Soil temps just crossed 50°F and we got two warm rains. You know what that means. Drop what you're doing — this issue is short on purpose.

What I'm reading

• The morel refresher — hunt dead elms and old apple trees, not the open ground. If you read one link before you go, this is it.
• Live Illinois soil temperatures — the 4-inch reading around Chicago is in the window right now.
• False morels: know them cold — true morels are completely hollow, top to bottom; cut every one lengthwise to confirm. The brain-like false morels are not hollow and not worth the risk.

Field note

Six morels under a leaning dead elm I scouted in February (see Issue #14 — the planning pays off). Cut each one in half in the field: hollow, hollow, hollow. Cream sauce, toast, done.

Go now. The window is days. I'll write more in two weeks — assuming I come back from the woods.

— Jenna