Past speakers

2024

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

  • Thea Chesney Mushrooming in the Sierra Nevada (and Beyond).

  • Lukas Martinelli Fungal Partnerships: The Microbial Roots of Life.

  • J.R. Blair Mycorrizae.

  • Dr. Roo Vandegrift Biodiversity.

  • Brian Claus Anicola.

  • A panel of SOMA mushroom maestros How to best look for mushrooms.

2018

  • Taylor Lockwood Biolumiscence.

  • Fran Angerer An overview discussion on Truffles - History, Farming, Science and Harvesting.

  • Kingman Bond-Graham Hunting By Habitat. Recognizing Opportunities For Mushroom Foraging In California.

  • Juniper Harrower Symbiosis under climate change: Investigating Joshua trees and their mycorrhizal fungi.

  • Rick Kerrigan Introducing Agaricus.

  • Richard Tehan Evolution of secondary metabolism in Tolypocladium and hypocrealean fungi.

  • Patrick Hamilton Tales of mushrooming from Costa Rica to Alaska plus a few fine dishes to taste.

2017

  • David Campbell Truffles and Mushrooms of Northern Italy plus .

  • Paige Mandelare A Tale of Two Fungi: Coculturing of Mediterranean Marine Endophytes.

  • Anna Bazzicalupo Benjamin Woo's Russula Herbarium and his  contribution to science.

  • Dan Thomas The ancient and new landscape: how scientists are re-learning to see a world connected by fungi.

  • Kathleen Harrison Psilocybin Mushrooms in Mazatec Mexico: Glimpse an Indigenous Worldview.

  • Alan Rockefeller

  • Heather Slinn

2016

  • Brian A. Perry Fungal diversity in Hawaii

  • Noah Siegel Mushrooms of the Redwood Coast

  • Christian Schwarz MycoMysteries: A guide to what we don't know

  • Jackie Shay A Hunt for Marasmius

  • Catherine Adams Amanita phalloides

  • Natalie Hambalek

  • Darvin Deshazer and George Riner Wild Mushroom Identification

2015

  • Dorothy Beebee The History and Legacy of Mushroom Dyes

  • Justin Reyes A look at Gourmet Mushrooms Inc/Mycopia Mushrooms

  • Joshua Harrison The Fungi Within: the Ecological Importance of Symbiotic Fungi

  • Chris Grace

  • Sydney Glassman Ectomycorrhizal Fungal Spore Bank Recovery After a Severe Forest Fire: Some Like it Hot

  • Michael Beug Love of Western Ascomycetes

  • Alan Rockefeller Mushrooms of Mexico

  • Darvin DeShazer Polypores -- The Forgotten Family

2014

  • Dr. Denis Desjardin

  • Patrick Hamilton How to be a really good mushroom hunter

  • Sephanie Jarvis Trufflere, Truffle Cultivation in Modern Times

  • Noah Siegel Let It Bleed: The Lactarius of California

  • Arthur Charles Grupe II Sarcodon in the Neotropics: Four new species and the immerging circum-Caribbean distribution.

  • Ben Waitman Nitrogen pollution in Forests: How do ectomycorrhizal fungi factor in?

  • Denis R. Benjamin Mushroom ‘Poisoning’ Not Due To Toxins

  • Sydney Glassman

2013

  • Roo Vandegrift Diversity and dispersal of tropical forest Xylariaceae

  • Meredith Sabini The Art of Collecting: Tales and Tips from 30 Years on the Mountain

  • Christian Schwarz, Amateurs at the Helm -- The unique role of citizen scientists in assembling the North American Mycoflora Project

  • Patrick Hamilton, The Mycochef, Morels and More

  • Alija Bajro Mujic Have Rake, Will Travel: Following the Ancestral Migration of Douglas Fir and it False-Truffle Associates

  • Noah Siegel Mushrooms of the Redwood Coast

  • Walt Sturgeon Just For the Smell of It: Mushroom Common Scents: a non-technical look at wild mushrooms from an olfactory perspective.

  • Todd Osmundson Of species, spores, and the spiral ladder: How DNA has shaped our understanding of fungal diversity, distribution, phylogeny and ecology.

  • Alija Bajro Muji (SOMA Scholarship winner) Have Rake, Will Travel: Following the Ancestral Migration of Douglas Fir and it False-Truffle Associates.

2012

  • Rytas Vilgalys

  • Terry Henkel

  • Todd Osmundson

  • Alan Rockefeller Mushrooms of Mexico

2011

  • Jenny Talbot Dishing the dirt on decomposition: how soil fungi shape the ecosystem carbon cycle

  • Daniel Winkler Mushroaming

  • David Pilz Wild Mushroom Management in Spain: What might be applicable here?

  • Dr. Matt Trappe Shaking the Fungal Tree of Life

  • Leon Shernoff Boletes Come of Age

  • Nhu Nguyen Mycological symbioses: tales of fungi that live with insects, bacteria, and plants

  • Bob Cummings Red Amanitas, Black Trumpets, & White Porcini Mushroom Hunting in Santa Barbara

  • Langdon Cook From Woods to Plate: Wild Mushroom Cookery

  • Connie Green and Patrick Hamilton: A Show and Tell

  • Else Vellinga: The naming of mushrooms -- insights into the work of a mushroom taxonomist

2010

  • David Arora: The Wheel of Fungi: Chapter 8

  • Valerie Wong: Breaking Down Symbiosis: Searching for mechanisms of mycoheterotroph parasitism

  • Darvin DeShazer: California Edibles

  • Peter Werner: Psilocybe and allies of California, as well as other psilocybin mushrooms of the state

  • Mia Maltz: Mycorenewal and Biodiversity: Investigating the effect of fungal amendments for increasing plant establishment in contaminated soil

  • Jennifer Kerekes: A look at the diversity and ecology of saprotrophic fungal communities

2009

  • William Rubel, with David Arora: The History of Amanita muscaria as an Edible Mushroom And a Look at Cultural Bias in Field Guides

  • DVD by Taylor Lockwood, The Good, the Bad, and the Deadly: a special showing of the latest DVD by Taylor Lockwood.

  • David Campbell, Rocky Monsoon Mushrooms: A peek at summer fungi of southwestern Colorado

  • Nicole Hynson, When fungi host plants: unraveling the role of mycorrhizal specificity in myco-heterotrophic plants

  • Elio Schaecter, Mushrooms Through the Ages

  • Maggie Rodgers, Hooked on Mushroomers?

  • Kathryn Harper, Toxic and Hallucinogenic Mushroom Identification via a DNA-based Macroarray

  • Gary Lincoff, Appearance and Reality: Knowing what’s what and why in the fungi

2008

  • Glenn Shepard, Jr, Attitudes toward and Uses of Mushrooms in Traditional Cultures: An overview

  • Dimitar Bochantev, Sierra Nevada—Fungal Diversity along the roads less travelled

  • David Rust, A mushroomer's Guide to Sudden Oak Death

  • Chris Kjeldson, Why Fungi: From Elvis the King to Environmental Engineers

  • David Campbell, Fungimental Mycophagy: a forest-to-table discussion about the basics and beyond of eating wild mushrooms

  • Mia Maltz, Amazon Mycorenewal Project

  • Dorothy Beebee, Fiber and Fungi—the First Forty Years

  • Dr. Tom Volk, Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-La Crosse

2007

  • Dr. Sveta Yamin-Pasternak, PhD, Polar Regions Research, National Science Foundation: "From Tomorrow to Yesterday with a Myco-Scope Lens: Mushroom Tales from Russia and Alaska"

  • Taylor Lockwood, New Book: Chasing the Rain: My Treasure Hunt for the World's Most Beautiful Mushrooms

  • Dr. Roberto Garibay Orijel, Ph.D., UC Berkeley: "Men and Fungi, a travel through time and civilizations."

  • Dr. Terry Henkel, Ph.D., Humboldt State Univeristy: "Going Fungal in the Jungle."

  • Darvin DeShazer, Sonoma County Mycological Association.

  • Tara Fulgenzi, Humboldt State University:"Boletaceae of Guyana."

  • S. Coleman McCleneghan, Ph.D., "Fungal Stories from the Great Smoky Mountain ATBI: Documenting Friends and Foes."

  • Gary Lincoff, New York Botanical Garden.

2006

  • Dr. Ralph Metzner, Ph.D. Ayahuasca and the psilocybe mushrooms and how they relate to psychotherapy, shamanic journey practices and alchemical divination.

  • Bob Engel of Gourmet Mushroom.

  • Charmoon Richardson, Wild About Mushrooms Co. "Wild Culinary Mushrooms of Northern California."

  • Judy Roger, North American Mycological Association. "The Oregon Chanterelle Study—20 years and Counting…"

  • Dr. Beug, Ph.D., North American Mycological Association. "Reflections on Mushroom Poisonings."

  • Denise Gregory, San Francisco State University. "Endophytic Fungi."

  • Debbie Viess (AKA Amanitarita). "Amanitas of California."

  • Leon Shernoff, Illinois Mycological Association and editor of Mushroom, the Journal of Wild Mushrooming. "How do you know when a mushroom is strange?"

2005

  • Dr. Rytas Vilgalys, Ph.D., Duke University. "The secret lives of mushrooms."

  • Dr. Matteo Garbelotto, Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley. "The Tanoak Mycorrhiza Community: Predicting the Effects of P. ramorum."

  • Dr. Largent, Ph.D., Humboldt State University, emeritus. "The Fantastic Features of Fungi."

  • Andy Wilson, Clark University. "Gymnopus."

  • Dr. Dennis Desjardin, Ph.D., San Francisco State University, Mycological Society of San Francisco. "Why I Am A Mycologist."

  • Dr. Fred Stevens, Ph.D. "Agaricus of California."

  • Carla Mueller. "Enchanted Swedish Mushrooms."

  • Dr. Tom Volk, Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. "Where Have All The Hydnums Gone?"

2004

  • Dr. Bruce Ing, Ph.D., University College, Chester. "The Natural History of Myxomycetes."

  • Dr. Gastón Guzmán, Ph.D., Instituto de Ecología at Xalapa, Veracruz, Mexico. "Traditions Of Mexican Mushrooms: Edible, Medicinal And Sacred."

  • Scott Bates, University of Arizona. "Southwestern puffballs and earthstars: monography, phylogeny and spore ultrastructure in the Lycoperdaceae and Geastraceae."

  • Dr. Tom Bruns, Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley. "Observations on the Natural History of Ectomycorrhizal Fungi."

  • Megan Romberg, University of California, Davis. "Experiments in dyeing with Fusarium."

  • Dr. Donald Kowalski, Ph.D., California State University Chico, emeritus. "California Slime Molds."

  • Dr. Elio Schaechter, Ph.D., San Diego Mycological Society.

  • Gary Lincoff, New York Botanical Garden.

2003

  • Dr. Jim Trappe, Ph.D.. "Truffles In Australia…And Why Do We Care?"

  • Lawrence Glacy,"Panda Nature Reserves in China and their Fungal Ecology."

  • Matthew Keile, University of Chicago. "Coprinoid Fungi of Hawaii."

  • Dr. Lisa Grubisha, Ph.D.. "Channel Islands: Biogeography of Rhizopogon."

  • Janice Alexander, University of California Cooperative Extension and California Oak Mortality Task Force. "Oak Death: Phytophthora ramorum in California."

  • Dr. Steve Trudell, Ph.D., University of Washington. "Mycorrhizal Fungi: Foundation of Our Forests."

  • Dr. Michael Kuo, Ph.D., Eastern Illinois University. "Everything we Know About Morels."

  • Dr. Rod Tulloss, Ph.D..