FFSC mushroom experts will be available throughout the fair to identify the mushrooms you’ve found. Bring yours, ideally stored in a paper bag rather than plastic. Paper allows fungi to "breathe" and keeps them fresher!
The habitat display area will present hundreds of mushroom species commonly found in the Santa Cruz/San Francisco/Monterey Bay area.
Visit the Kid's Room for mushroom activities such as clay sculpture, water colors, face painting, mushroom art and making mushroom dyed fabric. Peruse the fungus exploration area and look at spores through a microscope.
Schedule Of Events
Room 3 Talks:
9:30 am-10:30am - Christopher Hobbs, PH.D.
The Magic Mushroom Talk:
Psilocybin mushrooms are renowned as spiritual guides and tools for dissolving the ego, helping to overcome trauma, limiting beliefs, and mental blocks and clinical research shows they can effectively treat anxiety, depression, addiction, and PTSD. In this talk, we'll explore the transformative potential of psilocybin through recent science and practice.
11:15 am-12:15pm - Christian Schwarz
Fungi of New Zealand: The Ecology of a Young Land
Aotearoa — the land more commonly as New Zealand is young in many ways: In recent geologic history, it nearly drowned after splitting off from the Australian continent, and it was the last bit of Earth’s land to be inhabited by human beings. This island nation is a wild and wondrous place — very different from anything familiar to a resident of the Northern Hemisphere. We’ll talk about the holistic ecology of the place, using fungi as a lens to understand the bigger picture.
1:00 pm-2:00pm - Bill Schoenbart
Medicinal Mushrooms - Science and Traditional Usage
Medicinal mushrooms have a long history of use in traditional Chinese medicine. They have also been the subject of numerous scientific studies in recent years. This talk will review the traditional functions and indications of turkey tail, reishi, cordyceps, and lion's mane, and we will discuss clinical studies and research into these incredible gifts from nature.
2:45 pm-3:45pm - Noah Siegel
Mushrooms of the Redwood Coast
From towering redwoods to live oak woodlands, northern California has diverse habitats which host a dazzling array of fungi. From the worlds largest chanterelle, to massive Porcini, or a rainbow of tiny waxy caps in the redwood duff, this talk will introduce you to the mushrooms of the Redwood Coast
4:30 pm-5:30pm - Henry Young
What You Need to Know About Poisonous Mushrooms:
We will explore the intersection of poisonous mushrooms and people who accidentally or purposefully eat them. Toxic fungi from the deadly to the lose your lunch bunch and their impact on humans will be covered.
Room 1 Talks:
10:00 am-11:00am - Vellany Pierce
An Introduction to Mushroom Cultivation
11:30 am-12:30pm - Henry Young
A Discussion of Poisonous Mushrooms
1:00 pm-2:00pm - Douglas Smith
Top Ten Edible and Poisonous Mushrooms
2:30 pm-3:30pm - Shannon Adams
From Saucepan to Science: Foraging, Feasting and Phylogeny
4:00 pm-5:00pm - Phil Carpenter
An Introduction to Mushroom Identification
