Feature Articles
Tiptoeing Through the Toadstools: Mushrooms in Victorian Fairy Paintings, by Moselio Schaechter
Opening the gates to a forgotten world of magic and mushrooms
Further Reflections on Amanita muscaria as an Edible Species (PDF), by Debbie Viess
An in-depth examination of the edibility of the iconic “fly agaric” mushroom
The First Time We Saw Mushrooms, by Bob and Barbara Sommer
A pair of experienced mushroom-hunters reminisce about how they started.
Echinodontium ballouii: From Eyeballs to DNA (PDF), by Leon Shernoff
Two Massachusetts mushroom-hunters rediscovered a mushroom that was thought to be extinct since 1910; moreover, the mushroom has been widely considered a “living fossil”. This article examines the different ways that mycologists have handled this claim, and sums up the modern state of the evidence.
Wilderness Survival
Fungus and Fire (pt 1, pt 2) by Tammy Spillis
Starting fires in the wilderness without modern equipment, using shelf fungi.
Traditional Healing
Puffballs as Styptics, by Will Blackwell
Cuisine
Cooking with smut (corn truffles)
Jelly and Mushroom Sandwiches
On Mycologists
Interview: Tom Volk
Biography — William Alphonso Murrill: The Legend of the Naturalist
Part One, by David Rose (PDF)
Part Two, by Jim Kimbrough (PDF)
Crossword Puzzle
Spring Mushroom Hunt (PDF), by Kevin Wald
Taxon of the Month
Phaeolepiota aurea
Each issue we cover a species or group of species in greater detail than modern field guides permit.
Book Reviews
Both reviews by Harley Barnhart.
The Guide to Guides – an overview of several field guides
Mushrooms of Hawaii