Morel Mushrooms

Anyone finding morels yet? After all the rain and the temps this week, I'm going to find some this weekend. Last year was a very dry year around STL and the mushroom harvest suffered so this year should be awesome. I'll post some pics when and if I find any.

Saw lots of people looking for them on Sunday. Not sure if they found any, but that has to be what they were doing. Good luck...hope you find lots of spongies!

I picked a dozen Saturday morning while turkey hunting and had them for lunch. That's the first I've seen in a long time around here.

I had about a hour of sunlight after I finally left the office and managed to find about a half pound. Old spot that produces well if the temps are correct. I think it is a little early for the spot though. Ill post pics tomorrow morning.

Last week people were talking about finding them by the 5 gal. bucket fulls. One guy filled a toesack. My son worked in the SW corner of Iowa last year and people were filling 55 gal. drums with them. He said they were hauling them around construction jobs selling them by the pound.

My neighbors have been finding them like crazy. I think they have been a total of like 12 times and have filled up a couple of walmart bags each time and havent stayed out for longer than 30 minutes. They've found a truck load of ticks too. As for me personally, I havent found a single one out on the water but if they ever start growing there I'll let you know

Here are some pics from yesterday.

What little myths have you guys heard about where and when to find morels?

I have heard that:
the soil temp needs to be in the 50-55 degree range
They grow only near Elm trees
carry a burlap sack as opposed to a plastic or paper bag as you find them so the spores fall off the shrooms on to the ground for the next harvest

Here's what I know for a fact -
either they are there or they are not
they grow next to creeks or rivers or in the middle of the woods
when the dogwoods are blooming there are mushrooms to find
they grow next to all kinds of trees, not just one or the other
I have found a bunch of them within may apples
I have had good luck near dead or decaying logs of any sort of tree
I have found them in fertile bottom land, topsoil of hills, as well as sandy loam of the Missouri river bottoms

I guess my point here is that you just have to spend the time in the woods to find them because everyone has different things they believe in to find morels. They grow a lot of different places and when the harvest is good it is really good and when it is bad it is bad.

Dogwood and May Apples for sure!

There is an old DEAD (keyword) Oak tree in the woods near my wife's uncle's house in Illinois that we have found many full shopping bags full. A very productive piece of land. It's 4 hours away from me though. I'm not much of a mushroom eater...but I really enjoy hunting for them. Really cool to photograph too!