This is a guided hike to learn more about fall mushrooms. We’ll find out how to differentiate edible honey mushrooms from several other similar species, some of which can be poisonous. We’ll also know about mushrooms associated with mycorrhiza of honey mushrooms such as Aborted Entoloma or shrimps of the woods.

Honey Mushrooms (Armillaria sp.) were just recently categorized as one species, but now this species is divided into approximately ten different. We’ll look for Armillaria mellea known as Joney Fungus and widely distributed in forests around Ottawa. This mushroom usually appears in early or mid-September and can be found until late October.  These mushrooms are parasites and often colonize the base of trees or stumps. Honey mushrooms can be bioluminescent and may cause a white glow of stumps at night. Honey mushrooms are regarded in many areas as one of the best wild mushrooms.

There are several mushrooms that are similar in appearance but need to be distinguished as they can be deadly poisonous. So, we’ll learn how to distinguish the Deadly Galerina (Galerina autumnalis) and Sulphur Tuft (Hypholoma fasciculare). Besides, we’ll look for Aborted Entoloma or Shrimps of the Woods (Entoloma abortivum), which are also observed in the habitats where honey mushrooms can be found. These are also edible delicious mushrooms, which we’ll learn how to identify.

This is a trip for mushroom lovers. We will meet in Ottawa at the parking lot near Fletcher Garden at 9:00 am on Saturday, September 24, and drive to the areas where we can find Honey Mushrooms and other listed species. We expect to find not only the listed above species but many others as well. This fall is relatively wet and we hope to find many fruiting species, which we’ll be able to identify in the field. We will learn to distinguish edible mushrooms from non-edible mushrooms, we will get acquainted with several fairly common poisonous mushrooms. We will find out how to distinguish between different groups of fungi: bracket fungi, coral fungi, boletes, agaric mushrooms, morels, hedgehogs, chanterelles, and their relatives. Carpooling is welcome. If you are thinking to share the driving with someone, please contact us in advance so that we can arrange a convenient meeting point for you. Please, leave a message below, if you plan to join us and we’ll share communication contact with more details.

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