Wild Mushroom Conservation and Education Area

Established in 2024, the Wild Mushroom Conservation and Education Area (WMCEA) is an approximately 72-acre area on Ned Smith Center Lands. Specifically, the area is located between the Rail Trail and Wiconisco Creek, as shown on the map below. The entirety of the project outline can be read at the link below, but the primary objective of such a designation are in the area’s name: Conservation and Education. 

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While fungi seem to be trending in popularity in recent years, primarily for some species edibility and aesthetics, less attention has been given in formal education to fungi’s importance to biodiversity and overall ecosystem health. Utilizing the relative abundance of fungi on Ned Smith Lands, our hope is to develop  an area to be utilized for public programming, school education, and research purposes.

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We’re just getting started developing the WMCEA, but we're excited to implement some of the plans we have! The overall goal is to protect the area to preserve existing fungi as well as encourage now growth, but also to create an educational experience for even the passive hiker walking through the area. This will be done in several ways, but might include interpretive signage, trail re-routing, conservation of dead wood, and programming. Much of this work will be done in phases, so stay tuned for updates!