# Orchard Morels



## Michigan Mike (May 21, 2004)

I read this article the other day and it got me fired up for the season.
My area is full of old apple orchards and have done well in them,
but not as good as this lady.
Have done good around pear trees too in the past.
Anyone hunt old orchards and do as good as this
lady?

http://pkaminski.homestead.com/orchardmorels.html

mike


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## hardwaterfan (Feb 13, 2004)

i hunt old orchard trees and have never seen anything close to that. still, i have done very well and not only in orchards but anywhere i find old fruit trees (a stray couple trees here or there in the woods....dont seem to be planted on purpose...i guess from animal droppings) ( i guess they are apples). any given old fruit tree is more likely to have morels around it than dead elms from what i have seen here, where i hunt in NE ohio. if i could pick either old apple trees or old dead elms (one or the other) id pick fruit trees hands down. ive never found them "surrounded" by morels. (like they can be with a lucky dead elm) usually only one or two. but they are always nice, chunky yellows. found some really impressive ones. 8-10" + some of the largest ones i found were near fruit trees last year but....i was too late, they were shot. still burns a spot in the memory banks for future seasons! actually, last year was the first year i ever really realized how productive fruit trees can be. now i key on them. you can find some real giants near fruit trees!


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## Roosevelt (Sep 21, 2007)

Not me!


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## Oldgrandman (Nov 16, 2004)

My buddies aunts property near Mancelona had awesome orchard morels, till the gas people plowed a path right through a small patch of woods at the edge of it. 
Now they only grow out in the orchard where the trees are. They grew in this woods right out into the orchard, the grassy shaded North side with prickers and the trees was often loaded with them. There were some ash in that woods and they took most of those out. Ash and apple trees, doesn't get much better than that!
Some dandy finds that usually numbered in the hundreds (not all at once) every season. Greys, yellows and the late big ones all grew there. Be real lucky to get 50 or 60 any more...:sad:
Down state here an old peach orchard is real good for the darks and some greys, on state land and most people probably do not realize it is an old peach orchard but that is the word form the old timers of the area. Now where was that???


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## Michigan Mike (May 21, 2004)

hardwaterfan said:


> i hunt old orchard trees and have never seen anything close to that. still, i have done very well and not only in orchards but anywhere i find old fruit trees (a stray couple trees here or there in the woods....dont seem to be planted on purpose...i guess from animal droppings) ( i guess they are apples). any given old fruit tree is more likely to have morels around it than dead elms from what i have seen here, where i hunt in NE ohio. if i could pick either old apple trees or old dead elms (one or the other) id pick fruit trees hands down. ive never found them "surrounded" by morels. (like they can be with a lucky dead elm) usually only one or two. but they are always nice, chunky yellows. found some really impressive ones. 8-10" + some of the largest ones i found were near fruit trees last year but....i was too late, they were shot. still burns a spot in the memory banks for future seasons! actually, last year was the first year i ever really realized how productive fruit trees can be. now i key on them. you can find some real giants near fruit trees!


Hi HW
Around here it's the opposite, the elm rules.
I've never walked away with more than
a hundred out of any old orchard;
Some elm woods its only 1 in a hundred that produce,
but others I have seen it as high as 1 in 10.

Do you find them around ash and Tulip poplar down there?.
I have some woods that are loaded with huge tulip poplar
but have never found any ,,,,,yet lol

thanks mike


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## Michigan Mike (May 21, 2004)

Oldgrandman said:


> My buddies aunts property near Mancelona had awesome orchard morels, till the gas people plowed a path right through a small patch of woods at the edge of it.
> Now they only grow out in the orchard where the trees are. They grew in this woods right out into the orchard, the grassy shaded North side with prickers and the trees was often loaded with them. There were some ash in that woods and they took most of those out. Ash and apple trees, doesn't get much better than that!
> Some dandy finds that usually numbered in the hundreds (not all at once) every season. Greys, yellows and the late big ones all grew there. Be real lucky to get 50 or 60 any more...:sad:
> Down state here an old peach orchard is real good for the darks and some greys, on state land and most people probably do not realize it is an old peach orchard but that is the word form the old timers of the area. Now where was that???


That sound like it was an awsome spot OGM!
Too bad they put a hurt on it.
During morel season, just about any flowing tree is suspect imo,
including thornapple and them tall cherry trees! lol

thanks mike


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## Roosevelt (Sep 21, 2007)

There's a woods I hunt w' some huge Beech and Tulip poplar. I found one large old morel in the tulip poplars on the 1st of June one year. One of the Beech trees has a carving of an old man on it. It's now got a signature on it too and someone colored in the beard...pretty neat!


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## hardwaterfan (Feb 13, 2004)

> Do you find them around ash and Tulip poplar down there?.


ash, yes, but not like you'd think. not like an elm, or an apple. not so that you could pinpoint the specific ash tree. just sort of sprinkled here and there, amongst the ash trees. i think its a different lifestyle for the morel. i dont beleive they are relating to one tree. they seem dendritic. (they seem like decomposers just spread all over the ash/elm woods) from what i have seen, they dont seem to be tied to any specific tree. i find most of my morels like that. but, these are sporadic finds. spotty within any "good" area. but the really big morels and exciting finds are specifically to an elm or apple. now this is just an opinion. they might be relating to tree roots, it just doesnt appear at all tree-specific, like with an elm. being from ohio things must be different here though. we have different types of common chanterelles, i know that for sure. ive never found a cinnabar, and they seem so common in MI. 

tulip poplar, no. but i only know of a few stands, but i have never found a morel in them. 

i also have a feeling morels relate to grape vine plants.  another fruit producer...hmmm...


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## Michigan Mike (May 21, 2004)

Hey Roosevelt
Sounds like a good woods and am glad to hear that they
will fruit by Tulip poplars in Michigan.
I know they are great producers in parts of Ohio and
down south.
I'll keep checking the woods I go to since the elms are mixed in
and do put out when they are in the mood.
I hope they are in the mood this year!


HW
I believe live ash are like that everywhere and it is more of
a run and gun game compared to playing "ring around the rosy"
with elm and fruit trees.
They don't seem to be tree huggers too often. 
My S.W.A.T. on that is they are still relating to the roots
but only the ones farthest from the trees pop due to the same reason
they do on a dead elm or an injured apple.
I believe I have read that when they grow them indoors they have
to starve them to get them to go to the sclerotia stage.
Just a guess, I don't think anyone knows for sure.

Grape vines eh?
will have to check that out.

thanks
mike


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## hardwaterfan (Feb 13, 2004)

> I believe live ash are like that everywhere and it is more of
> a run and gun game compared to playing "ring around the rosy"
> with elm and fruit trees.


that makes sense to me, same thing that ive seen. usually people arent descriptive enough when they post finds to know for sure. its just "i found some nice ones today!", which is fine too, dont get me wrong. i guess most people might not care to take it to the level that a few other people do. 

i have ONCE seen small yellows defintiely encircling an ash....about 7 nice but smallish ones. not sure if it was a coincidence or what.... only that one time. and i have seen 4 nice ones encircling the base of a grape vine "trunk"...but only once.... but, seems like morels like the same kinds of conditions as grape vines from what ive seen.


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## Boardman Brookies (Dec 20, 2007)

hardwaterfan said:


> that makes sense to me, same thing that ive seen. usually people arent descriptive enough when they post finds to know for sure. its just "i found some nice ones today!", which is fine too, dont get me wrong. i guess most people might not care to take it to the level that a few other people do.
> 
> i have ONCE seen small yellows defintiely encircling an ash....about 7 nice but smallish ones. not sure if it was a coincidence or what.... only that one time. and i have seen 4 nice ones encircling the base of a grape vine "trunk"...but only once.... but, seems like morels like the same kinds of conditions as grape vines from what ive seen.


I seem to find the majority of my yellow/white morels at the bases of ash trees. I found literally pounds of them in a 3 or 4 acre stand of about 50 ash trees. It seemed like when ever I approached one there was a few at the base. This might just be an isolated area, but I love those ash trees!!


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## Michigan Mike (May 21, 2004)

Boardman Brookies said:


> I seem to find the majority of my yellow/white morels at the bases of ash trees. I found literally pounds of them in a 3 or 4 acre stand of about 50 ash trees. It seemed like when ever I approached one there was a few at the base. This might just be an isolated area, but I love those ash trees!!


Maybe not so isolated BB since my experience with ash was limited to just
a few years down here until their demise and from what I've read.
Always good to read others experience of hunting the elusive morel.

thanks
mike


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## hardwaterfan (Feb 13, 2004)

> I seem to find the majority of my yellow/white morels at the bases of ash trees. I found literally pounds of them in a 3 or 4 acre stand of about 50 ash trees. It seemed like when ever I approached one there was a few at the base. This might just be an isolated area, but I love those ash trees!!


that is interesting, ive read in michale kuos book and from the net, that some people find them like that in certain areas.. thats not the case around here from what ive seen.


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