News:

Mushroom Maynia Event at the Burke:

The Burke Museum, Daniel E. Stuntz Memorial Foundation and PSMS will be hosting the first Mushroom Maynia Day at the Burke Museum of the University of Washington on Sunday, May 4, 2008. This is a family oriented event to raise awarness of the fungi in our lives and world.

The one day event will include demonstrations of how to cultivate your own mushrooms, cook them into a tasty soup, or make them into dyes and crayons; as well as activities for children and adults. Dr Steve Trudel will present brief ecological fungal delights in the Burke Room where you will also be able to view some of the oldest mushroom specimens from the Fungal Herbarium collection. Microscopic wonders will be projected and mycologist Dr Joseph Ammirati will be available to answer the questions about our fungus friends. Artistic and craft displays will draw you in to the wonderful world of Fungi.

Mycology is intimately connected to the studies of forestry, botany, ecology, medicine, and the culinary arts. It is the goal of The Daniel E. Stuntz Memorial Foundation and PSMS to keep these connections alive by supporting the study of fungal systematics and the natural science of mushrooms.

Volunteers will be needed to assist with the displays and activities which will include family oriented cultivation and art activites and a mushroom soup tasting. Please contact Joanne Young, jd2young@aol.com to volunteer.

Mushroom Maynia! is made possible by the Daniel E. Stuntz Memorial Foundation and the volunteers of the Puget Sound Mycological Society. Many thanks to the Peg and Rick Young Foundation for their support of this new and unique event.

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Master Gardener ID Clinics:

Last June PSMS started a great collaboration with the Master Gardener clinics on Monday afternoons at CUH. For a few weeks in the Fall and Spring, one of our members will be available to help the public in mushroom identification and with mushroom information. We need some of you to step up and volunteer for sitting during the clinic hours to help with this project.

For the spring they are:
April 28
May 5, 12, 19, 26
June 2, 9, 16, 23

The clinics are held from 4 to 7 PM, usually in the atrium of CUH. Normally two Master Gardeners are there for all gardening enquires, and now one or two people from PSMS will also be available for people to drop in with their mushroom findings and ask questions. All our literature will be there for consultation.

For more information and to sign up, contact Cynthia Nuzzi at (206) 232–1320 or idclinics@psms.org. This year should be great for this new program. I look forward to seeing it mushrooming. Choose a date and sign up as soon as you can. Thank you all.

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Website Updates:

Check here for all recent additions to the website:

• Current field trip directions are now only listed in the electronic and printed versions of Spore Prints. (4/10/08)
• WA State Personal Use Mushroom Harvesting Rules (11/26/06)
• Our new board members are now listed on the contact page (4/2/06)
  
• Is This Mushroom Edible? poster was added to the edibility page (4/2/06)
  
• Poisoning Syndromes (1/8/05)
  
• Site Credits (1/18/05)
  
• New Website (09/12/04)

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