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United States · April

What foragers look for in April

15 of the 29 mushrooms, fruits and nuts on this calendar have US records in April. Records differ a lot by state, so each row lists the states where April clears the listing line.

Never eat anything based on this page or on the app. These tables show when people recorded these species in public datasets. They do not say anything is ripe, edible or safe, and they do not help identify a find. Confirm every find with a qualified local expert.
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
  1. MorelsMorchella spp.
    Peak month for records
    100% of this row's US peak · n=17,729 US records · listed for April in 34 states: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas and 22 more
  2. MulberriesMorus spp.
    Records rising
    79% of this row's US peak · n=1,834 US records · listed for April in 11 states: Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia
  3. Prickly pearOpuntia spp.
    Records rising
    78% of this row's US peak · n=4,369 US records · listed for April in 7 states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, New Jersey, Texas, Utah
  4. ChagaInonotus obliquus
    Records rising
    77% of this row's US peak · n=3,049 US records · listed for April in 13 states: Alaska, Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia and 1 more
  5. SumacsRhus spp.
    Records rising
    28% of this row's US peak · n=22,449 US records · listed for April in 29 states: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota and 17 more
  6. Oyster mushroomsPleurotus spp.
    Records rising
    27% of this row's US peak · n=40,734 US records · listed for April in 28 states: Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland and 16 more
  7. Wild grapesVitis spp.
    Records rising
    18% of this row's US peak · n=3,506 US records · listed for April in 3 states: California, Louisiana, Texas
  8. Blackberries, raspberries and relativesRubus spp.
    Records rising
    17% of this row's US peak · n=19,447 US records · listed for April in 10 states: Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas, Washington
  9. Wild roses (hips)Rosa spp.
    Records rising
    15% of this row's US peak · n=12,644 US records · listed for April in 17 states: Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York and 5 more
  10. Black cherryPrunus serotina
    Records rising
    15% of this row's US peak · n=2,275 US records · listed for April in 9 states: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Texas
  11. Serviceberries (juneberries)Amelanchier spp.
    Records rising
    14% of this row's US peak · n=1,558 US records · listed for April in 5 states: Illinois, Maryland, Oregon, Utah, Virginia
  12. PawpawAsimina triloba
    Records rising
    12% of this row's US peak · n=6,255 US records · listed for April in 8 states: Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia
  13. Blueberries, huckleberries and relativesVaccinium spp.
    Records rising
    12% of this row's US peak · n=11,635 US records · listed for April in 10 states: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Jersey, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia
  14. Hedgehog mushroomsHydnum spp.
    Records rising
    11% of this row's US peak · n=1,558 US records · listed for April in 2 states: California, Oregon
  15. Black walnutJuglans nigra
    Records rising
    11% of this row's US peak · n=2,642 US records · listed for April in 6 states: Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, Ohio, Texas, Virginia

"Peak month" is the month with the most US records for that row; "rising" and "tailing off" describe the counts either side of it, nothing about the plant or fungus.

Questions

What can you forage in April?

This page cannot tell you what is safe to forage. It shows what people across the US record in April: Morels, Mulberries, Prickly pear, Chaga, Sumacs, Oyster mushrooms, Wild grapes, Blackberries, raspberries and relatives. Check your own state's page, and confirm every find with a qualified local expert.

Is April a good month for mushrooms?

4 of the 11 mushroom groups on this calendar have US records in April. Records are not a forecast for your patch.

Source and date

Counts are public records by calendar month, shown as a share of each row's busiest month. A record means someone reported the species that month; it says nothing about quantity, ripeness or safety. Records follow where and when people go out, so busy weekends and popular parks count more than remote ground.

iNaturalist
Research-grade observations, all 50 states, all years to 2026-10-20: mushrooms as all observations; fruit and nut plants as observations annotated "Fruits or Seeds". Retrieved 2026-10-20 from the iNaturalist API. inaturalist.org
Rows
A row appears when April holds at least 10% of the row's busiest US month. The state list uses each state's own rows. Common names are the ones foragers use and are not an identification; the scientific name is the source's taxon.

Pick your state · Mushroom season calendar

Record what you find

Forager's Field Notes is a private journal: your own names, your own patches, stored only on your phone. Log a find and your own calendar builds itself, week by week, with a year wheel you can share and a field checklist for next month.

It never identifies species or judges edibility. Free to start, no account.

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