Don't forget when you're out turkey hunting, groundhog hunting, shed hunting or stump shooting to carry a mesh bag with you and keep a look out for Morels. It's almost time, here in Missouri, for Morels to start popping up. Here is an article that was sent to me from the Missouri Conservation Department. It came from a news letter called All Outdoors.

If you are finding Morels please report in and show us your bounty.

Floods might reduce morel crop in some areas
A poor crop this year could pay dividends in 2009.
JEFFERSON CITY-As if the immediate damage from flooding were not
enough, recent wet weather could reduce the number of morels Missourians
find this spring. Those who are inclined to look for a silver lining
will cheerfully note that a poor morel crop this year probably would
boost next year's production.
Resource Scientist Bruce Moltzan is the Missouri Department of
Conservation's resident mushroom expert. He said morels are the
fruiting bodies of a larger plant, just as apples are the fruiting
structures of an apple tree.
Morel fungi emerge each spring from wintering bodies known as
sclerotia. When warm, moist weather arrives, sclerotia invest their
stored nutrients in two ways. One is to produce root-like structures to
draw water and nutrients from the soil and decaying plant tissue. The
other is to grow "primordia," the familiar, sponge-like cone that is
the holy grail of mushroom fanatics.
Moltzan said morels need the right combination of nutrients, humidity,
carbon dioxide and temperature to form mushrooms.
"Morel sclerotia are amazing survival structures," he said, "so
flooding should not kill them. However, if during the formation time
sclerotia are sitting in flooded areas, it is likely they won't form
primordia this year, and mushrooms will be more abundant next year."
All this applies only to flooded areas. Morel sclerotia growing on
higher ground can still produce normal crops of mushrooms under good
conditions.
One way to identify good morel hunting spots is related to how morels
make their living. Moltzan said morels have a mutually beneficial
relationship with trees. The roots of trees intertwine with those of
morels, known as mycorrhizae. The fungi get sugars from the trees'
roots, and the trees benefit from an effective expansion of their root
systems, increasing their ability to draw water and nutrients from the
soil. Some evidence suggests that morel mycorrhizae also provide
protection from other organisms that damage tree roots.
Mushroom hunters have long known that the death of a tree can trigger a
flush of morel fruiting. Moltzan said this is because morels'
underground, vegetative parts sense a decrease in their sugar lifeline
and react by sending up spore-producing fruits to perpetuate the species
when food runs out.
"That is why mushroom hunters who notice a dead slippery elm one year
may find a bonanza of morels the next spring," he said.
That provides insight into where morels will grow, but Moltzan said the
question of when they will emerge is a deep mystery.
"Predicting the timing of morels is very complicated," he said.
"To quote a prominent mycologist, 'The thrill of the hunt is what
makes morelling so exciting ... and often so frustrating.'"
Moltzan said that all things being equal (which they seldom are), late
April is a prime time for morel hunting.
"I start hitting the trails about the middle of April in
mid-Missouri. Production continues for about two weeks. In general,
this window is earlier in the south and later in the north. The key is
getting out and looking."
-Jim Low-

A little cool yet here in Ohio but its getting close.

WRT morels and flooding:  They are where they are.  Some of my best years have been some of the wettest years.  Once found a bodacious pile of morels in a flooded area.  4 inch tall yaller sponge's pokin their heads out of about 2 inches of standing water.  You just never know...

I'm all over it... But they'd have to be B&C morels here to get through three feet of snow. Don

Don,

I thought that's how you get kicked off those ranches you like hunt and fish, by picking the ranchers Morels. Read that some where.

CJ

Y'all can have them all.

Only found one so far, but we've had some rain this week and if the sun will poke it's head out now we should be eatin shroom steaks soon.

John

We should be seeing them in a couple of weeks.

alligatordond, I'll pay the shipping.  

Found three so far. It's raining today and tommorow. After a little sunshine it's feast time!

Little early here.  Anytime though.
Dan

Still little early here yet too.  There was snow on the ground last Saturday yet and I don't think the frost is even out of the ground either.  But I'll be a lookin soon. dino

I have a friend who lives near a large reservoir in South Central Nebraska.  They are in a long term drought, but had heavy flooding about ten years ago.  After the waters receded and 'shroom time came, they found over 20 paper grocery bags full of morels!!  

They picked 'til they were sick of it, ate until they were sick of that (if you can imgine such a thing), preserved and gave away what they could, and had five sacks full go to waste!!  Talk about sacrilege!

They never had a good "haul" since then, but that was a sight to imagine.

I'm ready to find, pick, EAT, and dry!  Bring 'em on...

Daryl

Still too cold here in NE Kansas...

Fried turkey brest and morels  :D         But now I have to think about it for a few more weeks.

I'm with Don, after this snow melts though( maybe in June), it will be a good crop; and I got some secret spots...  

I have a long wait, but to my surprise I came across a morel here in Co.late last spring, I made a mental note but under lots of snow now.Curious to see if I can find more in that area.

i never find more than i can eat,but if i do how can i preserve them for later,,,,,,,,,jeff

To preserve them you have to freeze them the way you plan to eat them.  I fry mine so I cut mine length wise down the center, use egg yoke and then coat them with flour.  Put them in the freezer this way.  When your ready to eat them take them out of the freezer and put them while still frozen directly in the hot greese.  Not as good as fresh but not bad.  If you let them thaw before putting them in greese they will become musshy.

Here's a cool site I stumbled across last year.

http://www.morelmushroomhunting.com/morel_progression_sightings_map.htm

If you freez them individually they will be like fresh.

I soak them in cold water, rinse them off, put in a colander to get most of the water off. Then I slice them lengthwise, roll them in flour, lay them out on cookie sheets, put em in the freezer. After they are frozen, I put them in baggies then in ziplocks. Put them back in the freezer and they will make the best New Years snacks you've ever had. They fry up exactly like fresh!

Here's another interesting site:  http://morelmania.com/  

Lots of good information and another "tracking" list of where morels are being found under "Sightings."