How to collect mushrooms: tips to mushroom pickers

A warm summer day, the coolness of a shady forest, the tinkling of invisible birds and the sun's rays making their way through the green crown. How pleasant it is in such an environment to engage in "quiet hunting", as the mushroom picking is called! But every work has its own wisdom. So here, in order not to harm nature and yourself, you need to know how to collect mushrooms properly, what to take with you to the forest and how to distinguish a useful find from a dangerous one.

The most productive time is the end of summer (August) and the beginning of autumn (September). If a warm rain has passed, then the probability that you will not return from the trek with an empty basket increases. Mushrooms at this time appear in huge quantities. But, going to their search, it is necessary to remember some of their important features. First of all, they are able, like a sponge, to absorb all the elements from the environment, including those harmful to humans. Therefore, experienced mushroom pickers on the question of where it is better to collect mushrooms, are advised to go further away from the city, from industrial enterprises and highways, to ecologically clean forest. Also it is necessary to avoid the railway tracks. The best option is the forest beyond the city limits.

Beginners in the "quiet hunt" are experiencing difficulties, not knowing how to properly collect mushrooms and how to equip for trekking in the forest. To go better at dawn. Experienced people are advised to put on boots, windbreakers and a must-have hat. This will protect against moisture stinging insects and mites. It's better to take a bucket or a wicker basket. In such a container the mushrooms will not suffer and will not break. You can not put mushrooms in cellophane bags. First, they can quickly crumble, and secondly, there is a risk of developing toxic bacteria.

Experienced "hunters" in the course, how to properly harvest mushrooms, and always take a knife with them. With its help, you can very carefully cut off the gifts of nature. On the contrary, there are simply impermissible methods. For example, mushrooms can not be collected with the help of small rakes. Some people practice this method when looking for a dry mushroom. He hides under the ground. In this case, the mycelium is broken, and next year the fungi do not grow anymore. Also, it is not worthwhile to twist them for the same reason, if suddenly a knife was forgotten at home. Carefully rake the leaves and grass with a horn stick.

Information on which mushrooms can be collected can be found in the reference books. It is enough to enumerate several basic characteristics of these gifts of nature, which are worth paying attention to. First of all, you can collect them only if there is an accurate certainty. At the slightest doubt, it is better to refuse the find. An unknown fungus can be poisonous. Do not put in your basket a rotten or worm-damaged specimen. The method of verification is very simple. It is enough to look under the bonnet and cut his leg.

Knowledge of how to properly harvest mushrooms is not enough. They are not kept long, only two or three hours. Therefore, immediately after returning from the forest, they must be recycled: cleaned, washed. Some are recommended to soak - freckles, mushrooms. Others - boil (oily, white, chanterelles, boletus, etc.).