(Radio Iowa) – Spring is the season where Iowa mushrooms hunters take to the woods looking for the edible fungus. Iowa State University Extension’s Chelsea Harbach says people can get carried away looking for mushrooms, but you have to follow the rules. “You’re not allowed to trespass on private lands to harvest mushrooms. You should only do so with permission,” she says. Harbach says D-N-R regulations do allow you to look for mushrooms on public lands.
“You are allowed to foraging public lands, however, you cannot sell any of the mushrooms that you collect from public lands. Those have to be for your own consumption,” she says. Morel mushrooms are one of the most popular types that people hunt for in Iowa. Harbach says many people have favorite sites where they’ve found morels, but she says they are not always guaranteed to deliver.
“Whether or not you’re going to see morels in the spring is so dependent on the environment. So, you know, sometimes it’s a good year, sometimes it’s a bad year. Last year was a good year. A couple years ago wasn’t so great,” Harbach says. She says the Iowa Morel Report on Facebook has thousands of followers and is a good source to see where the hot spots are. “People will send them reports of, like, you know, they’ve seen morels out and about in Iowa, and they’ll regularly post updates of the map in Iowa where morels have been sighted,” she says.
Harbach oversees I-S-U Extension’s certification classes for those who want to sell wild mushrooms. She says there are a list of eight different types, and all of them can pop up anywhere. “I found some chicken of the woods last year when I was out disc golfing. You never know when you’re going to find stuff. It’s almost like you almost always have to be ready,” she says.
Harbach says you should do some research and know which mushrooms are okay to eat and which ones are poisonous before you head out.
