A Voice for the Wildthings

Les and Nova recording soil data at one of their wild mushroom sites

The brake lines on their truck were cut, their dogs killed, fences destroyed, and they’ve been shot at. Such occurrences have unfortunately been part of Nova Kim and Les Hook’s lives – two Vermont wildcrafters whose plea before the State legislature to “save the wild things” has made them un-popular with those who oppose the movement to limit clear cutting Vermont’s forests.

“We love the land; we love the forest. But clear cutting destroys habitat,” says Les.  “You figure, a person can make $200 - $300 picking wild mushrooms under a tree.  A lumberer gets about $45 for that tree you’ll never see again -- destroying a mushroom habitat forever.”

What can conservationists learn from these wildcrafter-advocates?  NRCS conservationists in Vermont think an exchange of information with these intrepid mushroom wildcrafters will prove invaluable in determining the range of average daily/yearly temperatures for different soil series.    Where soil scientists spend limited time in an area when developing soil maps, Les and Nova have gained a unique and thorough knowledge of the soils through visiting their collection sites over long periods.  Just as NRCS soil scientists map and record characteristics of various soils in a given geographic locale and then develop models of which soils occur in particular locations, Les and Nova have developed a detailed model of the soil and site conditions that encourage mushroom growth.

Astute observers of the micro-environment of each mushroom collection site, they note soil conditions such as pH (soil acidity), temperature, texture, color, moisture status, and degree of compaction.  Additionally, they record trees species, canopy conditions, slope orientation, air temperature, and other factors for each location.  Analyzing this information gives them a better perspective on the best environment for particular species of mushroom and improves their gathering schedule thereby preventing empty-handed mushroom collecting forays.

Kim and Hook live “off-grid,” choosing instead to use solar and windmill power on their farm in Albany, Vermont.  They also live off the land.  “Your food is your medicine; your medicine is your food,” says Les as he searches the ground for a natural pain reliever.  When asked about the safety of the plants he nibbles on he says, “14,000 people die each year from aspirin.  Think about that.”

In the early 1990’s, they gathered ginseng together and started-up the Natures’ Own Wild Ginseng Herbal Tea Company.  Their products sold in 260 stores including Harrods of London.  But their concern for the natural habitat began to conflict with increasingly high demand, so they quit their business.  “You could’ve been the next Celestial Seasonings,” someone once told them.

“You know, of course,” chimes in Les, “the proprietors of Celestial Seasonings are now divorced.

“We never do anything just ‘cause there’s money in it,” explains Nova.

Upscale restaurants in Vermont rely on native grown and harvested food to prepare their cuisine.  So for Les and Nova, it was on to harvesting wild mushrooms and other delicacies from the forest floor.  "Those who buy from us get the ‘run of the woods,” says Nova.

Their wild mushrooms have a growing season that runs from April through December.  According to Nova, there are 24,000 mushrooms identified in the United States; one quarter of all that exist in the world.  Of these, at least 300 are edible.

“There are only about a dozen that can kill,” assures Les.  “But then again, you should never sell what you haven’t eaten yourself.”

They know their mushrooms.  They know exactly what trees they are under and what soil temperature is required before the mushrooms will appear. This intimate knowledge of the woods allows them to deliver when other gatherers can’t.

“We collected a basket of mushrooms for Julia Child in 2001 -- right in the middle of a drought when everyone thought a harvest was impossible” says Nova. Because they knew precise local conditions and microhabitats, they came up with fourteen different varieties of epicurean proportions for the cooking diva.

Visit the NRCS Vermont web site.

Les and Nova have been guests on public television shows and were featured in Joan Nathan’s book The New American Cooking. They have worked with the USDA Forest Service, giving talks on forest ethics and have also lectured classes at the University of Vermont, the New England Culinary Institute, the Vermont Institute of Natural Science, and the Vermont Natural Resource Council.

The Food and Drug Administration has invited Les and Nova to speak on uses of non-Federal timber land at the U.S. Forest Service’s 100th Anniversary exhibit and wildcrafting in the 21st Century: non-timber products on a local and global scale at the Food Culture USA exhibit during the Smithsonian Folklife Festival, June 23 through July 4. Over a million people are expected to attend the annual Smithsonian Folklife Festival.

At the request of a major publishing company, they plan to write a book on wildcrafting they’ve already titled, Twenty Five Years of Living In, with, and For the Woods: A Love Story.
Your contacts are Anne Hilliard,  NRCS public affairs specialist, at 802-951-6796, ext. 234, or Caroline Alves, NRCS soil scientist, at 802-865-7895 ext. 23.

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