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PSMS Inclusivity Statement
For over fifty years, the Puget Sound Mycological Society (PSMS) has nurtured collaboration amongst its members for an understanding and appreciation of the wide diversity of mushroom species in the Pacific Northwest. We also depend on a diverse membership to support our mission to foster the understanding and appreciation of mycology as a hobby and a science. In recent months, as systematic inequality in U.S. society is revealed to a broader audience, it becomes clearer that inequality imposes barriers on marginalized groups to participation in a wide variety of activities. PSMS opposes all barriers that limit participation in mycology. PSMS and its board members support a more diverse, inclusive, and welcoming organization where all people, especially those who are underrepresented in our organization and society at large, can enjoy mushrooms and all of the activities associated with them. We realize this will be an on-going conversation and are looking to our members for suggestions on ways to increase diversity, inclusivity, and welcoming. Thank you as we join together to make this long-overdue journey toward systemic equality!
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If You Suspect
a Poisoning
Contact a physician or Washington Poison Center: 1-800-222-1222
More Poison InformationSpore Prints Newsletter
Spore Prints is the monthly newsletter of PSMS containing announcements of coming events and speakers, plus a variety of tidbits, trivia, recipes, and research developments.
Spore Prints Archive
Harvesting Rules
Washington state is divided into numerous federal, state, local and Native American jurisdictions. Learn the proper rules for each jurisdiction.
Harvesting Information
Upcoming Events
Tuesday, Nov. 9, 2021 - 7:00pm
Monthly Meeting
Wren Hutchings - Guiding at PSMS Field Trips and Safety in the Woods
Shannon Adams - From Saucepan to Science! Take the Next Step on your Fungal Adventure
Our general meeting will be held on Tuesday November 9, 2021 at the Center for Urban Horticulture. In line with the mandates provided by the University of Washington and the State of Washington, Masks will be required and by vote of the PSMS Board, proof of Vaccination will also be required. We hope that by next year we can include children under 12 again since PSMS has always been a family friendly organization.
Entry to the meeting will begin at 7:00 p.m. and the program will begin at 7:30 p.m. We will be having a hybrid In-Person / Zoom meeting. Verbal participation will be restricted to in-person only to prevent Zoom Bombing.
Click here to join this meeting virtually.
This month we are planning on having two speakers.
From 7:45-8:15 pm, Wren Hudgins will present a talk on "Guiding at PSMS Field Trips and Safety in the Woods."
Wren Hudgins is a psychologist by profession and (amateur) mycologist by passion. He joined PSMS in 1974 and, apart from living in France and Switzerland for a few years, has been a club member ever since. Coming to his senses about 15 years ago, he moved from passive to active membership. He revived a tradition, which had died, of taking new members out on field trips in order to stay safe and learn habitat. Like most members at their entry into the mushroom world, his priority was eating. After a while, finding mushrooms became priority #1 and eating was relegated to #2. Finally, identifying has become #1 and eating is now down to third priority. He co-chairs the Field Trip Safety Committee, is a member of the Identification and Education committees, and won last year's Golden Mushroom Award for service to the club. He will talk about field trips, field trip guiding, how to become a guide, and safety in the woods.
From 8:20-9:20 pm, Shannon Adams will present "From Saucepan to Science! Take the Next Step on your Fungal Adventure."
New developments in citizen science make it easier than ever to make a lasting contribution to knowledge of our fungi. Shannon Adams will share her journey from learning to forage to an interest in taxonomy, steps which led her to describe a new mushroom species. Join her to find new ways to enjoy your mushroom hobby whether it is taking a few photographs to becoming the world expert in the mushrooms in your own backyard. In addition to her interest in fungi, Shannon's background is in sociology, ethnography, and consulting, primarily in the tech sector. Currently, she is working as a UX Researcher at Facebook supporting product and marketing teams.