Thursday, April 23, 2015, 7:00 p.m. Palouse Prairie Foundation – INPS White Pine Chapter Joint meeting
Presenter: Lori Carris, Associate Professor, Department of Plant Pathology, WSU
Topic: Uncovering the Secrets of Morel Mushrooms
Location: Gladish Community Center, (Gold Room) 115 NW State St, Pullman WA

The morel (Morchella spp) is one of the most highly prized edible spring mushrooms around the world. Two types of morels have long been recognized—black morels (Morchella elata group), and yellow or common morels (Morchella esculenta group). Black morels are the predominant type found in our Pacific Northwestern conifer forests. Molecular research methods developed in the past decade provide evidence for a much greater number of species of morels that are habitat specialized. Molecular studies have also revealed that the center of origin and diversity for morels is most likely in western North America. The presentation will summarize the implications of this exciting research on morels, as well as recent research conducted in my lab at Washington State University that has documented a previously unrecognized stage of this iconic spring mushroom that occurs abundantly in late fall and early winter.