October 22nd, 2009, 4:45 pm

Fungi in Mt. Hood National Forest!

During this hike, the hike leader, Mark Des Marets, discusses the reciprocal relationship between fungi and ecosystems.

"You are surrounded by fungi; you're standing on fungi; you're breathing in the spores, millions and millions of spores,every single moment of your life."

Fungi Are Everywhere!

"Every single needle of these Douglas fir trees, the little one inch needle, has a tiny little hyphae of a fungus that helps the tree produce nitrogen. Every single square inch of the soil has millions of miles of fungal hyphae. Every single tree of this forest is interconnected through this underground fungal network."

According to Mark, trees, and basically every other member of the plant kingdom, would not survive without this connection.

"Every single tree seedling that sprouts requires, with this little root going down into the soil, a connected web from a fungus."

Mark says further that "Fungi is the overarching name for this family. Mushroom is like an apple on a tree, it's the fruiting body of that fungal network..... So when we are picking mushrooms, we are basically picking an apple off a tree."

Bark-About hikes inform hikers about the threats posed by specific timber sales and what can be done to protect Mt. Hood's water, recreation, and wildlife. In addition the hike leaders will often include information about medicinal plants, wildflowers and, as in this case, the wonderful and intricately interconnected world surrounding us at all times.