DATE: Tuesday October 17, 2017.
LOCATION: 2: 45 – 5:15 pm Nature Reserve, Arboretum – University of Guelph.
Foray will be led by Diane Borsato (Studio Arts/FYS) and Alan Gan (Senior member of the Mycogical Society of Toronto).
We will be meeting at 2:40 at the entrance to the Nature Reserve, which is just west of Victoria Rd. on the south side of Stone Rd. Look for my white Honda CRV parked at the side of the road. Avoid bringing a car if possible. Use bikes/walk – there is not a lot of space to park. Bring a basket!!
IMPORTANT NOTE: Never eat wild mushrooms unless you are certain of their identity as a safe species, and have a great deal of experience collecting and identifying mushrooms. There are no easy ways to determine the edibility of a specimen, except by knowing its identity. There are many toxic and deadly look-a-likes to edible species. Our foray will be for research purposes only, we will not be collecting “for the pot.”
Adapted from the Mycological Society of Toronto website:
PREPARATION FOR FORAYS
We recommend that you prepare for a foray with the following items.
- Basket (plastic bags cause fungi to sweat and deteriorate)
- Sharp Knife (by breaking the stem you may lose important identification features below ground)
- Paper Bags or Wax Paper (this will keep your fungi separated and preserved until you are able to identify them later)
- Whistle (in case you get separated from your group or need assistance, as a safeguard walk in groups of three and not alone)
- Compass (another safeguard, learn to use one)
- Hand Magnifying Glass (for better identification in the field)
- Insect Repellent (There are unlikely to be insects during our foray in October)
- Clothing (appropriate for the weather, with good coverage to avoid scratches and insect bites)
- Hiking Boots (as opposed to running shoes, these will protect you from insects, poison ivy, sharp protuberances and other injuries; i.e., twisting your ankle)
- Rubber Boots and Rain Wear (particularly if it is wet)
- Field Guide (to help identify your fungi; if you do not have one, leaders can usually recommend one)
And for examples of mushrooms in contemporary art see:http://www.dariore.com/mushroomresource.html
A little about John Cage and mushrooms too: https://hyperallergic.com/118615/john-cage-mushroom-hunter/