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mobilemushrooms · 4 years
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When headed out on a mushroom foraging journey it’s important to bring along just a couple basic tools:
1. Bug Spray
I like to wear long pants most of the time to deter bugs but spray is important either way. I’ve already encountered a horrendous number of ticks this season and snakes so be safe out there!
2. Knife
An important part of thoroughly identifying fungi is to slice cross sections to determine bruising colors, interior consistencies, textures etc. Plus a knife is a great tool for collecting a specimen from the stipe without disturbing the mycelial network beneath.
3. Basket or Paper Bags
You’ll find most foragers in the mushroom community use baskets for collecting their specimens. Baskets are a great way to let your mushrooms breathe and even continue to drop their spores as you walk through the forest. But, if you’re like me, carrying a heavy camera and lenses, a field guide, in a backpack, brown paper bags may work best. I recently bought a 50 pack of paper lunch bags and they've worked really well for keeping my mushrooms aerated, divided by species, and contained.
4. Camera or Journal
An important part of learning your fungi is to be able to record characteristics. A camera (even a phone camera) works great for documenting ecology, size, color, texture, fruiting surface, mycelium color, etc. and/or journal and pen to handwrite information.
5. Field Guide
This last item isn’t always necessary but its extremely helpful for those just beginning their journey into mushroom identification. Two field guides I highly recommend are:
              Walter E. Sturgeon’s Appalachian Mushrooms: a Field Guide 
              David Arora’s All that the Rain Promises and More...       
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