The Future of Fungi Starts with You
by Ash Shirazi, President, Oklahoma Mycological Society
“You should give up whatever job you have and just quit.
Just stop now and devote the rest of your life to mushrooms.”
— Gary Lincoff (1942 - 2018)
Over the past several years, my girlfriend, Rachel, and I have become obsessed with mushrooms. From Morel hunting to growing our own Shiitakes, we can’t help but admire how mysterious and unique they are. All the different ways in which they look, smell and taste makes it easy to fall in love, and the more we work with them the happier we become! At first we didn’t know where to begin, so we started where anybody would: the Internet. We went from website to website absorbing as much information as possible, but at times felt overwhelmed. Then, we visited a local library where we discovered a plethora of books covering a wide range of topics from medicinal mushroom qualities to DIY cultivation to environmental restoration to arts and crafts… and on it went.
Although our Western world is a bit mycophobic (fear of mushrooms), most of us use fungal products every single day without thinking twice! Yeasts are used in making bread, wine, beer and solvents. Drugs made from fungi cure diseases and stop the rejection of transplanted hearts and other organs. They’re great for cooking and are packed with vitamins and even produce the complex enzymes used in our favorite laundry detergents. After spending hours each day ingesting any form of fungal media, Rachel and I realized that fungi have much more to offer us than we’d ever expected — this only whet our appetites and soon we were looking to teach others.
Mushrooms are more closely related to animals than to plants
Fungi were listed in the Plant Kingdom for many years but are now placed independently in their own kingdom of equal rank. Like some animals, fungi have chitin in their cell walls and store reserve food as glycogen. Unlike plants, fungi lack chlorophyll and are hetero-trophic. Some fungi are decomposers living on dead organic material like leaves, while others cause disease by using living organisms for food. The mycorrhizal fungi live symbiotically with plants. They provide mineral nutrients to the plants roots in exchange for carbo-hydrates or other chemicals fungi cannot manufacture.
Around this same time we learned of community organizations known as mycological societies. They’re common all around the world and are typically established per city, state or country/region (i.e., San Diego; Arkansas; Central Texas; America). Similar to other horticultural societies, these mushroom groups work tirelessly to spread the mycelial network by fostering an understanding and appreciation of mycology (the study of fungi). They provide education and training for the proper collection, identification and documentation of fungi through hands-on workshops, mushroom festivals, art exhibits, seasonal forays and more. We thought to join our local mycological societies, before realizing there were none around! There are some great Facebook groups (OK Wild Mushroom Enthusiasts) but we wanted more. Combined with our desire to learn and educate others, this transformed our love of mushrooms into something wonderful: the Oklahoma Mycological Society.
Rachel and I were both raised in Tulsa so naturally our first impulse was to spark interest and conversations within our community. It’s always so exciting hearing from friends and family members about their own encounters with mushrooms! Soon after, we built a website — www.okfungi.com — and began reaching out to local organizations to help us bring our dreams into reality. In August, we befriended Ethan Miller and Joel Myers, cofounders of a medicinal mushroom farm in Collinsville known as Earthwise Mycology. In November, we partnered with the talented and supportive folks at the Tulsa Garden Center, an organization whose goals align with our own. Later that month, Circle Cinema graciously allowed us to host an exclusive film screening of ‘Fantastic Fungi’ to celebrate our inception — thanks again to everyone who came out and showed support!
Morel Hunting
Every spring, the woods are filled with people searching for edible morels, which are wonderfully delicious and fairly easy to identify. However, fungi contain many chemical compounds. The fungi on sale at the supermarket are species that are not only non-poisonous, but cause no irritating or allergic reaction for most people. The reaction from eating wild mushrooms is less predictable. If this is your first time eating a wild mushroom, even if others have safely eaten it before, or a book says it is safe, you must still be careful. You may be allergic or more sensitive than others. Be informed and use the following precautions if you decide to go morel hunting:
- Learn to identify morels by taking a class held by the OMS!
- Keep species separate. Don’t cook mixed collections.
- Before eating any morel, make sure the cap is pitted. Not smooth or wrinkled. Some false morels with smooth or wrinkled caps are poisonous.
- Always eat a small sample first. Wait before eating the rest to make sure you are not allergic. Some of the possible negative effects take three to six hours or longer to occur. Some problems only occur when large amounts of a fungus are eaten in one sitting or if eaten for two or more days in a row.
As we progress, we must work to sustain the future of the Oklahoma Mycological Society. 2020 will be our first year and we intend on covering a broad swath of topics featuring a variety of speakers. Charitable contributions provide opportunities to offer free or low-cost events, many of which will impart skills and knowledge that can be utilized by anyone.
Future events will cover the following topics:
- Intro to Mushrooms & Common Oklahoma Fungi
- Members Only Mushroom Identification Forays
- Tulsa Mushroom & Art Festival
- Oklahoma Reishi: Making Tea and Tinctures
- Psilocybin: Healing Mushrooms
- Beyond Portobellos: Cooking with Mushrooms
- From Forest to Food: Starting a Mushroom Farm
- Mycoremediation: Can Mushrooms Save Us from Plastic?
…and so much more!
How to become a member
Learning about mushrooms for any reason can be extremely rewarding and engaging. They’re just so interesting! We invite you to attend our meetings at the Tulsa Garden Center on the 2nd Tuesday of each month at 6:00PM. Our 2020 Event and Foray Schedule will be updated frequently and all changes are sent to subscribers of our mailing list (you can sign up on our website). For all inquiries, please contact us via our website and be sure to follow us on all social media @okfungi.