Mushrooms and More

Atlanta Tours

About your Guide:

Josh Wayne began his foraging journey 14 years ago, hoping to find edible, medicinal, and sacred mushrooms. Josh learned how to forage with the help of many knowledgeable mentors in the Atlanta (Pine Lake Eco Arts) and Athens (Wild Intelligence) area as he worked to deepen his connection with the plants and animals that inhabit the Georgia Piedmont. As an Atlanta native, he has foraged, prepared, and consumed over 100 species of mushrooms and an additional 150 species of plants from the Southeast. Josh serves as a World-bridger and Lead Sacrament Forager for Whole Inc. and works to connect both members and nonmembers to our plant, mushroom, and animal ancestors. If you want to learn about the mushrooms and plants here to nourish you, hike with Josh.

FORAGING SEASON PASSES

SUMMER (MID MAY-AUGUST)

FRUITS, FLOWERS, AND FUNGI

Forage Highlights

  • Mulberries (Morus rubra and alba)

  • Serviceberries (Amelanchier sp.)

  • Chanterelles (Canthrellus sp.)

  • Chicken of the Woods (Laetiporus sp.)

  • Hedgehog mushrooms (Hydnum sp.)

  • Day Flowers (Commelina sp.)

  • Spiderworts (Tradescantia)

  • Sochane (Rudbeckia laciniata)

  • Wild mints (Pycnanthemum, Monarda, Blephilia, Collinsonia, etc.)

  • Bolete sp.

  • Amanita mushrooms

  • This is a great season to forage in Atlanta and we got lots of rain!

Seasonal Pass:

  • 8 hikes over 3 months

  • $240 (=$30/hike)

  • Includes access to our online course, updates on significant flushes of mushrooms and fruits, and help with mushroom and plant identification on our online platform.

  • Priority registration for our private mountain foraging hikes.

Parks that we Steward

We host hikes in Atlanta city parks on an educational basis to teach people about the world around them. We will only forage from parks to which we have reciprocated in the form of native plantings, invasive plant removal, and financial contributions.

Zonolite Park 2019: We planted $1,400 of native fruit shrubs into the park. Asimina triloba (Pawpaw), Aronia melanocarpa (Black chokeberry), and Amelanchier canadensis (Serviceberry).

Ansley Park: 2019-2025: We now tend to the native plant garden, help remove invasive plants, and plant more natives around the parks. Josh also successfully advocated for the park to leave a massive tulip poplar tree that has provided us with Oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus ostreatus) and Enoki mushrooms (Flammulina velutipes)!

Daniel Johnson Nature Preserve 2022-2025: We helped cut kudzu to make baskets, harvest Bamboo from the invasive forest, and we intend to return this winter to harvest more Kudzu baskets and kudzu roots for food.

Now, we tend to plant or spread native edibles and forage invasive edibles and work to help the park every step of the way. As a result, we can forage knowing that we are keeping with the Honorable Harvest.

Just Love Forest - 716 acres of private property

Members of the school platform will have access to discounted tickets, private tours, and private foraging hikes with Josh that will not be publicized online. These beautiful 716 acres can be tended to and foraged responsibly with Josh Wayne - a steward of the forest. This is the only place in Georgia where we can harvest roots responsibly and support some rare plants and mushrooms. We work to increase access to healthy and local plants and mushrooms continually, and our partnership with Just Love Forest allows us to forage fully and legally - something that is not often allowed in Georgia.

At Whole, we believe that each person needs to be able to connect fully with all life that grows “of itself so” in our backyards, neighborhoods, and state. Atlanta and the surrounding areas hold so much beauty and information that allows us to connect with the divine within. From Psilocybin mushrooms to Chanterelles, from the Oak tree to the Hickory tree, all plants and mushrooms are sacred and necessary for us to truly connect with the Divine. By joining us on this educational foray, you will feel a deeper connection with yourself, your environment, and the community.