Skip to main content Skip to navigation
Summer 2024

Fungus

Sunflower destroyed by white mold
Winter 2022

Bad fungus

Not all fungi are good for plants or bees, or even people.

Anyone who has experienced mold outbreaks, wilting vegetable plants, or devastated flowers knows the destructive power of fungi. Washington State University researchers and Extension outreach specialists lead the fight against some these sinister fungi.

 

Fighting fungus in apples, pears under storage

Molds and fungi can wreck a good apple or pear.

Just ask Achour Amiri, assistant professor and researcher at the Washington State University Tree Fruit Research & Extension Center in Wenatchee. He specializes in diseases that spoil tree fruit and he can be found working in packing rooms … » More …

Book cover with mushroom
Fall 2020

Shroomin’ – A mushroom reading list

Mushrooms, like the very forests in which they are found, are sources of both danger and wonder.

And not all embrace them.

For many, mushrooms—used in sacred rituals and as sustenance since ancient times—contain an aura of mystery. They’re often associated—especially in literature, poetry, and fairytales—with malevolence, supernatural powers, darkness, death, and decay. Mushrooms were fairy food, the way witches caused trouble for gardens and crops, and ingredients in poisons and potions, enchantments and aphrodisiacs.

Famous scribes—from Percy Shelly, Lord Alfred Tennyson, and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle to D.H. Lawrence, H.G. Wells, and Ray Bradbury—all wrote about menacing mushrooms. Emily Dickinson insulted them: Had Nature … » More …

Porcini and chanterelle mushrooms on a cutting board with knife
Fall 2020

Chanterelle recipes

 

Delicious ways to enjoy local chanterelle mushrooms.

Read more about Pacific golden chanterelles.

 

Mushroom Risotto

from WSU Creamery

This creamy, comforting risotto features WSU’s own Cougar Gold cheese as well as a mix of mushrooms, including seasonal chanterelles.

4 tablespoons butter

⅓ cup peeled and minced shallots (or ⅓ cup white or yellow onion, finely chopped)

1 pound flavorful mushrooms (such as crimini, portobello, chanterelle, oyster, and shiitake, or a combination), thinly sliced.

1½ cups arborio rice

6 cups chicken broth

4 tablespoons fresh parsley, very … » More …

Morels
Summer 2016

Safe mushrooming 101

Advice and tips from Washington State University mycologist Lori Carris on safe hunting for mushrooms.

Read about morel mushrooms and Carris’s research.

Basic tips

Learn the rules & regulations for your area
Learn to recognize the common edible mushrooms AND poisonous mushrooms
Eat mushrooms in moderation even when you are confident of identification
Always cook mushrooms thoroughly before eating.
When in doubt, throw it out.

A good guidebook is essential

A mushroom guide should be:

Easy to use, with lots of color pictures
Accurate & up to date
Relevant to the area in which you are … » More …

Fall 2015

How to grow your own mushrooms

For Zachary Frederick, forest farming is a challenge. The WSU doctoral student grew up in the shady woods near Ithaca, New York, where he too learned to cultivate oyster mushrooms on logs. Upon landing in the wheat fields of Pullman, Frederick was momentarily stumped but soon learned to grow oyster mushrooms on rolls of toilet paper using a Tupperware tote as an incubator. For those who are interested in entry-level forest farming, here are a few ideas for growing your own mushrooms:

Growing mushrooms on a toilet paper roll (by 100th Monkey Mushroom Farm)

You can also buy mushroom kits and other supplies … » More …