Talk to explore wild mushroom gathering

On Saturday, June 24, Kinnikinnick Native Plant Society and Sandpoint Parks and Recreation will host a presentation on wild mushroom gathering in North Idaho.

The program will be held from 9:45 a.m.-11:30 a.m. at Sandpoint Community Hall. Speaking will be Arthur Church, alocal mushroom gatherer and native mushroom orchardist.

Church’s passions include small fruit orcharding, wild mushroom gathering and teaching people about both subjects. He has successfully grown several fruit crops that are considered difficult in North Idaho and has gathered wild mushrooms for more than 40 years in many parts of the United States. In addition, Church has learned how to inoculate the wood chip mulch in his orchard with wild mushroom spores to produce native mushrooms in his orchard.

An eagerness to share his knowledge and experience with others has lead him to give seminars about orcharding and mushroom gathering to the University of Idaho Master Gardener program and local gardening clubs. Field trips to his orchard for taste testing are very well attended, as are his mushroom hunting excursions. The KNPS program on June 24 will include both a presentation at the Community Hall at 9:45 a.m. and a field trip to Trestle Creek in the afternoon. Participants are encouraged to bring a sack lunch for the field trip.

The mission of the Kinnikinnick Native Plant Society is:

- To foster an understanding and appreciation of native flora and its habitats in the panhandle area of North Idaho,

- To advocate the conservation of this rich natural heritage for future generations,

- To encourage the responsible use of native plants in landscaping and restoration,

- To educate youth and the general public in the value of the native flora and their habitats.

Information: NativePlantSociety.org