January 16th, 7:30pm
in the Buckley Room of the Randall Museum

In this presentation, J.R. Blair will explore scientific name changes of fungi in the past few decades. Starting with a primer on taxonomic hierarchy (Domains, Kingdoms, Phyla, etc.), the Binomial System of Nomenclature, and species concepts, he will discuss the reasons that species names are changed and why higher level relationships (such as Genus and Family) have been shuffled by the scientific community.

J.R. Blair received his Bachelor’s degree at the Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington and obtained his Master’s degree at San Francisco State University in 1999 studying with the accomplished mycologist, Dr. Dennis Desjardin. His thesis was  Fungi Associated with Arctostaphylos in Northern California.
 
Since that time he has been an active member of the Mycological Society of San Francisco. He served a two-year term as President and was their Fungus Fair chairperson for five years. He has taught mushroom identification workshops for mycological societies and outdoor education programs for many years. He was a lecturer of biology at SFSU for 21 years until his retirement in 2020. He was the director of the Sierra Nevada Field Campus for a dozen years.

Transformed from a regular high school, El Camino High School was turned into a mushroom wonderland for hundreds of Bay Area fungi enthusiasts who came to enjoy and learn more about fungi. Tables of mushroom displays overflowed with a multitude of different species of mushrooms, staffed by mycologist ready to answer questions from curious attendants. A large woodlands display with real trees, shrubs and mushrooms adorned the cafeteria. There were educational tables sparking curiosity and educating fair goers about fungi and the environment. Present were the Microscopy Society, Beginning Mushroom areas, Ecology, BAAM (Bay Area Applided Mycology) with cultivation, DVC (Diablo Valley College) with cultivation, Toxicology, Psychoactive, Medicinal, FUNDIS (the Fungal Diversity Study), Culinary group and the MSSF Librarian. 
 

Seven amazing speakers presented talks that dwelt with different aspects of fungi throughout the day. David Arora, famous mycologist and author of “Mushroom Demystified” and “All That the Rain Promises and More” debunked common online misconceptions and myths about fungi. Else Vellinga fascinated the crowed with mushroom spores, Alan Rockefeller guided us through mushrooms of Ecuador, Christian Schwarz talked about Mushroom Bio-regions of The United States, Roberto Flores Arzu presented about Boletes of Guatemala, Kathryn Meier educated us about mushroom poisonings and Cat Adams presented on fungal arts.  
 

Five workshops were also happening; a mushroom dye workshop with Wilder Herbertson, a Miso workshop with Eleana Hsu, a mushroom ID workshop with JR Blair, a mushroom drawing workshop with Jack Laws and Cristian Schwarz taught people how to Assemble Hyper-local Myco-flora.
 

Far West Fungi was selling fresh organic mushrooms staffed by three generations of the Garrone family.  For those still looking for more mushroom shopping the courtyard was full of vendors selling different mushroom products. After a long hiatus due to Covid, MSSF was finally able to serve delicious mushroom soup again. Many were raving about the flavorful pumpkin shiitake soup, the hot and sour soup, and the mushroom barley soup. The big plump candy cap cookies were scrumptious. 
 

Another popular area visited by fair-goers of all ages was the craft zone.~.
Many attendees stayed for hours creating mushroom ornaments, buttons, plaques, sun prints, and mushroom snowflakes. The craft zone did not only promote mushroom art but educated and encouraged recycling. A great deal of the craft materials were meticulously recycled and collected. 
 

Photo credit: Lynn Buckner and Liz Vermillion

Thank you to all who attended and a big thank you to all the volunteers that made the fair possible. MSSF is a 100% volunteer-run organization.  

 
Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season and a great start to the mushroom season. Below is a brief visual recap from Mendo Camp 2023 to ring in the New Year and get everyone ready and excited for Mendo Camp 2024! 
 

• 8 duck legs
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 large onion
• 4 carrots
• 1 head fennel
• 4 ribs celery
• 5 tablsp olive oil
• 1 tablsp chopped garlic
• 3/4 lb of fresh porcini mushroom or dried equivalent
• 1/2 cup cognac
• 3 cups of duck or chicken stock
• 1 teasp salt
• Pepper to taste

Score the skin of the duck legs and season with salt and pepper. Heat a large heavy skillet and add four of the duck legs and cook them skin side down, until golden and the fat has been rendered, about ten minutes. Remove to a plate and set to one side. Repeat this process with the remaining 4 legs.

Peel and chop the onion and carrots. Wash and chop the fennel and celery.

In a casserole pot, heat the olive oil and add the onion, carrots, fennel, celery and garlic. Sauté for about ten minutes at a medium heat until the onions are glassy. Add the cleaned, sliced porcini mushrooms and cook for a further 5 minutes until the mushrooms are soft. 
Deglaze with the Marsala and then add the duck stock. Add the duck legs to the pot, bring to a boil and then place in the oven at 375 for 1 and 1/2 hours or until the duck legs are tender. Serve with soft polenta or mashed potatoes.
 

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Date: Monday, January 8, 2024: 6pm - 9pm
(Appetizers and brief Culinary Group business meeting before the main meal.)
Where: Hall of Flowers (aka County Fair Bldg.)
9th Avenue & Lincoln Way; Golden Gate Park; San Francisco

Menu:
       Main Dish: Mushroom-Shrimp Gumbo
       Vegetarian Alternative Main: Mushroom-"Shrimp" (veggie) Gumbo
       Louisiana Bayou Rice
       Romaine/Cranberry/Pecan Salad w/ Champagne Vinaigrette
       Dessert: Candy-cap Shortbread Cookies
       Coffee & tea

The MSSF Culinary Group is open to all members interested in the gastronomical aspects of mushrooming. We meet on the first Monday of each month, with a few exceptions when a holiday falls on the first Monday, to enjoy each other’s company and have a delicious meal. The dinners are open to current members of MSSF and the Culinary Group, and their guests. We are united in our love of cooking as well as our love of mushrooms. All participants contribute, either as part of the team that prepares the dinner, or by bringing an appetizer to share.

Traditionally, the dinners have been designed to take advantage of the wild mushrooms available, as well as the best and freshest food of the season. The menus are centered on mushrooms, ethnic foods, a particular main ingredient, or a holiday near the time of the dinner. Each dinner is led by a “captain” who sets the menu and organizes volunteers to cook the dishes, as well as handle setup and cleanup.

Dinner Fee: $20; guests $25; kids 1/2 price (To register, go to the "Members Only" area of mssf.org, and follow the prompts there. When registering, please check "pay at event" and ignore other payment options.)              

Mike Amaranthus opened the glass door of a refrigerator case that once stocked cold beer in a convenience store and peeled back the top of a big blue plastic container to reveal a musty brown powder. “Two tablespoons of this powder contain more spores than there are people
on earth,” he said. “You can imagine what you can do with 50 pounds.”

Amaranthus and a handful of other entrepreneurs are selling the spores of mushrooms, puffballs and truffles as an alternative to chemical fertilizers and pesticides - not just because they are organic and nature, but because 430 million years of evolution can’t be wrong. They help plants grow.

As proof, Amaranthus offers test plants - roses, maple trees and marigold - grown with and without the fungi. Those inoculated with spores are bigger, leafier and have more blooms. “Most people relate fungi to moldy bread and itchy toes, but 90 percent of the world’s plants form a beneficial relationship to fungi that we call the mycorrhizae, ”Amaranthus said. Hence the name of his company, Mycorrhizal Applications, Inc. 

The relationship can be traced to the earliest fossils of land plants, leading scientists like Amaranthus to theorize that fungi helped ancient aquatic plants make the jump to the hostile environment of dry land. Simply put, the fungi attach to the roots of the plant and help the plants take in moisture and nutrients through a network of tiny filaments called hyphae that spread through the soil, increasing the root mass 10 to 10,000 times. The plants feed the fungi in return. 

Through his doctoral work in forest ecology at Oregon State University and later work for the U.S. Forest Service’s Pacific Northwest Research Station, Amaranthus helped unravel the secret life of trees and mycorrhizal fungi. In 1997 he left the woods to bring mycorrhizae to the marketplace. He ran through his retirement savings getting started but is now making a profit and employing five people full time. The nonprofit organization Sustainable Northwest, which promotes ecological use of natural resources, recognized him as a Founder of the New Northwest this year. Amaranthus won’t divulge financial information but says last year Mycorrhizal Applications sold enough spores to inoculate 200 million plants. The company is gearing up to produce enough for 1 billion plants.

Plants link up with specific fungi so Mycorrhizal Applications makes custom mixes for commercial clients in a liquid, powder or gel. The spores can be dripped on through irrigation, sprayed on by cropduster, or dropped in the soil at planting time. “The results produced by fungi could be achieved applying fertilizer every two weeks but 70 to
90 percent of nitrogen applied in nurseries is not absorbed by the plants and ends up getting washed into rivers where it is a pollutant, ”Amaranthus said.

One inoculation of fungi lasts all year, costs pennies a plant, and produces a bigger root system that also is resistant to disease. 

— By Jeff Barnard, the Associated Press, Medford Mail Tribune,
August 15, 1999. First reprinted in Fungifama, newsletter of the
South Vancouver Island Mycological Society, 10/99 volume 6.7.
(Recommended by Larry Stickney)