Morel Hunting: Private vs. Public Ground

[JIvers]

I post quite a bit on this forum this time of year, and I’ve said several times that I hunt morels on public ground—HEAVILY hunted public land—around Iowa City. Back in Fillmore County, MN, I have land of my own that I hunt. There are differences in how I go about hunting morels on public land vs. private land no one else is supposed to hunt, so I thought I’d start a conversation on this topic. Private land is obviously easier to hunt, so I don’t say as much about that. Instead, I’ll focus on what I’ve learned about finding morels on public ground where I am competing with a lot of other people:

On public land, I don’t focus too much on dead elm trees. Dead elms with some bark still on them are the single best place to look for morels…and everyone knows it. I run in to a lot of people down here walking around public woods who are looking twenty feet up in the air. The last I checked, morels don’t grow twenty feet off the ground. These people, of course, are looking for dead elms. When they see one they sprint right to it.

In the process of looking up in the air and making a bee-line from dead elm to dead elm, those people miss a lot of mushrooms. Plenty of morels grow more than two feet from the nearest dead elm. I’ve found lots of morels around ash, maple, cottonwood, and cherry trees; one of my best early season spots here is around a large, and very much alive, maple tree.

Morels also grow well away from any one tree—they grow from the root systems of various trees, not just elms, and those root systems go out a long ways from the trunk. Look a little farther away from the dead elms on public ground where the ground cover (by which I mean May Apples) is right, and you will find a lot of mushrooms.

Some scouting is needed to find those spots away from the base of dead elms where morels pop, so a little extra time has to be put in on public ground to find those sweet spots. The ones I find tend to produce year after year…while people walk right past them on the way to the next dead elm that five people already checked that day.

Dead elms with some bark are still the best place to look for morels; in my own woods I do concentrate on the area right around them. The problem with public ground is that everyone else is hitting those dead elms, too. Of course, if you are the first one to those dead elms after the morels pop, you will be the one who gets them. So…

If I can, I am out in the public woods as soon as it is light enough to see. Better still if I can be out at first light on a weekday.

[nate larson]

Good post! I often find myself focusing too much on the dead/dying elm trees. I found a bunch of morels near live maples and oaks last year. The took me by surprise when I found them! Hopefully they grow in those same spots again this year.

[jeff127]

I don't hunt much public land but do hunt alot of private land---something I ran(stumbled) into last year after hitting all the go-to dead elm spots in a 80 acre parcel. While heading back to the truck I glanced down and saw a group of giant yellows growing next to a large old live ash tree(not really sure maybe white ash). I found 15 or so growing in a ring around the tree very close to the base. I went through the woods again and every old live ash tree i came to same deal. Also found some large yellows growing in a scattered, yet straight line for 40+ yards from a very old live oak tree. I will no longer just check the elms anymore!

[JIvers]

One important thing about getting out early on to public land that I forgot to mention: avoid any turkeys you might see, whether they are made of flesh and blood or rubber and plastic. It's also not a good idea to wear lots of dark blue or black with patches of red.