The Mushroom Hour Podcast

Today on Mushroom Hour we have the honor of being joined by Dr. Cathy Cripps. Dr Cripps is a mycologist and professor at Montana State University where she teaches and does research on fungi. She earned her BS from the University of Michigan and PhD from Virginia Tech with Dr. Orson Miller. Her research on mushrooms that survive in Arctic and alpine habitats has taken her to Iceland, Svalbard, Norway, Greenland, the Austrian Alps, and Finland. She is co-author of “The Essential Guide to Rocky Mountain Mushrooms by Habitat”, and “Fungi in Forest Ecosystems”, and has authored numerous scientific papers. She is also involved with using mycorrhizal fungi in the restoration of whitebark pine. With over 40 years of experience collecting mushrooms, first as an amateur when she lived in a cabin in Colorado and later as a professional leading forays and teaching field classes in Montana, her love and enthusiasm for the Rocky Mountains and its fungal creatures runs deep.   

TOPICS COVERED:   

• Interest in Organisms from the Benthic Deep to the Mountaintops  
• Falling in Love with the Colorado Mountains  
• Coming out of the Mountains to Pursue a Graduate Degree  
• Foundations of the Telluride Mushroom Festival  
• Distinguishing Montagne, Alpine and Subalpine Ecosystems  
• Alpine Mushrooms and 1 Inch Dwarf Willows  
• Subalpine Aspen Forests  
• Montagne Conifer Forests  
• Role of Soil pH and Tree Age in Fungal Community Composition  
• Mycorrhizal Fungi as Key to Resiliency of White Bark Pine Forests  
• Biogeography of Arctic Alpine Fungi   
• Native and Endemic Fungi of Mountain Biomes  
• Writing “The Essential Guide to Rocky Mountain Mushrooms by Habitat”  
• Future of Research on Mycorrhizal Fungi  

EPISODE RESOURCES:   

• Cathy Cripps Faculty Profile: https://plantsciences.montana.edu/directory/faculty/1524013/cathy-cripps  
• Orson K. Miller: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.3852/10-042  
• Dwarf Willows: https://www.bbcearth.com/news/the-worlds-tiniest-tree  
• Amanita alpinicola (fungus): https://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/mtax/mt/2017/00000132/00000003/art00025;jsessionid=26t1ks7l10pq2.x-ic-live-02  
• Arrhenia auriscalpium (fungus): https://plantsciences.montana.edu/facultyorstaff/faculty/cripps/Arrhenia%20paper.pdf  
• Dentinum repandum (fungus): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydnum_repandum  
• Hericium coralloides (fungus): https://www.mushroomexpert.com/hericium_coralloides.html  
• Suillus americanus (fungus): https://www.mushroomexpert.com/suillus_americanus.html  
• Suillus of whitebark pine: https://plantsciences.montana.edu/facultyorstaff/faculty/cripps/MohattRPViewDoc.pdf  

For more than two decades, Michael Allen Z Prime has pioneered the art of making music in collaboration with plants and fungi. His albums: L-Fields, One Hour As Peyote, Borneo, and The Ascent Of Sap were the first to be made in collaboration with the bioelectrical fields of plants and fungi. In his work, the fluctuations in pitch and rhythm that you hear directly follow the fluctuations of the bioelectrical fields of the organisms he is working with. Michael has presented his plant and fungal sound installations at venues around the world, including The Mendel Museum (Brno), the NTT InterCommunication Center (Tokyo), the Halles de Schaarbeek (Brussels), the Arnolfini Gallery (Bristol), the Centre for Experimental and Improvised Music (Madrid), and the old Franciscan Abbey on Sherkin Island (Ireland). His recordings of fungi have also been featured on the BBC. Michael is also a qualified ecologist, and his work in that field led him to establish the Comillane Gardens botanical gardens and nature reserve on Cape Clear Island, 10 miles south of the Irish mainland.   

TOPICS COVERED:   

• Early Explorations of  Electroacoustic Music & Mycology  
• Translating the Bio-Electrical Activity of Organisms into Sound  
• Different Approaches to Translate Biodata from Organisms  
• Audio Translation of Electrical Resistance vs Bioelectrical Action Potentials
• What Does Sound Coming from Mushrooms Tell Us?  
• Acoustic Differences Between Day and Nights Cycles of Fungi  
• Does Translating Bioelectrical Activity Also Us to Communicate with Other Organisms?  
• Bioactivity Translation Equipment  
• Michael's Mushroom Sound Exhibitions  
• Different Sounds of Mushrooms Indoors vs Outdoors  
• Differences in Sounds Between Mushroom Species  
• Understanding Bioactivity as Future of Understanding Fungal Networks  
• Demonstration Transcribing Bioelectrical Action Potentials of Mushrooms into Sound   
• Upcoming Projects and Collaborations  

EPISODE RESOURCES:      

• Michael Prime Bandcamp: https://michaelallenzprime.bandcamp.com/music  
• Michael Prime Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSX2bfcI0BR-phhw1DGH7JA  
• Tony Bassett (only reference we could find): http://www.fsr.org.uk/spi/spibass1.htm  
• Merlin Sheldrake: https://www.merlinsheldrake.com/  
• Peziza repanda (fungus): https://www.mushroomexpert.com/peziza_repanda.html  
• Laricifomes officinalis (AKA Agarikon mushroom): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laricifomes_officinalis  
• Macrolepiota procera (AKA Parasol mushroom): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macrolepiota_procera  

Today on Mushroom Hour we have are honored to be joined by Welsh wild food expert Daniel Butler. Daniel is an environmental writer and wild food enthusiast, starting as a boy with ferreted rabbits and moving on to herbs and mushrooms in his 20s. He leads guided hedgerow and fungal forays from his Welsh smallholding through the summer and autumn. Writing extensively on issues of foraging as a source of free food Daniel aims to demystify edible plants and fungi to make them accessible to all. I’m excited to learn more about foraging in the Welsh countryside, how wild foods can add new dimensions to our lives and even the legal and conservation aspects foragers consider as we enjoy the wild harvest.   

TOPICS COVERED:   

• Moving to the Country, Discovering Mushrooms  
• Anglo-Saxon Mycophobia  
• Fungal Edibility & Toxicity in Perspective   
• Environmental Conservation in the UK   
• Property Rights in the UK  
• “The Charter of the Forest” More Influential than Magna Carta?  
• How Foraging Benefits Conservation Efforts  
• Cultural Influences on Foraging in the UK, Continental Europe and America  
• Mushroom Foraging Seasons in the UK   
• Exploring the Biodiversity of Elan Valley in Wales  
• Clashes with Authority in UK Forests  
• Bringing Together Conservation Authorities and Foraging Culture  
• Building Back Connection with the Land   
• Gift of Educating Others About Wild Mushrooms  

EPISODE RESOURCES:   

• Daniel Butler Website: https://www.fungiforays.co.uk/  
• Elan Valley, Wales: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elan_Valley  
• "Charter of the Forest": https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charter_of_the_Forest  
• Northern Goshawk: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_goshawk  
• Calocybe gamose (AKA St. George's Mushroom): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calocybe_gambosa  
• Boletus edulis (AKA Porcini Mushroom): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boletus_edulis  
• Craterellus cornucopioides (AKA Black Trumpet Mushroom): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Craterellus_cornucopioides  

Today on Mushroom Hour we have the privilege of speaking with Dr. Ekaterina Dadachova. Dr. Dadachova is a Professor of Pharmacy at the College of Pharmacy and Nutrition and the Fedoruk Centre for Nuclear Innovation Chair in Radiopharmacy. Before joining University of Saskatchewan, she was a Professor of Radiology, Microbiology and Immunology in the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York, USA, where she was also Sylvia and Robert S. Olnick Faculty Scholar in Cancer Research. She received her PhD in Physical Chemistry from Moscow State University in Moscow, Russia, in 1992, and completed a postdoctoral fellowship in radiopharmaceutical chemistry at the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organization in Sydney, Australia. Dadachova’s laboratory has pioneered the treatment of infectious diseases including fungal and bacterial infections and HIV with radiolabeled antibodies (so called radioimmunotherapy). Her other research interests are radioimmunotherapy of melanoma, blood cancers and osteosarcoma as well as the development of melanin-based radioprotectors for cancer patients undergoing radiation therapy, soldiers on the battlefield and astronauts in space.   

TOPICS COVERED:   

• Research Pathways of Melanin, Melanoma and Fungi Coming Together  
• Black Fungi in Soil Surrounding Chernobyl  
• Melanin in Fungi  
• Basics of Radiation and Types of Radioactive Particles  
• Fungi in Outer Space  
• How Fungi Use Melanin to Protect Themselves Against Ionizing Radiation  
• Fungi Surviving in Antarctica  
• Melanated Fungi Harvesting Radiation  
• Radiotropism  
• Applied Technologies for Radiation Protection from Melanized Fungi  
• The Power of Eating Melanized Mushrooms  
• Radioimmunotherapy  
• Radiopharmaceuticals  
• Future Research & Applications  

EPISODE RESOURCES:    

• Dr. Ekaterina Dadachova Academic Website: https://pharmacy-nutrition.usask.ca/profiles/kate-dadachova.php#Bio  
• Dr. Ekaterina Dadachova Papers: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=A6Ud3q0AAAAJ&hl=en  
• Cryptococcus neoformans (fungus): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cryptococcus_neoformans  
• Cryptococcus antarcticus (fungus): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cryptococcus_antarcticus  
• Auricularia judae (fungis): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auricularia_auricula-judae

Today on Mushroom Hour we have the incredible opportunity to speak with Integrated Land Enhancement found Leif Olson. A native of the western North Carolina mountains, Leif grew up with a deep sense of connection and appreciation for nature.  Early on this relationship was primarily through a creative and imaginative lens, but after over a decade of researching and working in ecology, chemistry, mycology, landscaping and sustainable agriculture he now works to study and improve the natural world with an interdisciplinary approach. After receiving a Bachelor's of Science in Ecology from University of California at Santa Cruz and a Master of Environmental Management in Ecotoxicology at Duke University, Leif spent the following years becoming versed in the rapidly emerging fields of applied mycology and soil biology.  Though it may be unbeknownst to many, we are currently living in a renaissance of knowledge for understanding the processes and interconnectivity of nature. What a great opportunity to learn from a hands-on expert about how we can leverage our emerging understanding of plants, fungi, microorganisms, nutrients, water and more to enhance the resiliency, fertility and productivity of our landscapes.

TOPICS COVERED:

• Childhood in Nature, Studying Ecology, Mycelium Running
• Environmental Conditions Bioremediation Can Address
• Unbounded Ability of Natural Organisms 
• Benefits of Fungi to the Environment
• Chemistry of Fungal Decomposition & Ligninolytic Enzymes
• Interactions Between Fungi, Bacteria Virsuses and More in Soil
• Technology in Applied Mycology
• Contaminant Removal – Organic, Inorganic, Pathogens
• Engineering & Implementing Bioremediation Projects
• Real-World Examples of Bioremediation Projects
• Geomycology & Biogeochemistry
• Evolution of Environmental Institutions & Regulatory Frameworks
• All groups of Fungi Can Break Down Contaminants?
• Advice in Pursuing Bioremediation Projects

EPISODE RESOURCES: 

• Integrated Land Enhancement: https://integratedlandenhancement.com/
• Applied Mycology Podcast: https://www.instagram.com/appliedmycology/
• Fungi for the People: https://fungiforthepeople.org/
• Mushroom Mountain: https://mushroommountain.com/
• Lentinus tigrinus (AKA Tiger Sawgill Mushroom): https://www.mushroomexpert.com/lentinus_tigrinus.html
• Hericium erinaceus (AKA Lions Mane): https://www.mushroomexpert.com/hericium_erinaceus.html

Today on Mushroom Hour we are blessed by the presence of the illustrious Dr. Michael Beug. Dr. Beug taught chemistry, mycology and organic farming at The Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington for 32 years. He lectures to mushroom enthusiasts throughout the Western US and loves to teach beginners workshops. He is a member of the North American Mycological Association (NAMA) where he serves as Editor of the Journal McIlvainea, Chair of the Toxicology Committee, and member of the Education Committee. Michael has served four terms as President of The Pacific Northwest Key Council, a group dedicated to writing macroscopic keys for the identification of fungi. His specialties are the genus Ramaria and all toxic and hallucinogenic mushrooms. He is also doing research on oak-associated fungi of the Columbia River Gorge, especially Cortinarius species. His newest book is Mushrooms of Cascadia and he regularly writes about mushrooms in McIlvainea, The Mycophile, Fungi, and Mushroom: The Journal of Wild Mushrooming and he somehow finds the time to be on the editorial board of Fungi magazine. I’m excited to learn from this master mycology educator about the past, present and future of mushrooms.   

TOPICS COVERED:   

• Early Career at Evergreen & Becoming a Mycologist  
• DDT Controversy, Research into PCBs and Heavy Metals  
• Multidisciplinary Teaching Career and Collaboration at Evergreen College  
• Paul Stamets Jeremy Bigwood & Jonathan Ott Introduce Psilocybe  
• Being Paul Stamets’ Professor & Friend  
• Modern Psilocybin History from Wasson, Leary & Alpert to Recent Decriminalization  
• Evolution of Academic Mycology  
• Importance of Amateur Naturalists in Mycology  
• Global Political Theory & Creating Positive Change  
• Averting Disaster, Listening to Nature   
• Rise of Mushroom Culture  
• Psilocybin, Empathy & Hope  
• Mushrooms of Cascadia & Next Book on Regenerative Design  
• Trippy Tales featuring Mushroom Legends at Brightenbush  

EPISODE RESOURCES:   

• Mushrooms of Cascadia Website: https://www.mushroomsofcascadia.com/  
• Mushrooms of Cascadia Book: https://fungi.com/products/mushrooms-of-cascadia  
• Columbia River Gorge: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Columbia_River_Gorge  
• North American Mycological Association: https://namyco.org/   
• Fungi Magazine: https://www.fungimag.com/  
• Pacific Northwest Key Council: https://www.svims.ca/council/  
• MycoMatch: https://www.mycomatch.com/index.htm  
• Hericium erinaceus (AKA Lions Mane): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hericium_erinaceus  
• Trametes versicolor (AKA Turkey Tail): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trametes_versicolor  

Xiaojing Yan is a Canadian artist whose work embraces the combination of her Chinese roots and education at Nanjing Arts Institute (B.F.A., 2000) with higher education at George Brown College in Toronto (2004) and an M.F.A. in sculpture at Indiana University of Pennsylvania (2007). Her unique point of view brings together the past and the present, encompasses culture and nature, art and science. Yan is a recipient of numerous awards and grants, including the 2014 Outstanding Young Alumni Award from Indiana University of Pennsylvania, Project Grants from the Canadian Council for the Arts, the Chalmers Arts Fellowship, Mid-career Grants from Ontario Arts Council, and many more. Most recently, she has had solo shows at Maison Hermès, Shanghai, China, Art Gallery of Northumberland, Cobourg, ON, Canada, Richmond Art Gallery, Richmond, BC, Canada and Suzhou Museum, Suzhou, China, Varley Art Gallery, Markham, ON, Canada. Yan has also completed public art projects and commissions in Canada and China including her 2018 installation Cloudscape at the Royal Ontario Museum and 2019 Window display "Into the Dream" for Maison Hermès. It’s my pleasure to learn more about the unique ethos behind her art and her intimate relationship with reishi mushroom, also known as lingzhi.    

TOPICS COVERED:   

• Following the Artists' Path from China to Canada  
• Engaging Space in Creating Art  
• Inspiration from Chinese Mythologies, Stories and Iconographies  
• Connection to Nature in Eastern and Western Cultures  
• Forces of Modernization Reshaping Relationships with Nature  
• Rise of the “Moderners”   
• Weighing Human Progress and Environmental Homeostasis  
• Imbuing Art with Meaning Before and After Creation  
• Pearls and Cicadas used to make Sculptures  
• Roles of Artists in Communicating Balance in Nature  
• Making Art with Lingzhi AKA Reishi  
• Chinese Culture and the Mushroom of Immortality  
• Cocreating Art with Nature   
• Rise of Mycelium in Art and Design  

EPISODE RESOURCES:   

• Xiaojing Yan Website: https://yanxiaojing.com/   
• Xiaojing Yan Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/xiaojing.yan.studio/?hl=en   
• Lingzhi: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lingzhi_(mushroom)   
• "Scholar's Stone": https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gongshi   
• "Classic of Mountains and Seas": https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classic_of_Mountains_and_Seas   

Today on the Mushroom Hour Podcast we are graced by the presence of Melissa Waddingham founder of Truffle and Mushroom Hunter. As a professional truffle hunter, Melissa respectfully and sustainably searches for truffles with her trained canine companions. She has studied forestry and woodland management and exudes a passion for woodlands and their association with mushrooms and truffles. Her work has given her a reverence for the delicate truffle woodland ecology and its sustainability. It is a rare environment crucial for not only her beloved truffles, but also the well-being of trees in areas of poor nutrients. In pursuing this work, Melissa has created a mushroom and truffle foraging business where she does it all - training truffle hounds, leading truffle hunting courses, performing woodland surveys in search of truffle presence or potential and collaborating with landowners to nurture environments for truffle cultivation.   

TOPICS COVERED:   

• Introduction to Fungi Through the Stomach  
• Discovering Truffles  
• Truffle Habitat - England vs Portugal  
• Truffle Clues & Aromas  
• Engaging the Senses  
• Ecology & Life of Truffles  
• Special Relationship with a Truffle Dog  
• What Types of Dogs can Hunt Truffles?  
• Traits of Good Truffle Dogs  
• Training a Truffle Dog  
• Learning the Language of Your Truffle Dog  
• Advice for Beginning the Truffle Hunting Journey  
• Surveying Forests for Truffles  
• Truffle Cultivation Industry  

EPISODE RESOURCES:   

• Truffle & Mushroom Hunter Website: https://truffleandmushroomhunter.com/  
• Truffle & Mushroom Hunter FB: https://www.facebook.com/truffleandmushroomhunter/  
• Truffle & Mushroom Hunter IG: https://www.instagram.com/truffleandmushroomhunter/  
• Lagotto Romagnolo (Italian Truffle Hunting Dog): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lagotto_Romagnolo  
• Ian Hall: http://www.trufflesandmushrooms.co.nz/  
• Amanita caesarea (Fungus): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amanita_caesarea

Today on Mushroom Hour we are joined by generational mushroom cultivator and medicinal mushroom alchemist Amir Karian. Amir grew up in a family of mushroom farmers who own and operate one of America’s largest mushroom farms in Monterey Mushrooms and one of the largest mushroom spawn production companies called Amycel. But Amir’s passion for mycology truly began when a journey of personal healing taught him first hand the power of medicinal mushrooms. He was compelled to share with others and being a part of a family of farmers was a blessing he couldn't overlook. He spent the next several years utilizing all of the experience and knowledge of mushroom farming that had been perfected over generations to research, develop, and grow the highest quality medicinal mushroom supplements - thus Alchemi Mushrooms was born. The driving ethos behind Alchemi’s medicinal mushroom products is: "if it's not good enough to give to our families, we won't sell it." I’m excited to learn about mushroom cultivation, medicine and more from someone who has mushrooms encoded in their DNA   

TOPICS COVERED:   

• Generational Mushroom Farmer Discovers Medicinal Mushrooms  
• Decentralization & Consolidation in the Mushroom Industry  
• Monterey Mushrooms & Amycel  
• Breeding and Selecting Mushroom Genetics  
• Mushroom Mutations  
• Role of Large Agaricus Farms in Medicinal Mushroom Cultivation  
• The Birth of Alchemi Mushrooms & Monterey Neutraceuticals  
• Medicinal Benefits of Mushroom Mycelium & Fruit Bodies  
• Medicinal Mushroom Unknown Unknowns  
• Chitin & Polysaccharides in Mushroom Cell Walls  
• Alchemi Mushrooms Product Line  
• Cultivating Chaga  
• Innovation and Growth of the Mushroom Cultivation Industry  
• Advice for Mushroom Cultivators  

EPISODE RESOURCES:   

• Alchemi Mushrooms Website: https://alchemimushrooms.com/Mushroomhour  
• Monterey Mushrooms Website: https://www.montereymushrooms.com/  
• Amycel Website: https://www.amycel.com/    
• Agaricus blazei: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agaricus_subrufescens  
• Lignosus rhinocerus "Tiger Milk Mushroom":  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lignosus_rhinocerus  
• Cordyceps: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cordyceps

Today on Mushroom Hour we have the privilege of speaking with Monica Wilde. Monica is a forager, research herbalist and ethnobotanist. She lives in Scotland in a self-built wooden house on 4 organic acres where she is encouraging the growth of medicinal and foraging species to create a wild, teaching garden. She is also a Research Herbalist specializing in Lyme disease & co-infections, and a Fellow of the Linnean Society. Monica holds a Master’s degree in Herbal Medicine, she is a Member of the Association of Forager and a Member of the British Mycological Society. I’m excited to learn from someone who embodies such deep natural wisdom on how to nourish both our bodies and Gaia through wild food and wild medicine.   

TOPICS COVERED:    

• Childhood in Kenya & Connection to the Wild  
• Disconnection in Post-WWII Western Society  
• The Wisdom of Plants  
• The Language & Biosemiotics of Plants  
• Tenets of Herbalism   
• Ancient Roots of Herbalism  
• Herbalism and Pharmaceuticals   
• Money as a Religion  
• The Body as a Collection of Microbiomes  
• Understanding Lyme Disease  
• Shepherding Wild Plants & Mushrooms  
• Traditional Ecological Knowledge  
• Reciprocity with the Natural World  
• Lessons Learned from a Wild Food Diet  

EPISODE RESOURCES:   

• Monica Wilde Website: https://monicawilde.com/  
• Monica Wilde Twitter: https://twitter.com/monicawilde  
• Monica Wilde IG: https://www.instagram.com/monicawilde/  
• Wild Medicine Substack: https://wildmedicine.substack.com/  
• Napiers Herbalists: https://napiers.net/  
• Monascus purpureus (Red Rice Yeast): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monascus_purpureus  
• Heracleum sphondylium (Common Hogweed): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heracleum_sphondylium  
• Heracleum mantegazzianum (Giant Hogweed): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heracleum_mantegazzianum  
• Zach Bush: https://zachbushmd.com/  
• Lyme Disease: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lyme_disease  
• Łukasz Łuczaj: http://thewildfood.org/  
• Pilosella officinarum (Mouse Ear Hawkweed): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pilosella_officinarum  
• Association of Foragers: https://foragers-association.org/  
• Ganoderma applanatum (Artist Conk): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ganoderma_applanatum