# Event Details - **Event Name**: MUSHROOM EXPLORATION! - **Event Start and End Date**: Sat, 26 Sep, 2026 at 01:00 pm – Sat, 26 Sep, 2026 at 03:00 pm (-04:00) - **Event Description**: MUSHROOM EXPLORATION! SEPTEMBER 26, 1-3PM Join Dr. Henry Van T. Cotter for an introduction to mushrooms, their identification, and ecology! After a brief overview, attendees will venture into the gardens and nature preserve to search for mushrooms and collect samples for further examination. The session will end with a display of the specimens gathered, including a discussion of their taxonomy, ecology, and utility as food or mycomedicinals. Many mushrooms fruit in the late summer/early fall. So, weather willing, there should be an abundance of different species to discover! Participants are encouraged to bring: Wild mushroom samples collected from their home property A basket to hold samples collected at Fernwood Weather appropriate shoes and clothing Water, sunscreen, and insect repellent About Dr. Henry Van T. Cotter: Van’s friends and family know well that a hike with him means delving off the path to search for fungi. His love for mushrooms is infectious (case in point: this year he helped his 3- and 5-year-old next-door neighbors inoculate maple logs with lion’s mane mushroom spawn). Van’s passionate interest in fungi began when he was an assistant manager on a fruit tree farm in Michigan, watching beautiful cherries succumb to fungal brown rot. Between stints on the fruit farm, he took Introductory Mycology at the University of New Hampshire, and his future path studying and working with fungi was set. For his graduate degrees, he studied beech bark disease in New England and then boletes (friends of the forest) in Nepal under a Fulbright Grant, receiving a Ph.D. from Virginia Tech. After a career in crop protection research, he has been active as a mycological volunteer, including helping catalog the wealth of valuable fungal type collections in the NCU Herbarium, investigating equine fungal infections, and documenting the fungal biodiversity of Michigan’s Nature Sanctuaries. Through the USAID Farmer-to-Farmer program, he assisted mushroom farmers from around the world. He is looking forward to showing you more about the world of mushrooms. Suggested Audience: Teens-Adults Location: Flora Wing of the Sims Education Center Cost: $35 ($28 members) *To receive your member discount, please be sure to sign-in by clicking the button in the upper right-hand corner of the registration screen. REGISTER: https://55268.blackbaudhosting.com/55268/Mushroom-Exploration-19Sep2026 - **Event URL**: https://allevents.in/niles/mushroom-exploration/200029813759146 - **Event Categories**: - **Interested Audience**: - total_interested_count: 63 ## Ticket Details ## Event venue details - **city**: Niles - **state**: MI - **country**: United States - **location**: 13988 Range Line Rd, Niles, MI, United States, Michigan 49120 - **lat**: 41.86532 - **long**: -86.34011 - **full address**: 13988 Range Line Rd, Niles, MI, United States, Michigan 49120 ## Event gallery - **Alt text**: MUSHROOM EXPLORATION! - **Image URL**: https://cdn-az.allevents.in/events10/banners/8c6edc4d928cb7efe0180ea6feed1361a163574e912ac0e60089880b1dcdfd42-rimg-w1200-h675-dcfffffe-gmir?v=1778556045 ## FAQs - **Q**: When and where is MUSHROOM EXPLORATION! being held? - **A:** MUSHROOM EXPLORATION! takes place on Sat, 26 Sep, 2026 at 01:00 pm to Sat, 26 Sep, 2026 at 03:00 pm at 13988 Range Line Rd, Niles, MI, United States, Michigan 49120. - **Q**: Who is organizing MUSHROOM EXPLORATION!? - **A:** MUSHROOM EXPLORATION! is organized by Fernwood Botanical Garden and Nature Preserve. - **Q**: Who is this event for? Is it right for me? - **A:** MUSHROOM EXPLORATION! is ideal for curious learners, students, and skill-builders looking to gain hands-on knowledge and practical expertise in a focused, interactive setting. Whether you're a first-time attendee or a longtime enthusiast in Niles, this event is thoughtfully curated to deliver a standout experience worth every moment. With 60+ people already showing interest, this is clearly an event worth adding to your calendar - don't miss out. ## Structured Data (JSON-LD) ```json [ { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "Event", "name": "MUSHROOM EXPLORATION!", "image": "https://cdn-az.allevents.in/events10/banners/8c6edc4d928cb7efe0180ea6feed1361a163574e912ac0e60089880b1dcdfd42-rimg-w1200-h675-dcfffffe-gmir?v=1778556045", "startDate": "2026-09-26T13:00:00-04:00", "endDate": "2026-09-26T15:00:00-04:00", "url": "https://allevents.in/niles/mushroom-exploration/200029813759146", "eventStatus": "https://schema.org/EventScheduled", "location": { "@type": "Place", "name": "13988 Range Line Rd, Niles, MI, United States, Michigan 49120", "address": { "@type": "PostalAddress", "streetAddress": "13988 Range Line Rd, Niles, MI 49120-9020, United States", "addressLocality": "Niles", "addressRegion": "MI", "addressCountry": "US" }, "geo": { "@type": "GeoCoordinates", "latitude": "41.86532", "longitude": "-86.34011" } }, "eventAttendanceMode": "https://schema.org/OfflineEventAttendanceMode", "description": "MUSHROOM EXPLORATION!\nSEPTEMBER 26, 1-3PM\n\nJoin Dr. Henry Van T. Cotter for an introduction to mushrooms, their identification, and ecology! After a brief overview, attendees will venture into the gardens and nature preserve to search for mushrooms and collect samples for further examination. The se", "organizer": [ { "@type": "Organization", "name": "Fernwood Botanical Garden and Nature Preserve", "url": "https://allevents.in/org/fernwood-botanical-garden-and-nature-preserve/12889691", "description": "Fernwood is a special place, open to the community all year long, where people, plants, and nature come together. Also featured on the 105 acre property are miles of trails, an art gallery, fern conservatory, Education Center, cafe, and gift shop. " } ] } ] ```