 Our Favorite Fungi is Also a Sign of Spring
When you ask people to name their favorite sign of spring, some say daffodils, others crocus. Cathy Cripps is more likely to say "mushrooms poking through a snow bank."
For Cripps, better known as Montana State University's "mushroom
lady," this form of fungi is both work and pleasure.
Her work as an internationally recognized mycologist ("mycology"
being the fancier name for the study of fungi) includes research
on alpine fungi for the National Science Foundation, teaching
mycology classes and identifying mushrooms for the MSU Plant
Diagnostic Lab. In her spare time, she helps lead a mushroom
club.
Cripps, who has a doctorate in mycology from Virginia Polytechnic
Institute, describes mushrooms as "essential," "underappreciated"
and "delicious."
The essential role of the type of fungi that produce mushrooms is
becoming better known as more are identified, but there's a lot
of work left to do, she says. Of the estimated 1.5 million
species in the world, only five percent are named and fewer
understood.
"We know little about their crucial roles in the environment,"
says Cripps.
Mushroom producing fungi fall into three categories: decomposers,
symbionts and parasites. Some are almost microscopic, others
quite large, and there are edible varieties in each category.
Decomposer mushrooms have miles of microscopic tendrils called
"mycelium," which basically act like tiny straws. They suck in
the nutrients they liberate from dead plants and then release
them for living plants to use in a cycle somewhat like our
respiration. The details of how they make nutrients and water
available are still being studied.
Symbiotic mushrooms have taken their "servant" relationship so
far that they and their "partner plant" could not live without
each other. A well-known symbiotic mushroom is called the King
Bolete in the United States (famous in Italy as the porchini
mushroom). The King Bolete is symbiotic with pine, spruce and fir
trees and is found in Montana's forests.
Parasitic mushrooms don't wait for a plant to die before starting
to decompose it. Some of these are the big shelf-shaped fungi you
see at work on tree bark. Such destructive fungi cause 60 percent
of plant disease, and pathologists work hard to combat them.
While Cripps finds all mushrooms fascinating, she says the
50-or-so people in the Southwest Montana Mycological Association
(translation: Mushroom Club) are mainly interested in learning
which mushrooms are safe to eat.
Morels are the most famous and mouth-watering local mushroom, but
each edible variety can lend unique flavors to foods.
The main nutritional component of mushrooms is protein. Their
flavors vary widely. Some, says Cripps, taste rather nutty.
Others lend fruity or sweet flavors, while at least one tastes
like shrimp!
"Even though there are edible mushrooms in our yards, there are
also fertilizers, pesticides and pets. Since mushrooms sponge up
everything in the area, we only recommend eating edible mushrooms
found in more pristine sites," she says.
Cripps' mentor, Orsen Miller, is president of the Mycological
Society of America and one of the most distinguished mushroom
experts in the world. That, reasonably enough, has led to his
wife writing one of the best known mushroom cookbooks in the
country. (One of Cripps' favorite recipes from that book is given
below).
There is a resurgence of popularity in the study of mushrooms and
other fungi, with a core group at MSU looking at their different
aspects. Not only do fungi help feed a whole variety of plants,
from conifers to orchids, but there may be ways they can help
Montana crops as well, as both symbionts and biocontrol agents.
To find out about that and whether mushrooms can be used as
indicators of climate change, Cripps is collecting and
identifying high elevation alpine mushroom species under a
National Science Foundation grant. Her work is part of the NSF's
overall "biotic survey and inventory program" dedicated to
discovering and recording life on earth.
"Alpine mushrooms in the Rockies are simply not known, and new
species are expected," says Cripps.
Results of the NSF study will be presented at the 2002
International Mycology Congress in Norway in a symposium chaired
by Cripps and Miller.
"A lot of plants couldn't live in harsh climates without fungi
providing nutrients, especially nitrogen and phosphorus," says
Cripps. "This is especially true of alpine plants, which must
withstand short growing season, cold nights, dry winds and harsh
sunlight. That's why it's quite likely that we can find species
that can help commercial crops and horticulture plants gather in
water and nutrients they couldn't reach on their own." If that's
the case, a mushroom's "underappreciated" status could be in for
a dramatic change.
The NSF grant is helping pay for the work of several
undergraduate and graduate students, including: Todd Osmundson,
Leslie Eddington, Sarah Klingsborn. Other students who have been
supported by this project in the past include: Amy Lindahl, Amy
DeMers, Esther Campbell, Katherine Mohatt and Katy Carplus.
To learn more about the mushroom club that meets about once a
month, stop by the mycology lab in the MSU Agricultural
Bioscience Facility's room 109 or call Cripps at 994-5226. To
have a mushroom identified, contact the Plant Diagnostic Lab at
994-5150 for instructions on how to send a sample to the lab.
Hope Miller's Hot Mushroom Dip 2 lbs fresh mushrooms 6 tbl.
Butter 1 tbl. Lemon juice 4 tbl. Chopped parsley 2 tbl. Minced
onions three-fourths to 1 cup sour cream 2 tsp. Bouillon granules
(or 2 bouillon cubes) Chop the mushrooms quite fine. Place in pan
with butter. Add lemon juice and simmer 10 minutes. Add the
onions and sour cream. Season with salt and pepper to taste and
add bouillon granules or cubes. Simmer 10 minutes more. Make a
paste of 1 tbl. Soft butter and 1 tbl. Flour. Add to mixture and
stir until thickened. Serve hot. Recipe from "Hope's Mushroom
Cookbook," Mad River Press, 1992.
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