The Mushroom Hour Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Ep. 122: Church of the People for Creator Mother Earth - Authentic, Indigenous, Psychedelic Ceremony (feat. Shane Norte) May 13, 2022

Show notes

Today on Mushroom Hour we are blessed to be joined by Shane Norte. Shane is enrolled in the Morongo Band of Indians - a Billion Dollar Tribe in Southern California. He is the founder and spiritual leader of the Church Of The People For Creator and Mother Earth and a Board Member of Decrimalize Nature National. Shane has also worked extensively helping tribes fight against corporations destroying Native Lands. Currently, Shane's church has one grounds on his lands on the la Jolla Indian Reservation. The church's mission is to help those seeking to better their spiritual knowledge and overall knowledge about being a better Indigenous person and human being here on Earth. I am excited to learn more about his psychedelic ceremonies from an authentic indigenous perspective, and how he performs these ceremonies in natural settings.
TOPICS COVERED:

Navigating Modernity as an Indigenous Person
Indigenous vs. Christian Funeral Rites
Finding Creator Mother Earth, Entering The Wamkish
Founding "Church of People for Creator Mother Earth"
Examples of How Church and State Repressed the Indigenous
Reclaiming Pride in Indigenous Culture and Spirituality
European Influence Destroying Natural Systems
Peoples’ Ancestral Connection to Land – Whose DNA is Encoded with how to Live Here ?
Refocusing Native Movements Away from the Western European Economic Apparatus
Psilocybin Macrodose Therapy
Psychedelic Therapy in Synthetic vs Natural Environments
Authentic Voices for Sacredness in Psychedelic Ceremony
What are Shane’s Ceremonies Like?
Breaking Free from Militarism & Political Propaganda

EPISODE RESOURCES:

COTPFCME Website: https://churchofthepeopleforcreatorandmotherearth.com/
Decriminalize Nature: https://www.decriminalizenature.org/

Ep. 121: Flora & Fungi Adventures - Campfire Magic, Truffle Tango & the Pursuit of Pleasure (feat. Maria Finn) Apr 27, 2022

Show notes

Today on the Mushroom Hour Podcast we are joined by Maria Finn, founder of Flora and Fungi wild foods. Maria Finn is an author, journalist, chef and multi-sensory storyteller. She spent many years pursuing obsessions, like tango dancing and surfing by working on fishing boats in Alaska. Prior to COVID lockdown, she was chef-in-residence for Stochastic Labs, a residency for artists, scientists and tech innovators in Berkeley. During the pandemic she launched Flora and Fungi Wild Food Adventures where she teaches people how to hunt for porcinis, chanterelles, seaweed and other wild foods. She has published widely, including essays, articles, and books, some of which have been optioned for television, inducing visions of grandeur that have not yet come to fruition. She was an ocean faring cat lady living on a houseboat in Sausalito with her two tabby cats and native oyster garden. During COVID lockdown, she adopted a truffle puppy and has since spent many hours is in the woods training her to find these buried gems along with other edible fungi; she has spent subsequent hours searching her dog and self for ticks. She is working on a book about truffles around their world – their role in forest ecosystems and our co-evolution with them!
TOPICS COVERED:

Writing, Food and the Ocean Collide
Listening to Nature & Understanding Cycles
Learning from the Yupik Peoples
Magic of Cooking Wild Food Around a Campfire
Becoming a Wild Food Educator
Discovering the Magic of Truffles
Falling in Love with Lagotto Ramagnolo
Learning to Tango with Your Truffle Dog
Mentors in Mushroom & Truffle Hunting
Coevolution of Truffles & Humans
Human Bodies as Fractals of our Planet
Truffle Renaissance
Democratization of Pleasure
Developing New Value Systems

EPISODE RESOURCES:

Maria Finn Website: http://www.mariafinn.com/
Flora & Fungi Adventures: https://www.floraandfungiadventures.com/
Maria Finn IG: https://www.instagram.com/maria_finn1/
Yupik peoples: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yupik_peoples
Mycological Society of Marin: https://www.mycomarin.org/
Lagotto Romagnolo: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lagotto_Romagnolo
The Truffle Dog Company: https://truffledogcompany.com/
"Scent and the Scenting Dog" (Book): https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/862416.Scent_and_the_Scenting_Dog
Tuber lyonii (Truffle): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pecan_truffle
Craterellus cornucopioides (Fungus): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Craterellus_cornucopioides

Ep. 120: Lichenology - Biodiversity and Evolution of Fungal, Algal Symbiosis (feat. Matthew Nelsen PhD) Apr 19, 2022

Show notes

Today on Mushroom Hour we are joined by illustrious lichen expert Matthew Nelsen PhD. Matthew is a Research Scientist at the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago. Matt's research began in botany, ecology and environmental science and has more recently gravitated towards: (i) the evolution of symbiotic associations; and (ii) the evolution of eukaryotic microbes (fungi and algae), and the roles they have played in shaping terrestrial ecosystems and nutrient-cycling over geologic timescales. Both avenues of his research attempt to link diverse fields and organismal groups. He also has conducted work addressing the timing and evolutionary consequences of ant-plant interactions. Matt thank you so much for joining us on the Mushroom Hour!
TOPICS COVERED:

Fungus & Algae Species Forming Lichen Partnerships
Host Specificity in Lichen Partnerships
Evolutionary History of Lichen
Vascular Plants on Land Before Lichen?!
Challenges of Working on “Big Time”
Process of Lichen Formation, Fungal Phenotypes
Lichen Blurring Species Boundaries
Cleptobiosis
Role in Carbon & Nitrogen Cycles
Lichen as an Ecosystem
Lichen & Air Quality in an Environment
Lichenometry
Analysis of Fungal Coal Formation Hypothesis
Ant Plant Interactions

EPISODE RESOURCES:

Matthew Nelsen Website: https://mpnelsen.com/
Lichen: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lichen
Xanthoria parietina (Lichen): https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Xanthoria_parietina
Trebouxia (Lichen Genus): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trebouxia
Toby Spribille (Lichen Expert): https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=vPlIL5IAAAAJ&hl=en
Betsy Arnold (Endophyte Expert): http://www.arnoldlab.net/
Article on Fungal Coal Formation Hypothesis: https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.1517943113
Arthrobotrys (Fungal Genus): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthrobotrys
Mycoparasites: https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/agricultural-and-biological-sciences/mycoparasites

Ep. 119: Garden State Mushrooms - Pioneering Cultivation of Beefsteak Mushrooms (feat. Jacob Alvarez) Apr 11, 2022

Show notes

Today on Mushroom Hour we have the honor of being joined by Jacob Alvarez. Jacob is an amateur mycologist focusing on dialing in cultivation methods for Fistulina hepatica, the beefsteak fungus. He started the “Beefsteak culture collection project” last year and has been collecting samples of the mushroom since early 2019. In May 2020 he made a significant breakthrough and successfully cultivated the first ever photo documented Beefsteak mushroom grow on a hardwood bag in the USA. He is based out Southern New Jersey where he owns & operates his farm Garden State Mushrooms. At the farm, he grows a wide variety of different gourmet mushrooms and continues his research figuring out better beefsteak cultivation methods. Beefsteak mushrooms are an intriguing mushroom that can be eaten raw, resemble meat in appearance and even bleed. The cultivation of the beefsteak mushroom can add some tremendous value to the mushroom market for small mushroom farms and he passionately believes the time to grow this mushroom is now! I’m excited to hear insights as to how to cultivate this mushroom and maybe be inspired to never give up on ideas even when things go very, very wrong.
TOPICS COVERED:

Discovering Wild Mushrooms and Introduction to Fistulina hepatica
Fistulina Fundamentals
Finding the Best Beefsteak Strain for Commercial Cultivation
2020 Beefsteak Culture Challenge
Genetics and Process Over Substrate in Beefsteak Cultivation
Process of Collecting Wild Tissue Cultures
Extreme Photosensitivity of Beefsteak Mushrooms
Growth of Project and R&D Scaling
Economic Importance of Beefsteak Mushrooms for Small Farmers
Betting the Future of Garden State Mycology on Beefsteak
Juggling Research, Business, Fatherhood
Advice for Entering the World of Mushroom Farming
Creating Jerky, Sushi and More with Beefsteak Mushrooms
Open-Source Innovation

EPISODE RESOURCES:

Garden State Mycology Website: https://gardenstatemushrooms.com/
Garden State Mycology IG: https://www.instagram.com/gardenstatemushrooms/
Jacob Alvarez IG: https://www.instagram.com/hacob_/
Fistulina hepatica (AKA Beefsteak Mushroom): https://www.mushroomexpert.com/fistulina_hepatica.html
Myco-Operative Twin Cities: https://www.facebook.com/MycoOpTwinCities/
Mycopolitan: https://www.mycopolitan.com/
Pleurotus eryngii (AKA King Oyster Mushroom): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pleurotus_eryngii
Lanmaoa pallidorosea (AKA Bullion Bolete): https://boletes.wpamushroomclub.org/product/boletus-pallidoroseus/

Ep. 118: Galloway Wild Foods - Wild Mushrooms, Coastal Foraging & Botanical Cocktails (feat. Mark Williams) Apr 06, 2022

Show notes

Today on Mushroom Hour we have the privilege of speaking with Mark Williams, founder of Galloway Wild Foods. Through his work in the wilds of Scotland, Mark hopes to share his passion for foraging and the delicious and nutritious food that we all can gather for free in the wild. In so doing, Mark’s goal is to restore vital connection between humans and nature, increasing our intimacy with the natural world in ways that are beneficial our own physical and mental wellbeing, and the health of the ecosystems of which we are part. He teaches about the full range and depth of wild food and foraging including plants, fungi, seaweed, and shellfish. These practices take Mark across a diverse range of habitats – from high mountains, through forests, hedgerows, urban settings and down to the coast. He covers all areas of foraging including traditional and modern food uses, health and nutrition, traditional and modern medicinal uses, survival and bushcraft, wild booze and lots more.
TOPICS COVERED:

Childhood Spent in Nature
Discovering Provenance, Wild Food & Foraging Working as a Chef
Scotland as a Mushroom Habitat
Foraging Traditions in Scotland
Diversity & Abundance in Coastal Foraging
Nutritional & Medicinal Value of Seaweeds
Cyber-foraging & Impressions on Social Media
Edible Conifers
Botanical Cocktails
Medicinal Mushrooms & Plants
Evolution of Foraging Mentorship
The Association of Foragers
Wild Food Accreditation Systems
Adding Mushrooms to School Curriculums

EPISODE RESOURCES:

Galloway Wild Foods Website: https://gallowaywildfoods.com/
Mark Williams Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/markwildfood/
Association of Foragers: https://foragers-association.org/
"A Passion for Mushrooms" (Book): https://antoniocarlucciofoundation.org/book/a-passion-for-mushrooms/
Sea Orache: https://gallowaywildfoods.com/orache-identification-edibility-distribution/
Palmaria palmata (Dulse Seaweed): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palmaria_palmata
Nori Seaweed: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nori
Grifola frondosa (Hen of the Woods): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grifola_frondosa
Hymenochaete corrugata (Hazel Glue): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hymenochaete_corrugata
Hypocreopsis rhododendri (Hazel Gloves): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypocreopsis_rhododendri

Ep. 117: Bolt Threads & Mylo™ Unleather - Inspired by Nature, Designing for the Future (feat. David Breslauer) Mar 27, 2022

Show notes

Today on the Mushroom Hour Podcast we are joined by David Breslauer, Chief Scientific Officer and Co-Founder of Bolt Threads. Bolt Threads is a company on a mission to create way better materials for a way better world, developing sustainable solutions for the apparel and beauty industries. With nature as inspiration, Bolt Threads invents and scales credible materials that put us on a path towards a more sustainable future. Bolt Threads is based in Emeryville, Calif. and was a Fast Company Most Innovative company in 2019 and 2018. David leads technology innovation at Bolt, creating and incubating biomaterials for improved consumer products. His obsession with biomaterials began with graduate research on silk during his Bioengineering PhD at UC Berkeley and UCSF. David has an orange belt in Krav Maga and is a great admirer of stencil graffiti. I’m excited to hear from him about all the future of sustainable materials and how Mylo™ – their mycelium material line, will play a leading role.
TOPICS COVERED:

Microfluidics & Bio-inspiration
Biomaterials Past, Present and Future
Decision to Create Sustainable Consumer Goods
Synchronistic Connections Researching Spider Silk
Founding Bolt Threads
In Search of Leather, Turning to Mycelium
Learning to Work with Mycelium as a Material
How to Transform Mycelium into Leather-like Material
Properties of Mycelium as a Leather Material
Scaling Production of Mycelium Leather
Reaction from Product Developers and Fashion Houses
Future Uses of Mycelium and other Biomaterials
Advice for Working in the Field of Biomaterials

EPISODE RESOURCES:

Bolt Threads Website: https://boltthreads.com/
Mylo Unleather Website: https://www.mylo-unleather.com/
Bolt Threads IG: https://www.instagram.com/boltthreads/
Mylo Unleather IG: https://www.instagram.com/mylo_unleather/

Ep. 116: Just Mushrooms Cookbook - Celebrating the Future of Food (feat. Michelle Russell & Camille DeGabrielle) Mar 20, 2022

Show notes

Today on Mushroom Hour we are joined by the dynamic duo Michelle Russell and Camille Myhre Degabrielle author of the new cookbook “Just Mushrooms”. Ten years ago, Michelle changed everything about her life, she lost 80lbs by adopting a plant-based diet, ridded herself of the need for 12 prescription medications, cured her depression, and accepted a new job in Tokyo. From Tokyo, she moved to Bavaria and spent years traveling the European capitals and backroads. During this period of exploration, Michelle went to culinary school to learn more about the many ways that plants can heal us and became convinced that part of her next evolution would be to help make it easier to be healthy. Camille majored in Industrial Design at Savannah College of Art and Design. During this time, she had the opportunity to study abroad in Hong Kong. Having first-hand experience with manufacturing practices and seeing the impact of what product design could do to our environment, she refocused her efforts to more sustainable design. Through studying Sustainability & Biomimicry, she allowed those principles to reshape her thinking and eventually adopted a plant-based diet for ecological and ethical reasons. Their cookbook will make you a firm believer, like I am, that fungi are the future of food and they can help us heal our bodies, our minds, and the planet itself.
TOPICS COVERED:

Michelle and Camille Connecting Through Mushrooms
In Search of a Mushroom Cookbook
Influenced by Mycophilic Cultures
Growing Mushrooms at Home
Mushroom Cultivation as the Future of Sustainable Agriculture
Techniques in Mushroom Cooking & Preparation
Health Benefits of Consuming Mushrooms
Possible to Eat Too Many Mushrooms?
Themes Throughout “Just Mushrooms” Cookbook
How the Cookbook is Structured
Some Favorite Mushroom Recipes from the Cookbook
Evolution Through Writing the Cookbook
Integration with the Mycophile Community
Future Plans Beyond the Cookbook

EPISODE RESOURCES:

Just Mushrooms Website: https://www.just-mushrooms.com/
Just Mushrooms IG: https://www.instagram.com/just_mushrooms_/?hl=en
Just Mushrooms Cookbook: https://www.just-mushrooms.com/purchase

Ep. 115: Feral Fungi - Alchemycology, Astromycology & Spagyric Tinctures (feat. Jason Scott) Mar 16, 2022

Show notes

Today on Mushroom Hour we are blessed by the presence of Jason Scott, founder of Feral Fungi. Jason Scott is a Mycologist, Ethnobotanist and Spagyricist who has studied traditional Hermetic Alchemy, from history and philosophy to practice, for the past 9 years. He has a background in Ethnobotany and Plant Medicine that started on the Big Island of Hawaii and has carried back with him into his home: the Pacific North West. Born and raised in Oregon, Jason has an intrinsic interest in the Fungal Queendom and all of its aspects: from cultivation and mycoremediation, to historical and cultural relationships. Jason has studied various different healing modalities including Ayurveda in Nepal and Western Herbalism all over Oregon and Washington. As Owner of Feral Fungi, he produces Mushroom Spagyric Tinctures, and he curates AlcheMycology.com where he shares some of his teachings and writings alongside other fascinating discoveries in the world of Fungi. Jason is also a co-organizer of the Radical Mycology Convergence and the Fungi Film Fest. He is on an ever-deepening journey of education to understand the practical applications of his interests, and the golden threads that connect them.
TOPICS COVERED:

Growing up Adrift in a Disconnected Culture
Radical Mycology Convergence
Heremetic Sciences – Alchemy, Astrology, Quabbalah
Philosophies & Origins of Alchemy
Embracing Practical Alchemy in Laboratory Work
Doctrines of Signatures, Correspondences & Emanations
Alche-mycology & Transmutation
Astrology & Planetary Correspondences
Astro-mycology - Mushrooms & Their Planets
Understanding Through Powers of Observation
Embracing the Qualitative
Dangers of Reductionism with Herbal Medicines
Spagyric Processing – Metaphor of Sulphur, Salt, Mercury
Frontiers of Mushroom Spagyrics

EPISODE RESOURCES:

Feral Fungi Website: https://feralfungi.com/
Feral Fungi IG: https://www.instagram.com/feralfungi/
Alchemycology Website: http://www.alchemycology.com/
Radical Mycology: https://www.radicalmycology.com/
Robert Bartlett: https://www.spagyricus.com/about-robert-bartlett/
Paracelsus: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paracelsus
Plant Path Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-plant-path/id1243181579
Manfred M Junius: https://www.simonandschuster.com/authors/Manfred-M-Junius/410051223

Ep. 114: Jamaica's Mushroom Queen & Wake Network (feat. Terri Smith) Mar 06, 2022

Show notes

Today on the Mushroom Hour Podcast we are honored to be joined by Terri Smith, the CEO of Wake Jamaica. Terri’s passions lie in making wellness possible for underserved people and communities. As a young mother recently arrived in Canada, she completed her studies in Literature and Social-Cultural Anthropology and developed her expertise in Labour Market re-entry for injured workers and economically-disadvantaged adults. Terri returned to Jamaica to care for an elderly relative, and during that time she and her husband took up a mushroom farm using a unique proprietary lemongrass-bamboo substrate. Terri believes in a triple bottom line approach to growing any of her projects: every community entered must be better when we leave - financially, socially and environmentally. I’m so excited to here about her work in helping rural & underserved communities to find empowerment through mushroom cultivation and all the ways that her company Wake is contributing to the democratization of wellness.

TOPICS COVERED:

Childhood in Rural Jamaica
Inspired to Train Women how to Change Their World with Mushrooms
Seeing a Need to Heal People and Environments in Rural Jamaica
Economic Policies Impacting Health of Jamaica’s People and Environment
Becoming Jamaica’s Mushroom Queen
Adapting Cultivation Techniques to Meet the Needs of Communities
Improving Understandings of Agriculture through Mushroom Cultivation
The Power Multiplier of Empowering Women in Poor & Rural Communities
Connecting with Wake Network
Landscape of Psilocybin Mushroom Industry in Jamaica
History of Psilocybin Mushrooms in Jamaica
How Wake’s Programs Integrate and Support Local Communities in Jamaica
Plant and Mushroom Medicines Nothing New for Indigenous Cultures
Future of Scaling Wake Network Programs in Jamaica

EPISODE RESOURCES:

Wake Network: https://wake.net/
Chido Govera (Inspiration): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chido_Govera
Pleurotus ostreatus (fungus): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pleurotus_ostreatus
Psilocybe cubensis (fungus): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psilocybe_cubensis

Ep. 113: Mushrooms of the Rocky Mountains and Arctic Alpine Biome (feat. Dr. Cathy Cripps) Feb 27, 2022

Show notes

Today on Mushroom Hour we have the honor of being joined by Dr. Cathy Cripps. Dr Cripps is a mycologist and professor at Montana State University where she teaches and does research on fungi. She earned her BS from the University of Michigan and PhD from Virginia Tech with Dr. Orson Miller. Her research on mushrooms that survive in Arctic and alpine habitats has taken her to Iceland, Svalbard, Norway, Greenland, the Austrian Alps, and Finland. She is co-author of “The Essential Guide to Rocky Mountain Mushrooms by Habitat”, and “Fungi in Forest Ecosystems”, and has authored numerous scientific papers. She is also involved with using mycorrhizal fungi in the restoration of whitebark pine. With over 40 years of experience collecting mushrooms, first as an amateur when she lived in a cabin in Colorado and later as a professional leading forays and teaching field classes in Montana, her love and enthusiasm for the Rocky Mountains and its fungal creatures runs deep.
TOPICS COVERED:

Interest in Organisms from the Benthic Deep to the Mountaintops
Falling in Love with the Colorado Mountains
Coming out of the Mountains to Pursue a Graduate Degree
Foundations of the Telluride Mushroom Festival
Distinguishing Montagne, Alpine and Subalpine Ecosystems
Alpine Mushrooms and 1 Inch Dwarf Willows
Subalpine Aspen Forests
Montagne Conifer Forests
Role of Soil pH and Tree Age in Fungal Community Composition
Mycorrhizal Fungi as Key to Resiliency of White Bark Pine Forests
Biogeography of Arctic Alpine Fungi
Native and Endemic Fungi of Mountain Biomes
Writing “The Essential Guide to Rocky Mountain Mushrooms by Habitat”
Future of Research on Mycorrhizal Fungi

EPISODE RESOURCES:

Cathy Cripps Faculty Profile: https://plantsciences.montana.edu/directory/faculty/1524013/cathy-cripps
Orson K. Miller: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.3852/10-042
Dwarf Willows: https://www.bbcearth.com/news/the-worlds-tiniest-tree
Amanita alpinicola (fungus): https://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/mtax/mt/2017/00000132/00000003/art00025;jsessionid=26t1ks7l10pq2.x-ic-live-02
Arrhenia auriscalpium (fungus): https://plantsciences.montana.edu/facultyorstaff/faculty/cripps/Arrhenia%20paper.pdf
Dentinum repandum (fungus): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydnum_repandum
Hericium coralloides (fungus): https://www.mushroomexpert.com/hericium_coralloides.html
Suillus americanus (fungus): https://www.mushroomexpert.com/suillus_americanus.html
Suillus of whitebark pine: https://plantsciences.montana.edu/facultyorstaff/faculty/cripps/MohattRPViewDoc.pdf

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