So you've got the mushroom foraging basics covered, and you can tell a porcini from a deathcap, but what now? There are an estimated 10,000+ species of mushrooms in Europe, of which hundreds are considered edible or medicinal. If it's time to widen your fungal horizons beyond the standard foragers' haul, this workshop is for you.

Blewit, giant polypore, porcelain fungus, herald of winter, saffron milkcap, amethyst deceiver, shaggy parasol, devil's snuffbox, the flirt... The list of delicious lesser-known yet still easy-to-identify edible wild mushrooms goes on and on!

This interactive workshop will take us on a wander through the Frohnau forest, where we'll alternate between searching for interesting fungi and talking through how to identify our finds.

We'll cover:

the key identification features of important species and families such as brittle gills, webcaps, and agaricus, with a focus on common but lesser-known edible species common to Berlin forests (dependent on conditions)
a deeper look at mushroom anatomy and fungal biology, including gill spacing and attachment, subtle cap and stem features, and scent
how to read the landscape for mushroom foraging, including fungal habitats and companion plant species

particularly dangerous species and how to recognize them

sustainable harvesting of edible species
tips and techniques for how to prepare and preserve your edible finds
how to continue learning and expanding your knowledge and foraging confidence

The focus of this workshop is on understanding and identification skills, rather than on filling our baskets with as many edible mushrooms as possible. You will however have the opportunity to do some searching on your own, and you're invited to bring home the edible treasures find along the way!

As with all Wild Path Foraging events, this workshop will be guided by Simka (they/them), a passionate wild food instructor and qualified PilzCoach through the DGfM with over 5 years' experience teaching about mushroom and plant foraging in Berlin.

You can check out what people have said about previous workshops run by Simka here.

Location:

The tour will take place in the Frohnau Forest. The start and end location is accessible with the S-Bahn. The exact meeting location will be shared after registration.

The tour will take us through beautiful forest scenery, including past a 500-year-old oak tree and a forest lake. We will have plenty of time to relax, explore, and take in the serene surroundings as well as answer all your questions about mushrooms!

Course pre-requisites:

You can comfortably identify at least 3-4 common edible mushroom species
You're familiar with the basics of how mushrooms grow and you know what mycelium is and hopefully what ‘mycorrhizal’ means
You know where to look for a ring on a mushroom
You have some idea of how to recognize an amanita (such as a fly agaric or deathcap) and a bolete (such as a porcini or birch bolete).

This is not an advanced tour and you don't need to be a super experienced forager, but if you don't already have some established knowledge you'll have a hard time keeping up. Along with our smaller group size, this will give us loads more time and opportunity to deeply explore the forest and hopefully come away with some really exciting finds.

If you're not sure what level you're at, try an all-levels tour first. If you've come to a previous mushroom tour with Simka before and you don't feel you need to hear the intro again, this one is for you!

Attendance is limited to 12 people to keep the group cozy and ensure everyone has time and space to get all their questions answered.

Intermediate Mushroom Foraging

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