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Morels (Morchellas) aren't your typical mushroom, whilst highly prized for their taste (light, nutty, delicate taste that works great with pasta and cheese) and distinctive features (brain-like!) there are a variety of toxic forms you need to look out for. The main culprit is the false morel which this course will teach you to avoid. |
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"Two to four percent of the fatal cases associated with mushrooms in North America are associated with the false morel mushroom"1
What will you learn in this online morel identification course?
Key characteristic features of morels which differentiate them from other mushrooms such as:
- Cap - this looks like a conical brain, with a honeycomb lattice, we teach our students to make sure that it looks like it has been well-formed or it could be a false morel (see image below). Don't be put off by the color of the cap: this can range from brown, grey to black. When picking, make sure to wash the morel before eating small insects have a habit of making a home in the holes.
- Cap - stem - the stem should stop when the cap begins. You should cut them in half to ensure that the stem doesn't go all the way to the top of the cap, if so discard as it is probably a false morel.
- Stem - if you pick the mushroom, cut it lengthways in half and you will see that the stem is hollow. Also, true morels usually have stems that are longer than the cap.
All of our courses are contain blended multimedia learning resources (videos, lectures, multiple-choice questions) and come with the ability to contact our expert mycologist on hand with any questions you may have. Why wait, join today!
References
1 Mushroom poisoning epidemiology in the United States. NCBI, published in July 2018.
Last modified: Monday, 7 November 2022, 7:34 PM