2020-21 Season

2020/2021 Season

2020-2021 MCMC Monthly Meeting Lineup

General Club meetings - All are welcome.
We’ll socialize and talk mushrooms. If anyone finds any mushrooms, please bring them for show and tell.

Meeting Date: Second Monday, September through May
Time: 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm
Venue: online via Zoom

Mendocino Coast Mushroom Club Presents…
September 14:
   Mushroom Hunting: where to go, what to look for and how to get there and back safely
Presenters: Dennak Murphy & Jill Surdzial
Meeting Recording

October 12:
  Photographing Mushrooms
Presenter: Jon Klein
Sorry, no recording available.

November 9:
  Nature Journaling-Drawing Mushrooms
Presenter: Mary-Ellen Campbell
Sorry, no recording available.

December 14:
  Cooking with Mushrooms
Presenter: Chad Hyatt
See also: The Mushroom Hunter's Kitchen and Catalego
Meeting Recording

January 11:
"Let It Bleed: The Lactarius of California"
Presenter: Noah Siegel
   See also: Mushrooms of the Redwood Coast
Sorry, recording no longer available.

February 8:
"Edible Mushrooms of the Lanna Kingdom"
An exploration of the culture of foraging and cooking the edible mushrooms of Northern Thailand.
Presenter: Zachary (Mazi) Williams
Meeting Recording
Zachary provided us with his presentation, his recipe for Nam Prik Hed and the colorful poster of mushrooms of Thailand. Look for these in the Bio section below.

March 8:
  "Fire and Fungi in California: Past, Present, and Future"
  Presenter: Thea Chesney
Meeting Recording
Chat Transcript

April 12:
  TBD
Presenter: TBD

May 10: LAST MEETING OF THE SEASON
"Bioluminescent and fluorescent mushroom hunting."
Presenter: Alan Rockefeller
Meeting Recording
Chat Transcript

Mary-Ellen Campbell

Mary-Ellen Campbell taught Nature Journaling-Mushrooms at the Nov 9 Monday meeting.

She gave a presentation on what Nature Journaling is; what you should be observing when journaling; a simple how-to on mushroom drawing and supplies if you want to journal on your own.

After a 3 year grant as Visiting Artist and Artist-in-Residence at the Mendocino Art Center, Mary-Ellen Campbell has made the move to Caspar from her native New York. She was a Full Professor of Art at New Jersey City University, NJ. for thirty-four years. She has taught Book Arts workshops across the US and abroad. Her education includes a BA in Art Education, St. John’s University,NY, an MA from Michigan State University, and an MFA from Pratt Institute, NY.
As a multidisciplinary artist who does graphics, painting, sculpture, printmaking, book arts, and mixed media work, she has had 16 national/international solo exhibitions and over 80 group and invitational shows. In 2004-05 she was awarded the Fulbright Scholar Grant to teach Book Arts in Thailand. Her works are in many special collections across the country. Mary-Ellen won 12 residencies since 2007 in Finland, New Zealand, Australia, Turkey, Costa Rica, Colorado, N. Carolina, California and Minnesota creating more than 75 books and mixed media artworks.

Chad Hyatt

Chad Hyatt was the presenter for the Dec 14 meeting.
Meeting Recording

It is time to question the standard lore about mushroom cookery. Beliefs about how to handle and cook mushrooms, where they fit into a meal, and even what mushrooms are good to eat seem driven more by superstition and tradition than by an understanding of their flavors, aromas, and chemistry. This presentation will take a more modern look at their cooking. The audience should learn some useful tools to breathe new life into their mushroom cooking, with the help of some easy, delicious recipes anyone can try at home. This presentation is meant to be very interactive, with questions encouraged throughout.

Bio:
Chad Hyatt is both a highly knowledgeable mushroom hunter and a classically trained chef, based out of the San Francisco Bay Area. He recently released an innovative new wild mushroom cookbook, The Mushroom Hunter’s Kitchen. Chad frequently teaches wild mushroom cookery at private and public events, does wild mushroom pop-up dinners, and leads mushroom walks. His unique perspective and knowledge base have made Chad a fixture at wild mushroom related events around the US in recent years. In this presentation, Chad will share some recipes from his book, to introduce some fun and delicious new applications and cooking techniques that you can try at home. If all goes well, this should change the way you think about cooking mushrooms.

Noah Siegel

Noah Siegel was the presenter for the Jan 11 meeting.

Noah’s field mycology skills are extensive – he has spent over two decades seeking, photographing, identifying, and furthering his knowledge about all aspects of macrofungi. He has hunted for mushrooms throughout the United States and Canada, as well as on multiple expeditions to New Zealand and Australia.

He is one of the premier mushroom photographers in the nation, having won numerous awards from the North American Mycological Association (NAMA) photography contest. His technique and attention to detail are unrivaled, arising from a philosophy of maximizing utility for identification purposes while maintaining a high degree of aesthetic appeal. His photographs have appeared on the covers and have been featured in articles of multiple issues of FUNGI Magazine and Mushroom the Journal, the primary mushroom enthusiast magazines in the United States, numerous mushroom books, as well as many club publications.

He is co-author, along with Christian Schwarz, of Mushrooms of the Redwood Coast, a comprehensive guide for the northern California coast. With full treatments of more than 750 species, and references to hundreds more, tips on mushroom collecting, descriptions of specific habitats and bio-zones, updated taxonomy, and stunning photography, this book is the most modern and comprehensive guide to mushrooms in the region.

Please buy the book from the authors' website or your local book seller.

Noah travels and lectures extensively across America, following the mushrooms from coast to coast, and everywhere in between.

Alan Rockefeller

Alan Rockefeller was the presenter for the May 10 meeting.
Meeting Recording

Luminescent and Fluorescent Mushrooms
A slideshow of mushrooms from various location throughout the USA and Mexico that glow, either on their own or under a UV light. Alan gives tips and hints for how to photograph them as well as his favorite gear, including UV flashlights.

Alan roams the globe studying mushrooms—has microscope; will travel. Based out of Oakland, CA, Alan does DNA sequencing, photography, identification for iNaturalist(44,000 IDs in 2020!) and is also one of the most knowledgeable people on the planet concerning psilocybe mushrooms and their distribution.

Much of his photography is on display on his Facebook page, along with lots for great tips on how to photograph mushrooms and advice on gear. You'll also find links to his published articles.

Thea Chesney

Thea Chesney was the presenter for the March 8 meeting.
Meeting Recording

Fire and Fungi in California: Past, Present, and Future
Every aspect of life in California is shaped by fire, and fungi are no exception. Some fungi are famous for their relationship to fire (morels, anyone?) but what about the rest of them? And what is happening with our fungi as the pattern and intensity of fires continue to change? There are many unknowns.

In this talk, Thea covers a basic history of fire in California, discusses the ecology of fire, plant communities and fungal communities, introduces some of the fire-adapted fungi with which we are rapidly becoming acquainted, and talks about what we might see in the future.

Thea is a lifelong Sierra Nevada foothill resident and naturalist. Her childhood interest in local mushrooms, wildlife, and flora has transformed into a lifelong devotion to the natural world. She earned her BS in forestry from UC Berkeley while pursuing her passion for fungal taxonomy in the Berkeley mycology labs, and since then has spent her time exploring the California mountains and the organisms that call them home. She currently works for the Forest Service on a long term, state-wide meadow monitoring project. Though she now spends her summer days identifying sedges and other wetland plants, she has never stopped looking for mushrooms. She continues to be particularly fascinated by the fungi of the Sierra Nevada and other mountains of California, and is currently working on a field guide to mushrooms of these understudied regions.

Zachary (Mazi) Williams

Zachary (Mazi) Williams was the presenter for the Feb 8 meeting.
Meeting Recording

Edible Mushrooms of the Lanna Kingdom
Northern Thailand, a collection of nine provinces in the far northern part of the country is unique in several fascinating ways. The region is very mountainous, and borders both Myanmar and Laos, jutting up into the center of the SE Asian peninsula. Centered around the largest city in the area, Chiang Mai, the area was once the powerful Lanna Kingdom (1269-1558), and remained locally administered until it's last king died in 1939. Not surprisingly, the food and cultures of Northern Thailand is unique. Forest management and foraging is a big part of its history, rich in various Hill Tribes (cuisines/customs) that have moved from China and around the SE Asian peninsula and operated as small communities outside of the kingdoms themselves.

This talk is an opportunity to join me on my journey as I recount my explorations of the (mostly wild) edible mushrooms in Northern Thailand, the culture of foraging & cooking, with language and recipes woven in, through the eyes of a curious chef. Thailand is an emerging myco-region, so it is a special time to be here, helping to bring more attention to the incredible edible mycoflora of the world.

Classically trained in the art of French cuisine, with a personal love of New American and Pacific Northwest cuisine, Chef Zachary Mazi creates an organic, foraged, local, & imaginative experience in global cuisine whether dining in the kitchen or presenting on Zoom. With a background in earth sciences (BS Geological Sciences) intertwined with nearly 3 decades working in the food industry, and a self-guided studies in permaculture farming, herbal & mushroom medicines, Chef Mazi provides a comprehensive and inspirational view on how to eat better.

He currently lives and forages with his fiancé Kimbery Hunter in Chiang Mai, Thailand. He is the owner-chef-imaginator at The Food Bender, a budding cookbook author, and mycophagy researcher. See his self-published work on patreon.com/mycophagybook.

Want to cook something NEW? Check out my #QuarantineQuookbook Volume 1, created during lock-down in Thailand in April! 60+ recipes with photos and semi-hilarious commentary for you to enjoy.

Follow this link below to get a FREE PDF VERSION of my study of Thai Cuisine (and also some Mexican, American Brunch and Italian favorites).

Zachary generously provided us with his presentation, his recipe for Nam Prik Hed and the colorful poster of wild edible mushrooms of Thailand. Download and enjoy!

mushrooms_of_the_lanna_kingdom_update_2_8_21.pdf
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nam_prik_hed_gaeng_panaeng__qqv2_excerpt_.pdf
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wild_edible_mushrooms_of_thailand.jpg
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