cottonwood trees

most of what I find are around the top of S-SE slopes around young cherry trees

 

If you can identify the tulip poplar, that's a good place for the blacks. As stated above, usually on the hillsides or tops

 

I personally dont spend time looking around tulip trees if you find them around tulip trees itll be one maybe two. Your best bet for blacks will be around ash trees and cherry with elms nearby.

 

Cottonwoods are technically poplars, but the poplars that morels grow under are the green poplars, also called tulip poplars. It would be very hard to confuse to bark of these distinct trees.

 

@twocoughs -- not blowing smoke -- I live in SE IN and have consistently found the blacks under or near tulip poplars.

 

No no. No smoke there. Tulip Poplars are good. Cotton woods are OK but the tulips are better. Elm trees are of course good as well as the ash trees. They don't seam to like the oak trees much. I like to look around good trees but especially where the good trees are competing with other trees. For example Elms with some near by pine trees. Look for areas that get warmer first (like east facing and north facing slopes) especially with areas that have washes for the spores to travel in a condensed fashion. Those slope need not be big. Even the subtle slopes can produce. A foot or so high is all you need. I even found morels in areas that had a type of pine tree that has the branches hanging or drooping down. I don't know the name of the tree so I just simply describe it. I like them especially where they compete with other trees. Seams like the competition does something to the soil where the mycelium grows. It seams like the key to many fruit trees and many plants make a bunch of flowers when the plant feels stressed. The mushroom (the flower of the mycelium) is not much different. For example, land surrounding railroad tracks could produce morels as well as others well due to the ground shaking a lot every time a train passes. This shaking is stressing the ground and wala, mushrooms. Now if you choose to hunt around the tracks, be aware that there may be toxins in the area as well. Use your own judgment. I am certain that the morel hunters will be pissed at me for talking about proven things I mention here but I am not selfish. Good luck and happy hunting twocoughs.
Mark

 

The directions I mentioned are the side that gets warm sun the most. I might have stated that wrong in the above. So what I meant is for example as the sun travels through out the day this time of year, the side of the slope you want is the side that gets sun cast on it most. Now that holds true for the earlier mushrooms. Later on, when that side stop producing, the not so well sunny side will still warm up but not as fast. So, later mushrooms could be found there. I hope that makes sense.
Mark