Jan 13, 2016, Fun with Fungi Lecture

This past Wednesday evening brought an excited group of participants to Ranch Headquarters to learn all about the fascinating world of mushrooms from Joanne Schwartz.  She explained how since 1966 she has been enthralled with this special group of organisms.  There are more than 2000 species alone in Orange County and 8-10,000 large species in the world.  In Oregon there is the largest single living organism in the world, covering more than 3 square miles.  While many are delicious some are deadly.  Do not eat them unless you have expert knowledge in identifying the species.  Joanne and husband Doug put our a very nice display of field guides, tools and references as well.  Fungi have caps, stipes, gills or pores and reproduce by way of spores.  The part we recognize as a mushroom is indeed a fruiting body not unlike an orange or apple and does not hurt the organism by removing the mature fruit.  There are many types and varieties of fungi and they are fascinating to learn about.  Thank you very much to Joanne and Doug for a wonderful presentation.