Keeping the Fun in Fungi

Originally published in the Fall 2019 issue of Spoke+Blossom

Rustula

PHOTO COURTESY MARGOT BECKTELL

Scott Koch is proud to be a fungi fanatic. With the enthusiasm of a kid getting off their first rollercoaster ride, Koch shared how he went from an Americorps Forest Service volunteer 24 years ago in Oregon to the director of the Telluride Mushroom Festival, lifelong researcher and owner of the Telluride Mushroom Company today.

Chromosera cyanophylla

PHOTO COURTESY MARGOT BECKTELL

“I discovered this huge thing in the Oregon forest and didn’t know what it was,” says Koch. “I did my research, found it was edible, fed it to my family and decided that was totally cool!” His goal is to promote the relationship people and the environment have with mushrooms.

“Mushrooms and the environment are the foundation of what we see all around us,” adds Koch. “I want to educate people on all the benefits of mushrooms, from breaking down soil and feeding other plants, to improving air quality, to servicing as food and medicine for people.”

Koch believes fear of the unknown keeps many people from cooking with mushrooms, where globally, many countries use them on a regular basis. He stresses mushrooms such as buttons, which you purchase at the store, are easy to grow and are the responsible way to process waste.

“Pop culture has done wonders for mushrooms by using it in food,” says Koch. “The best way to learn about mushrooms is to go onforays and boost your confidence.”

Western Slope Fungophiles and the Colorado Mycological Society (CMS) are two active Colorado fungi groups offering plenty of mushroom forays and educational seminars closely associated with the Denver Botanical Gardens. Their mission is to promote the study and appreciation of mycology — to discover, photograph, identify, collect and preserve mushrooms.

“Based on the high level of moisture we have received so far, this year brings promise of becoming one of the memorable ones with bountiful fruiting of many different mushrooms,” says David Nazari, CMS president.

Typically, mushroom hunting season in Colorado begins in April and lasts through September. CMS’s earliest foray on record was actually February 2 of this year, where four different species were found among the snow.

“Late summer up to the fall’s first frost is agood time to hunt for mushrooms,” says Colorado Mesa University biology professor Dr. Margot Becktell, who teaches the mycology course at CMU. “You will often find the most mushrooms in cool, wet, forested areas — usually in forests that are high enough in elevation to support aspens and conifers.”

Where some grow and help break down dead organic matter, others have a symbiotic association with the roots of forest trees and shrubs. In other words, Becktell says you will find some types of mushrooms on dead, decaying logs and plant matter, while others will coexist with the living trees they exchange nutrients with.

Shaggy Scalycap (Pholiota squarrosa)

PHOTO COURTESY MARGOT BECKTELL

Despite her specialty, Becktell buys her “shrooms” from local growers and grocery stores. “What makes foraging interesting is different for different people,” says Becktell. “For me, it’s more about the hunting, finding, identifying, photographing and doing the ‘nerdy biology thing.’ Then I leave them alone to finish the reproductive cycle they worked so hard to get to.”

Becktell finds mushrooms to be extremely photogenic. As mushrooms may appear unimpressive looking down from the top, her passion is taking pictures from under the mushrooms where they are surprisingly beautiful. Her favorite hunting grounds are on the Grand Mesa and Kebler Pass.

Mushrooms like damp conditions, so hunting after a warm, heavy rainfall is an excellent time. In the spring, check for mushrooms around the edges of melting snow banks. CMS recommends hunting up a slope until you find mushrooms, as it’s harder to spot them coming down.

There are 54 varieties of edible mushrooms in Colorado, with morels, chanterelles and puffballs being the most common. Koch gets asked every day about “magic mushrooms,” but says these hallucinogenic species are neither on his radar nor have any chance of becoming legal.

With some mushrooms being poisonous, it is extremely important to never eat a mushroom until you have positively identified it. Some people have allergic reactions to some types of mushrooms, so it’s a good idea to eat them in moderation at first, and only after cooking, even if a mushroom has been identified as edible.

According to Koch, the best Colorado resource is “Mushrooms of the Rocky Mountain Region” by Vera Stucky Evenson.

The Mario Mushroom (Amanita muscaria)

PHOTO COURTESY OF MARGOT BECKTELL