Warmer temperatures and moisture trigger morel mushroom growth in Mid-Missouri

With the arrival of warmer temperatures across much of Mid-Missouri, many people have been eagerly waiting for morel mushroom appearances to strike once again.

Malissa Briggler is the state botanist for the Missouri Department of Conservation, "The weather makes a huge difference, and whenever we can expect the morels they usually come up between mid-April to mid-May and anywhere in between there is a peak in the season."

Temperatures and precipitation are the largest driving factors when it comes to morel mushrooms making their reappearance each spring. Overnight lows must stay above 50 degrees for a few consecutive days to promote growth in these fungi.

Moisture is also a very important factor in mole mushroom growth. Malissa Briggler explains, "Average rainfall is perfect, so even some below average seasons we can still see a decent amount showing. If we're very dry though, it's gonna be a bad year for morels.

Nolan Moriearty is a resident of Mid-Missouri and sets out each spring collecting large batches of these mushrooms each year, "The more moisture and humidity in the air definitely helps. You know, typically we're the most excited to go out and look right after rain."

Morel mushrooms are typically found near the base of dead or rotting trees. This ties an interesting connection to this fungi and tornadoes. Malissa Briggler, "In fact, some people even follow previous tornado paths from previous years, not this year, but maybe last year or the year before, because there is a lot of dead and dying trees in those areas."

Eventually, the increasing temperatures will get too hot and these fungi will disappear into portions of May. It's important to hit this short window of time to maintain a successful season. Overnight lows will continue to quickly rise throughout the next several weeks, but right now and into the foreseeable future, we're not seeing those consecutive 50 degree lows that we need to see for morel growth.