Mushrooms are mysterious fungi, from the ones you eat at the dinner table to the strangely beautiful ones in a backyard. Mycology Club is a place for anyone curious about mushrooms to learn how to find, identify and become more knowledgeable about different types of mushrooms. The club offers a welcoming space for mushroom enthusiasts of all levels, facilitating connection with people with a passion for mycology.
The club’s president, Simon Leonard, and the vice president, Tommy Suter, both seniors, believe the club is where students interested in mushrooms come together and learn more about fungi.
“It’s a space for people who are interested in fungi or want to learn more about fungi and mushrooms to talk to each other. [Members can] use each other as a resource and meet other people who are interested in the same things as them,” Leonard said.
The Mycology Club serves as a space for people passionate about mushrooms to share their enthusiasm.
“It’s a club to spread knowledge, [share] love for mushrooms, go on hikes and go on forays to search for them,” Suter said.
On weekends, the club members often go on forays to find mushrooms. A foray is organizing a group to search the forest for fungi.
“[My favorite part of the club] has to be the forays. We just had our first foray this weekend. We got up super early. We met at Redwood at 5:45 a.m. [and] drove out to Point Reyes together and we didn’t find a ton [of fungi], but we just had a great time,” Leonard said.
According to the National Park Service, mushrooms can be found at Point Reyes and are essential to the area. Despite the hard work it takes to find mushrooms, Point Reyes is a great place to forage as a group.
“Part of it is just spending a lot of time outside and you start to get to know patches [of fungi] that will grow year after year,” Leonard said.
Being able to interact with the fungi physically helps the members gain a deeper knowledge of the mushrooms, which is ultimately the best way to learn.
“[Foraging] is the best way to learn because reading books or watching videos is helpful — you can learn a lot — but nothing compares to actually holding a mushroom that someone you [learn] how to identify it; it’s very cool,” Leonard said.
Like most clubs, the leaders’ friends will join the Mycology club, making it senior-heavy. The leaders hope to expand the club to a broader grade range and give them leadership positions.
“We are a pretty senior-heavy club, and I think that’s how it’s gone traditionally because, like many clubs at Redwood, the leaders’ friends will fill out the rest of the form. We have some sophomores and a couple of juniors who are interested in mycology. I’m trying to incorporate them into leadership roles early, so they have a good idea of how it goes,” Leonard said.
If you want to learn more about the Mycology Club, check it out during Tuesday’s lunch in room 177.
