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Australia needs a practical knowledge of fungi
Australian land managers are beginning to discover the important roles fungi play in healthy ecosystems. Australian fungi are different from those in other countries in the same way that our plants, animals and other species differ.
Despite this, Australia lacks a practical guide for land managers for conservation and restoration focused management. Restoration guides from other countries are therefore at best less applicable and at worst may suggest the incorporation of fungi from other regions and other countries, which is likely to be detrimental to our Australian landscapes and species.
Our guide will focus on integrating fungi into current management tool kits. We know that healthy bushlands are resilient due to the myriad of interactions between our animals, fungi, plants and microbes.
We will share:
The role of fungi within ecosystems and how to include them in management of healthy ecosystems, as:
- plant partners
- providers of food & habitat for animals
- recyclers of nutrients
- why not all fungal diseases are bad
- interactions that drive soil structure and health
- how fungi are connected to other life
Practical tools to help managers understand:
- diseases & weedy fungi
- fire & fungi
- threatening processes
- fungi & soil
- logs & litter vs mulch
Together this will provide practical knowledge and a guide for land managers.
The book has been written & illustrated but we need help to finish it.
Dr Sapphire McMullan-Fisher and Roz Hart are working hard to produce this much-needed and often-requested handbook to the use of fungi in conservation and revegetation in Australian landscapes.
Both Sapphire and Roz have been involved in fungal community education and conservation projects for more than two decades and will work with mycologists from across the region to produce a practical and science based guide.
We have had two successful crowd funding campaigns and support from Ngaruk Fund to professionally edit the language of Fungi4Land. We were delighted with the generosity of over 400 supporters to get us started.
We now have the amazing content rich with informative illustrations and pictures.
However, we still need help to get the book published and in the hands of people who need it.
Help us publish the Fungi4Land book!
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Our Campaigns
Thank you all so much for the funds to produce the core text: a collaborative synthesis of how to integrate fungi into land management and restoration. We are working hard on producing the guide.
The core ten chapters of the Fungi4Land book have been drafted by Sapphire, Roz and our 26 authors. We are now putting ideas, words and pictures together.
The core text is the backbone of the guide and the illustrations are now being developed to clearly demonstrate the amazing interactions fungi have.
We are continuing to raise funds to have professional substantive editing to bring the 28 authors ‘voices’ into harmony. Our mycologists sure know their Australian fungi but we want this knowledge to be easily understood by everyone.
Please help us finish this book and provide a valuable resource for the Australian land.
Project Financials
The project is now an company and a professional accountant to oversees the accounts.
We are working on being auspiced by a charitable fund with DGR status (tax deductible). So you can be confident your donation is being used appropriately.
Once auspicing has been arranged we will fundraise to find funds to finalise: professional editing, illustration, colour & image management, & last but not least distribution & printing costs for this first edition.
We hope to finish the book writing and editing by mid 2023. Then we can finish it and get it into the hands of those who need it to help manage their land.
You can support us via the Help Us page!
Roz is taking donations for this project directly. Contact her for the account details for direct donation or use links on our web site.
If you would like to donate by cheque please make out to Roz Hart and post to Fungi4Land, PO Box 967, Merlynston VIC 3058. We will send you a receipt on request.