Although mushroom research is practically absent from American medical research, 

 Asian medical research has extensive programs evaluating the nutritional and healing 

 properties of mushrooms. Several antitumor agents (immunotherapeutic drugs) have 

 been developed from mushrooms and these products have become commercially im- 

 portant items in Japan (Mizuno 1995, Mizuno and others 1995). Experiments have 

 demonstrated significant anti-infection activity by select mushroom denvatives against 

 various kinds of bacterial, viral, and parasitic infections, including Acquired Immune 

 Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) (Mizuno and others 1995). 



Harvesting the Resource 



Population growth in Blue Mountain communities and nearby population centers has 

 resulted in steadily increasing recreational use of our woodlands. Improved access, 

 development of campgrounds, and many recreational opportunities have contributed to 

 use of the National Forests. Recreation often includes collecting of various forest prod- 

 ucts: fuel wood, berries, mushrooms, and other products. Recreational collecting of 

 mushrooms is pursued predominately by local individuals. In a 5.8-percent sample of 

 personal-use permits issued by the La Grande Ranger District, Wallowa-Whitman Na- 

 tional Forest, in 1994, all (100 percent) had Anglo-American surnames and 90 percent 

 designated local addresses.^ 



Some of the increased commercialization and development of new forest products has 

 occurred in recent years (fig. 2). Some of this use may be due to a high proportion of 

 seasonal labor, nontraditional careers, and live-off-the-land rural life-styles. Additional- 

 ly, a reduction in the number of traditional rural jobs, such as logging and millwork, has 

 forced families remaining in the area to find other sources of income. 



In the last several years, there has been a large influx of commercial pickers into por- 

 tions of the Blue Mountains during May and June to pick morels. Many commercial 

 pickers are of Southeast Asian and Latin American descent, ethnic groups not well rep- 

 resented in the resident population. At the La 

 Grande Ranger District, in 1994, commercial permits 

 were purchased by individuals with Asian (51 .3 per- 

 cent), Anglo-American (44.2 percent), and Hispanic 

 (4.5 percent) surnames. Nonlocal commercial per- 

 mit holders were more common than locals; 73 per- 

 cent and 27 percent, respectively (see footnote 3). 



A Northwest-wide survey conducted in 1992 identi- 

 fied mushroom harvesters as Caucasian (Anglo- 

 American) (49 percent), Asian (37 percent). Native 

 American (9 percent), and Hispanic (4 percent) 

 (Schlosserand Blatner 1995). 



Figure 2 — Fresh morel mushrooms 

 stacked at a buying station in Praine 

 City, Oregon. 



^ Arora, David. 1994. Unpublished survey. On file with: 

 Catherine Parks. 



