Noah Siegel, one of the organizers of the event, said he still plans to lead forays out into the woods in the morning and afternoon to look for mushrooms.
“We always recommend long sleeves in the woods and will have DEET available to anybody who didn’t bring it,” he said.
Mr. Siegel said he will make people attending aware that Athol has been listed at a critical level for EEE threat. A young girl in town has been diagnosed with the illness.
“Anyone who doesn’t want to go out there, there will be lectures throughout the day at the Millers River Environmental Center,” he said.
The Fungus Fair will be held from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The mushroom forays are expected to go out at 10:15 a.m. and 1:15 p.m. The greatest concern for mosquitoes is from early evening through 7 a.m.
The fair is held annually to inform the public about the study and uses of mushrooms. Mr. Siegel, a nationally known mycologist from Royalston, will lead forays and offer talks on beginning mushroom identification and common edible mushrooms of the Northeast. Other speakers will include Alissa Allen, who grew up foraging for mushrooms in the Northwest, and Bill Neill, a past president of the Boston Mycological Society and co-author of “Mushrooms of Cape Cod and the National Seashore.”
Ms. Allen will speak about using mushroom pigments for dyes and watercolors. Mr. Neill will speak on what to expect and where to find mushrooms in various seasons. There will be a wild mushroom cook-up at noon. At the end of the day, Mr. Siegel and Mr. Neill will identify the mushrooms found during the forays.
One place they will not be able to go to looking for mushrooms nearby is Alan Rich Environmental Park. The park, which has hiking trails and canoe access to the Millers River, is closed until the first hard frost owing to concerns about EEE.
The Fungus Fair is open to the public at $5 per person. The Millers River Environmental Center is at 100 Main St.
