Traverse City News and Events

Grow Your Own...Morels?

By Beth Milligan | April 26, 2021

Hunting for morel mushrooms is a springtime tradition in northern Michigan — especially Up North. But what if you could take this elusive, beloved genus of wild mushroom and grow it yourself, at home?

The party line, historically, has been that cultivating morel mushrooms is impossible. Try reading a few “grow your own mushrooms” guides online, and you’ll likely see the idea of growing morels dismissed out of hand. Even the types of mushrooms that can be cultivated and grown at home or on the farm — from portobellos to white button mushrooms — aren’t exactly easy to grow. But as Craig Manning writes in this week's Northern Express, sister publication of The Ticker, a trio of researchers at Michigan State University are chasing the possibility of being able to grow morels at home.

The project aims to test China’s morel cultivation techniques on North American soil, focusing specifically on cultivation of the black morel variety. In addition, the study “will gauge market potential” for a morel cultivation industry in the U.S., touching upon everything from consumer taste tests to break-even numbers for crop yields. Researchers in the project are hopeful it could lead to removing barriers for at-home growing, with extension offices someday able to offer guides on cultivating morels the same way they do now for growing other types of agricultural products.

Learn more about the research project and what it could mean for at-home morel growing in this week's Northern Express, available to read online or on newsstands at nearly 700 spots in 14 counties across northern Michigan

Comment

This Local High Schooler Is Spending Her Summer At An Elite Naval Flight Academy

Read More >>

Past Cherry Royals: Where Are They Now?

Read More >>

TCBN: Recycling Leaders Drive Change in Petoskey

Read More >>

Traverse City Landmark Coming Down Soon

Read More >>

Hope Happens Here: Addiction Treatment Services At 50 Years

Read More >>

Something To Crow About: The Rooster To Debut In July

Read More >>

Memories Of Milliken’s: A Look Back At The Department Store That Built Front Street

Read More >>

A Few More Notices For Traverse City From National Media

Read More >>

Road Commission Eyes Beitner Bridge Replacement, River Parking Changes

Read More >>

Jody Lundquist Appointed To Fill NMC Board Vacancy

Read More >>

Why Did This Week’s Run Of 90-Plus Degree Weather Cause So Much Trouble In Traverse City?

Read More >>

East Bay Township Considers TIF District

Read More >>

NMC Announces Candidates For Board Vacancy, Will Appoint New Trustee Monday Night

Read More >>

Zoning Atlas Unveiled for Grand Traverse County

Read More >>