Next Meeting: Tuesday, September 11th

 

I am pleased to announce that our next meeting will feature a special presentation from Paul Kroeger, a founding member of the VMS.
 
Mushrooms and People
 
This eclectic talk flows through various ways people interact with mushrooms. The commercial harvest of edible wild mushrooms is discussed with excursions into medicinal mushrooms and ethno-mycology of traditional cultures. We will also learn of some unusual places and ways to look for fungi, and some surprising things found.
 
About our speaker:
 
Paul Kroeger has studied mushrooms for over thirty-five years and is a founding member of the Vancouver Mycological Society. He has been involved in many projects and studies about diverse aspects of mushrooms, gaining knowledge about fungal ecology, biochemistry of toxic, hallucinogenic, medicinal, and edible mushrooms. Years of experience have created unique insights and understanding of fungal life-ways and interactions in temperate ecosystems.
 
Tuesday November 11th, 2025 @ Floral Hall, VanDusen Gardens (5251 Oak St.)
Doors at 7pm, Talk at 7:30pm
 
As always, we would love to see your specimens at our monthly mushroom table for identification and admiration. Be sure to check out what unique and abundant Fall finds are currently growing around us.
 
Love the talk? Your VMS membership allows you to access an archive of several past talks on our website for your marathoning pleasure. As always, masks are encouraged in indoor spaces and for all in-person events!

Introducing MycoMap BC: A DNA Sequencing Project 

We're excited to announce MycoMap BC, a project aimed at documenting fungal and slime mould biodiversity in British Columbia. Through a partnership with Mycota Lab, free, year-round DNA sequencing for mushroom and slime mould collections is available to anyone in BC. Your contributions will help us better understand the unique biodiversity of our province. 

How to Participate 

We invite mushroom enthusiasts, backyard collectors, and mycologists to help us collect thousands of specimens from all regions of BC. Here’s what you'll need to get started: 

  • A collection box 
  • An iNaturalist account and a camera or phone 
  • A food dehydrator 

Once your collections are dried, you’ll ship them to our Victoria, BC collection point. We are currently accepting all collections made in 2025. 

For detailed protocols, FAQs, and shipping instructions, please visit 

mycota.com/the-mycomap-bc-network/. You can also find a link to our iNaturalist project and a form to receive the mailing address for your specimens. 

Launch Event 

Join us for a virtual launch event and celebration on September 16th at 7 PM via Zoom. The event will feature guest speakers including Stephen Russell of Mycota Lab and Andy Mackinnon and Kem Luther, authors of Mushrooms of BC. They will discuss the importance of DNA sequencing, followed by an overview of the collection protocol. There will also be a Q&A session. Register for the event here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/l0L8ztPTQjGI4cvxq17-fA 

We will also be hosting an online mycoblitz from September 17th-24th in hopes of hitting our first 1000 specimens! Join our iNaturalist project (linked on website below), and start making collections to join our leaderboard. 

Project Support & Contact 

This project is supported by the South Vancouver Island Mycological Society, the BC Biodiversity Program, the Metchosin Foundation, Whistler Naturalists, SERAL (Society for Education, Research and Arts on the Land), and the Vancouver Mycological Society. 

For any questions or to offer support, please contact project coordinators Elora Adamson (elora.adamson@svims.club) or Ann McCall (ann.mccall@svims.club). 

Happy collecting! 

We are pleased to officially announce the VMS Discord Server – an additional community space for you to hang out with and learn from your fellow mushroom enthusiasts.

Logged in VMS members can view vanmyco.org/discord and join the server

New Blog Posts: Detailed histories and more!

Stuck inside? We've got lots of new articles for you to read. Enjoy!

A History of Mushroom Cultivation in BC - by Paul Kroeger

Four Decades of Vancouver Mycological Society: How mushrooming in BC has changed - by Paul Kroeger

Health and safety issues concerning commercial marketing of Edible Wild Mushrooms in British Columbia - by Paul Kroeger

BC’s Truffle Industry: The Next Frontier is Underground - by Rosi Hunter

Get on our Instagram feed

Spotted a cool mushroom? Share it with the club (and the world) by using the hashtag #vanmyco. Your pictures will automatically appear in the feed below.

Please note: this is not an identification service, but a way for club members to easily share their unique vision of fungi.