Has anyone had success in growing Morels?

Jeanne Spears
Jeanne Spears Posts: 27 ✭✭✭

I have hunted morels in central Indiana for 50+ years with moderate success, mostly depending on weather (wet cold spring, too dry, etc). A few years back, I dropped $50 on morel spawn to try to start my own little patch, with the knowledge that it would take a year before I might see any. Never did see any. Has anyone had better luck, and if so, did you do anything special to get started?

(side note: last year I walked all over my 25 acre woods and found nothing. Came home and found one in my yard...as I mowed over it.)😕

Comments

  • dottile46
    dottile46 Posts: 437 ✭✭✭

    @Jeanne Spears morels can be so elusive. I can imagine you almost cried as you ran it over. I would have.

    I've never directly tried to grow them. Indirectly, kinda. We owned a place that had several throughout the season but only in a little patch. One year would be good then the next year to 2 years would only produce two or three the entire season. I've always rinsed them in plain water before cutting and soaking them. We'd take that original rinse water back to the patch and pour it out there. Even when we found some from other places, that rinse water went there as well. After a couple of years of doing this we had over 40 in one picking. The next year we had moved so no idea if the tasty morel morsels came up since or not.

  • allenandrea2371
    allenandrea2371 Posts: 1 ✭✭✭

    Never thought about putting the rinse water back out! That’s an awesome idea!!

  • Torey
    Torey Posts: 5,679 admin

    In our area, the most abundant harvests of morels come the year following a forest fire. So we've had some good harvests lately. One of those "silver linings".

  • tomandcara
    tomandcara Posts: 712 ✭✭✭✭

    @dottile46 Love the idea of the rinse water. It makes a lot of sense.

  • flowerpower *
    flowerpower * Posts: 258 ✭✭✭
    edited October 2020

    @Jeanne Spears I love Morels. Although I have never planted them I have often hunted for them. Morels come up at a certain time in the spring right after the first warm rain. They also come up in certain places - where there is sunshine, wetness and deep leaf mold. I have heard they also come up after fires (as well). If they come up after fires is that because the mushroom forms where the pH is acid? To grow them check what planting areas work best.

    Some years are good for Morels and some are not. Speaking of timing - I just noticed I am rather late to this conversation.

  • Angel
    Angel Posts: 61 ✭✭✭

    I love the rinse water tip @dottile46 . My sister-in-law always uses a mesh bag to collect morels on her parents' property, so that spores will drop out as they walk.

  • DurwardPless
    DurwardPless Posts: 162 ✭✭✭

    I have tried the onion bag or mesh bag for no success. Next time I will try the @dottile46 rinse water.

    DDP