSMS, so come prepared to beentertained.

Would members with last names beginning with theletters E-I please bring a plate ofrefreshments for the social hour?

CALENDAR

Nov. 11-13 PSMS Fall Foray

Nov. 14 Membership meeting, 7:30 PM , CUH

Nov. 17 Volunteer thank you party, 7:00PM

Nov. 18 Field Trip

Nov. 20 Board meeting, 7:30 PM , CUH Board Room

Nov. 24 Spore Prints deadline

Dec. 12 Membership meeting and holiday ``cookiebash,'' 7:30 PM,CUH

BOARD NEWS Agnes Sieger

Bernice Velategui announced that 78 new memberssigned on at the show, approximately 10% of admissions. Co-ChairsRon Post and Ben Woo estimate the show will break even or show asmall excess. They favor using the same site again next year.Thanks were given by the Board to Ron and Ben for the production ofa successful show despite lack of time and adequate volunteers.

Comments from various board members regarding thefall education classes were very complimentary. Joanne would like afew people who have experience in hosting field trips to meet todiscuss the lack of volunteer hosts. A motion was approved to givePaul Stamets one-time only use of our mailing list to mail out hiscatalog. Colin Meyer has made many changes to the PSMS Web site tomake it more interesting, informative, and easier to navigate.Karin Mendell reported 42 people had signed up for the QuinaultForay, and she requested donations of mushrooms for the meals.Because of work on the foray, she missed the deadline toparticipate in the Flower Show. Dick Sieger, Lynn Phillips, andLorraine Dod will review the bylaws for things that need changed.Ron Post, Patrice Benson, and Brandon Matheny will serve on thecommittee for next year's election.

Return to Some PassColeman Leuthy

I will be leading a repeat field trip to Some Passon Saturday, November 18. I have led many field trips to this areain mid-November and, because of its dryer environment, have oftenfound good collecting here at this time of year.

November 18 Some Pass (elev. near sealevel, 80 mile north of Seattle)

You should bring your thermos with awarming fluid to fend off cool weather, warm clothing and raingear, and your own lunch. We should wrap things up by 3:00PM. There will be nopotluck.

For more information call Coleman Leuthy.

SOME CREEK FIELD TRIPREPORT Doug Ward

In spite of the heavy rain, 29 members drove up theCreek road in Chelan County and gathered some Creek Campground onthe weekend of 9/30 and 10/1. A roaring fire, hot coffee, and acozy, but dry, shelter in the woods made a potentially miserableday, weatherwise, into a great weekend. Several newer members cameto their first weekend and were rewarded with a decent find ofmatsutake mushrooms. The rains provided the moisture needed toproduce a decent number of fungi to look at, identify, and, in somecases, eat as part of the potluck.

As the field-trip host, I would like to offer mythanks to Brian Luther, Sara Clark, and Larry Baxter for handlingthe identification. Fifty-six different fungi were collected andidentified, with six from the genus Suillus alone.Interesting or unusual species included Hygrophorusagathosmus, Lentinellus vulpinus, Suillusalbidipes, Spongipellisspumeus, and Albatrellus ellisii.

Fourteen lucky people stayed for the potluck, wherewe shared a host of hot entrees, salads, desserts, and theinevitable wine and microbrewery beer. It was also the occasion tosay good-bye for the winter to Pat and Ron Pyeatt as they areheading off in their trailer and monster truck to parts South.

This Field Trip REPORTBrian Luther

I arrived at this beautiful state park on HoodCanal at 6:30 Saturday morning, October 7, while it was still dark,knowing that the shelters are on a first come, first serve basisonly. I got the shelter and picnic tables all swept and cleanedoff, built a fire, and set up all my identification stuff and thenthought it was odd that I had to wait more than two and a halfhours for the first people to show up. Unbeknownst to me, DV Corey(chair of field trip hosting) had simultaneously set up camp at adifferent shelter in the park, with all the PSMS directional arrowsgoing his way.

This mix-up gave us all a goodlaugh, but at about 11:00 AM. we were all comfortably consolidated together at theKitchen No. 2 shelter, by the boat launch parking lot. Good thingsomebody wandered over and connected with the other group, or wewould have had no identifier at one, no host at the other, and twoseparate, very small and most likely inadequate potlucks. Specialthanks to Corey for hosting.

Fifty-two people signed in, and eight or ten stayedfor potluck. Some yellow and white chanterelles were found, but notin great abundance and many were moldy and unfit for consumption. Afew collections of Pleurotus were also brought in, but notin big quantities. Fifty-five species were identified anddisplayed. The winner of the beauty contest for the day was astunning collection of absolutely prime Chicken of the Woods (Laetiporussulphureus), with gorgeous bright orange caps and brilliantsulfur yellow pores. Eight different species of Russulashowed up, making it the generic front runner of the day. Otherrare or interesting finds included two good collections of Asterophora lycoperdoides (which grows only on oldmummified Russulas) and a small collection of the polyporeOligoporus fragilis.

Socially and weatherwise, it was a great day. Wewere blessed with the appearance of two old timers, Dave Schmittand Russ Kurtz, who hadn't seen each other in many, many years.Both dug right in and helped people with their collections. It wasgreat to see them, to get their help, and to reminisce all day. Wewere also visited by several members of the Bremerton mushroom club(Kitsap Peninsula Mycological Society). For potluck, we had freshsilver salmon fillet, barbecued over the camp fire, lasagna, etc.,and I passed around a bottle of Belgian Trappist Monk beer(Chimay), which was met with approval by all who sampled it.

Just after potluck, we started to pile more wood onthe camp fire for some extended after dinner socializing, when thepark ranger (I believe his name tag said Party Pooper) came by andtold us to clear out. Bummer. Everybody pitched in to get cleanedup in short notice, but appreciated the terrific day that we didhave together.

Some Pass Field TripReport Brian Luther

Our spot for the field trip October 21 couldn'thave been prettier, situated at the large day use shelteroverlooking Cranberry Lake on the north end of Whidbey Island.Thanks to Ross and Val Othus, our hosts for the day, everything waswell organized. All members got a warm welcome, a hot cup ofcoffee, and some goodies to start the morning off right and couldtake a break during the day and stand by the big fire that Rossbuilt in the fireplace. We lucked out and got a gorgeous day afterhaving had so much rain on Thursday and Friday. Maybe this is whywe had such a good turnout, with a large proportion being newmembers.

The real treat for the day was the highly unusualpresence of so many talented identifiers, including Margaret Dilly,Coleman Leuthy, Sara Clark, and Larry Baxter. Geoff Clark used acouple of different cameras and got some group pictures. It's rareto have so much brain power available at a field trip. Because ofthis, all of the specimens were identified, with almost nothingresidual left unnamed, and members received plenty of help withtheir collections throughout the day.

Only small quantities of good edibles were found,but we had a great selection of fungal diversity displayed on theID tables. By far, the most frequently and abundantly collectedfungus was Hygrophoropsis aurantiaca (the False Chanterelle), whichwas found in a remarkable array of color forms varying fromcreamy-white capped and stemmed to dark brown and fuzzy.Ninety-eight species of fungi were identified and displayed, witheight just from the genus Agaricus alone. Interesting, rare,or unusual fungi included Cantharellulaumbonata, Mycenapurpureofusca, Tylopilus pseudoscaber, and a nice collection of Helvellaelastica. The prize for the biggest and best mushroomclearly goes to Ross Othus, who took a brief walk in the park andcame back with a spectacular 12-inch-diameter Agaricusaugustus (The Prince) in perfect condition. Ross and Val,tell us how you fixed it. Yum!

Many stayed for a good potluck to cap the day off,and the tastiest dish award definitely goes to Val Othus, whosautéed a variety of the good edibles found and made anelegant cream of mushroom soup (including, among other fungi, Cantharelluscibarius, Tricholoma aurantium, Lobster mushrooms, etc.).After potluck we all sang happy birthday to Ross and Val'sgranddaughter, who was turning eight. We were treated to abeautiful sunset over Cranberry Lake to finish off what turned outto be a remarkable day of friendship, fungi, and food.

VOLUNTEER THANK-YOU PARTY

Volunteers who worked on the AnnualExhibit are invited to a ``Volunteer Thank You Party'' Friday,November 17, at 7:00 PM at Fran Ikeda's home. Pizza will be served.

Unusual Gymnopilus at the PSMSShow Michelle Seidl

A curious Gymnopilus had theidentifiers' eyes rolling at the recent PSMS Fall 2000 mushroomexhibit. The cap was colored brown to russet and covered withnumerous vinaceous scales. An annulus was present which was fairlythick (submembranous), but became fibrillose after cap expansionand appeared as a densely
fibrillose annular zone. The stipe had a thick cream coloredannulus, which soon was dusted with an orange-colored spore print.The stipe had beautiful vinaceous colors overall, and the base wascovered with yellowish white mycelium. Some fruiting bodies hadyellow tones in the lower half, the apex was pale vinaceous, andthe midsection a pale creamy light yellowish brown. When thespecimens were cut in half, the context was pallid or yellowishwhite, quickly changing to reddish or reddish vinaceous in the capand stipe. Under the microscope, the spores were dextrinoid (redbrown in Melzer's solution), ellipsoid, and verruculose or warty,and 5.6- 7.4 × 3.7-4.4 microns in length. Abundantcheilocystidia were also present in the shape of long-neckedbowling pins.

The beast is Gymnopilus luteifolius (Peck)Singer and was found growing on conifer wood. It occasionally hasbeen found on hardwoods. It is uncommon and has been seen only afew times during the past 21 years by Dr. Joe Ammirati. It haspopped up in waste piles and gardens.

Taxonomically and morphologically it seems veryclose to a new species I described in 1989 called Gymnopilusthiersii (in honor of the now late Dr. Harry Thiers). Thattaxon differs by having nondextrinoid spores and a few other veryminor details. According to Dr. Bettye Rees, the currentGymnopilus worker at the University of New South Wales inAustralia, the two are truly different. Her work is on thesystematics of Gymnopilus. The spore print is being sent toher for DNA work and possibly the specimen at a later date.

If anyone has any informationon who the collector was and where it was collected, please let meknow. We would be greatly indebted to you, aswould science in general!

Michelle T. Seidl
Department of Botany, Box 351330
University of Washington
Seattle, WA 98195 USA
Lab: (206) 685-2428
Office: (206)6 85-1102
Fax: (206) 543-3262

PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE Joanne Young

Thanks to everyone who worked to make our annualmushroom show a success! Ben Woo (a.k.a. General Woo) and Ron Postdeserve our congratulations for making the move to a new locationwork so well and for converting a gloomy jailhouse into a friendlyand educational space. Russ Kurtz' team of mushroom collectors dida great job bringing in beautiful, well-chosen specimens. PatriceBenson and the chefs in Mycophagy kept great smells wafting overthe entry and displays, and kept anyone from complaining about theprice increase. Alissa Allen and Joshua Birkebak made the best-everBlack Light display, complete with bags of glow-in-the-darkmycelium. Marion Maxwell, manager extraordinaire, assumed thetremendous task of orchestrating the flow of mushrooms fromcollections to the heart of the exhibit, the display trays. KarinMendell took on book sales, a great source of income for our cluband a service to mushroom enthusiasts! Thanks also to Frances Ikedaand Marcia Hiltzheimer, who kept the workers fueled with potluckcontributions from other working members. Bernice in membershipkept signing up new members; it must be her nice smile! BillBridges did a bang up job with construction, and for that we aregrateful. A special thanks to Paul Stamets of Fungi Perfecti, whohas donated about 200 copies of Growing Medicinal and EdibleFungi , as well as many pounds of mushrooms for the mushroomtasting. Thank you to every single volunteer; we did a greatjob!

A nominating committee has been formed to selectinterested members for next year's election of two officers andfive members of the PSMS board of trustees. We welcome your ideas,input, and energy. If you would like to run for the board, or knowof someone who would, contact either Patrice Benson, Ron Post, orBrandon Matheny. Elections will be held in February.

Start digging out those slides for the cookie bashin December and be ready to share some of your travel or mushroomadventures with the PSMS mushroom family.

MUSHROOM MISSIONARIES

On September 25, Patrice Benson gave atwo-hour mushroom talk to the Les Dames D'Escoffier, which wascovered by the Seattle Times . On September 13, Dick Sieger gavea talk to the Olympic Peninsula Mycological Society at Gardiner,Washington. On September 30 and November 1, Patrice Benson andDick Sieger gave a two-day seminar to the Olympic PeninsulaMycological Society in Chimacum, Washington.

CULTIVATION CORNER Jennifer Cochrane

Ed Foy is back! Not really, but he will come up forweekends in the winter to demonstrate mushroom cultivation at theArboretum. His first visit is Sunday, December 3, when he will beworking with Pleurotuseryngii, the King Oyster. The cost is $15. Sign up at theNovember meeting, learn how to cultivate, and take back a bag togrow at home.

Hericium ``Crab'' Cakes AlisonColwell

1 lb Hericiumfungus,
torn into small pieces and de-grubbed to taste

½ stick butter

2 eggs

3 TBs sour cream or mayonnaise

2·TBs minced parsley

2 TBs minced celery

1 TBs lemon juice

½ tsp Worcestershire sauce

½ tsp paprika

¼ tsp salt

dash of Tabasco to taste

1 cup fine bread crumbs

cornmeal

vegetable oil

Melt butter. Put half of it in a bowl for the cakesmixture and sauté the fungus in the other half until it issoft and the liquid mostly absorbed. Allow to cool. Mix butter,eggs, sour cream, parsley, celery, lemon juice, Worcestershiresauce, paprika salt, and Tabasco. Then add bread crumbs and cooledfungus and mix just until it holds together. Press mixture into½ cup measure to form patty, tip out and press to less than1 inch into cornmeal. You can chill the cakes up to a day at thispoint, or cook right away. Preheat corn oil, then fry patties untilgolden brown, about 2-3 minutes each side.Drain on paper towels.

Note: I don't recommend steaming the fungus to cookas it can become bitter.

Give a PSMS membership for Christmas.