Fortunately for morel lovers, morels grow in almost every
state of the USA and province of Canada, and in part of Mexico. They officially are found in all but the
Arizona, Nevada & New Mexico, Florida & Georgia, Alaska and Hawaii and
the provinces of Saskatchewan and Newfoundland-Labrador. Yet, at least three varieties are common in
Manitoba, two in Saskatchewan, one found in northern Georgia, and one in the
eastern regions of Alaska.
Morels are identified as at least 16 separate family
members, from the common yellow morel and
black morel to the half-free and western blond morel. While each is specific to a region, many of
the taxons identified are almost indistinguishable from the common yellow or
black morel.
Generally, morels are found where winter temperatures reach
near or below freezing on a sustainable basis, where deciduous forests allow
filtered light during the late spring season, where daytime temperatures are
not above 80F during the fruiting season, and where the spider-like rooting networks
are able to penetrate and spread in the soil substrate.
For these reasons, hot, arid regions do not host
morels. Similarly, deep, dark evergreen
forests are inhospitable hosts. However,
some varieties of mushrooms do grow beneath evergreens. At the same time, sandy, dry soils generally
are not welcoming hosts. But morels will
grow in these soils where they adjoin more beneficial soil substrates. Thus, New Mexico, Colorado, Kansas, and other
low-population states produce morels.
As stated earlier, morels need a looser substrate in which
to spread their root-like filaments. Theoretically, then, mountainous regions
would not be suitable terrain. Yet, morels
are common in the Pacific Northwest, where leafy mulch provides the needed soil
conditions, and spring light, moisture and warmth is abundant.
Half-free morels seem to deviate from their morel cousins’
preferred sites, growing well in the mossy shoulders of small creeks and
drainage ditches. These morels are found from the Dakotas to the maritime states and provinces,
from Tennessee to Manitoba, and along the Pacific states.
The classic black morel grows abundantly in the Midwest,
along the Pacific Northwest, Colorado & New Mexico, and even in
Mississippi.
The classic yellow is even more wide-ranging, from the west,
throughout Manitoba and central Canada, central and south central USA, and even
the eastern seaboard states, while its sister, the Western Blond, is commonly
found in Wyoming, Oregon and Washington.
Even in the Yukon and eastern Alaska, a unique morel, the
fuzzy footed morel, can be found in abundance, venturing into British Columbia,
Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Colorado.
All varieties are
distinctively cone-shaped, and equally delicious. All are welcome spring snacks across all of
North America, and can be found with a little determination, and lots of luck.
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