Mushrooms are a generous gift of nature, a forest miracle. Since ancient times, people have been collecting and eating mushrooms. Scientists are studying the beneficial properties of our forest "friends." And cooks invent new recipes for their preparation. Mushrooms in Belarus today are divided into two groups: edible and inedible. Now in the republic there are 200 species of mushrooms that can be eaten. Consider them in more detail in the article below.
The first mushrooms of the year
The mushroom picking season in Belarus begins early: already in April-May. The first rays of the gentle spring sun begin to warm, trunks of birches are poured with juice. It is at this time that you can harvest the first crop of mushrooms. What mushrooms grow in Belarus in early spring? These are morels and lines. When the birch buds swell and turn red, and the aspen earrings swell, you can safely look for “snowdrop” mushrooms in the forest. They grow on the slopes of ravines, forest glades and clearings, old burnt areas and abandoned forest roads. The lines are brown, they are soft, velvet to the touch.
Their smell is pleasant. Their shape is squat, the top of the hat is folded. Morels are olive-brown in color, their hats are acute in shape. Mushrooms of Belarus in the early period have such forms of reason. The design helps absorb more heat and first sunlight.
What mushrooms can be harvested in May and early June?
The next season of mushroom hunting in the republic falls at the end of May - beginning of June. At this time, mountain ash is blooming and rye begins to spike. There are few mushrooms at this time, but you can find them.
Mushrooms of Belarus at the beginning of summer grow in the brightest places of the forest: edges, clearings, in young forests, where dense vegetation has not yet formed. There is no need to wait for a plentiful harvest at this time, since there is still not enough heat, although there is a lot of moisture in the ground. Mushrooms of the beginning of summer are usually called “scouts”: they crawl out of the ground to check whether it is warm in the forest and whether it is already possible to grow en masse. This time of mushroom growth is short, it lasts about two weeks. What
types of mushrooms in Belarus are relevant at this time? Oil mushrooms, russula, moss mushrooms, you can find porcini mushrooms.
What mushrooms are harvested during the flowering of rye?
Mid-June is a good time to harvest. During the flowering of rye in the forest you can find mushrooms. After the flowering of lilies of the valley, the time for collecting chanterelles comes. They are unpretentious: grow on any soil, in mixed, coniferous and deciduous forests. The main thing is that there is enough moisture in the soil. Also in June, boletus, mumps and mushrooms appear. When rye fades and the time comes to pick strawberries, spikelets appear. They grow along country roads, under birches and oaks.
In birch forests, they grow in whole families. When the first harvest of spikelets departs, they are migrated from the hot rays of the incoming summer force to the lowlands. They also grow closer to the swamps, hiding in their tall grass and moist soil. After thunderstorms and rains, the time comes for moss-flyers and colored russula. There are a lot of these mushrooms in the forests, they do not hide and are always visible with the naked eye. Their hats are bright: yellow, green, orange. That's what pleases the eye of a true mushroom picker!
Edible mushrooms of Belarus in the second decade of July
When the hot season of haymaking is left behind, the linden begins to bloom, and the second season of collecting butter, boletus, boletus and porcini mushrooms comes. The species diversity of mushrooms at this moment is large, but the yield is small. This is explained by weather conditions. In order for the mushrooms to grow massively in the second decade of July, a certain air temperature and heavy rain are needed. Precipitation should not be exceeded. For about two weeks, mushroom pickers can walk through the forest in search of a crop, then they will again be calm. But the last summer month pleases mushroom pickers for real! This is the golden time to harvest. In August, the quietest hunters are waiting for the largest and most diverse crop of mushrooms. Over the summer, the earth warmed up, the mycelium gained strength and grew. The fogs of August are a clear signal to the beginning of the season of the real gathering.
August mushroom picking - golden season
Mushrooms - deciduous - this is the third season of the harvest. Pigs, boletus, cap boletus are found in large quantities in the forests of Belarus. But there are also new types of mushrooms that are not found until August. These are such edible mushrooms of Belarus as saffron mushrooms, thrush. Mushroom pickers are very pleased with similar gifts from the forest.
First in August, aspen mushrooms usually appear. A white leg and a red hat are visible from afar, because these mushrooms do not hide. The red cap is found in fungi growing under aspen or on well-moistened soil. If he grew up in a clearing or forest road, his hat will be dark and his leg thick. If he appeared in a birch forest, where spruce and pine occur, his hat will have a yellow-red hue, and a thick leg will have scales. And finally, the boletus, grown in a pine-birch forest with high soil moisture, will have a white hat.
Where do mushrooms grow?
Mushrooms are recognized kings of the forest. They can grow in any forest in groups or alone. Especially love the mushrooms of the forests of Belarus places where there are blueberries, lingonberries, fly agaric. Love mushrooms and many anthills. If boletus has grown in spruce, then it is a strong brown mushroom with bright spots.
In the pine forest it is different - dark, sometimes the hat even has a purple tint. Mushrooms with a long stalk, strong pulp and a light brown hat grow under birch and oak. Their leg is longer than that of other mushrooms.
What to collect in Belarus by the end of August?
Brown boletuses appear in the forests of the republic in late August. Depending on the place of growth, the appearance of the fungus also changes. In the damp places of the forest, the boletus will be with a white leg and a dark gray hat. If mushroom picking in Belarus is in dry forests, then the individuals found are usually velvety. If you collect boletus on a clearing, the color of their hat will be almost black, and the leg will be thick. Such a boletus is even reminiscent of a cep. Near the marshes and in raw birch forests, a chalice grows with a greenish or white pedicle. This mushroom is also known as marsh boletus. In August, late butterflies grow in deciduous and coniferous forests.
Mushrooms of Belarus growing with the onset of the first cold weather
As soon as the nights get colder and the trees dress in a colorful autumn outfit, the growth of real mushrooms begins. They surround the stump and climb on it. The people joke that they are cold on the ground, and they try to climb on still warm stumps. Often a huge number of honey mushrooms can be found on the trunks of weak trees, or even just on bare ground. The second season of real mushrooms goes from September to the very frosts.
September mushroom picking
The most beautiful month of the year in the republic is September. Fallen yellow and red leaves, decorating the earth with a fabulous carpet, make it difficult for mushroom pickers to search for trophies. Mushrooms of Belarus, massively going in September, are thrills, pigs, and milk mushrooms. By the way, trevushki under the condition of warm weather can go en masse in October, during the Indian summer.
In September, mushrooms again move from lowlands to high places, because heat again became insufficient. They appear at the glades, in the clearing, on the roads, hiding in the moss. For a very long time there has been a collection of damselfly in birch forests, until the last leaves from birches fall. From the second decade of September, oyster mushrooms appear in the forest. Their collection takes a long time, until October. Most often they can be found on stumps. Oyster mushrooms and honey mushrooms can grow up to the first snow. At the same time, during the thaw, these mushrooms resume growth, remaining as tasty.
What mushrooms should not be collected?
Unfortunately, poisonous mushrooms also grow in Belarus, however, as elsewhere. They contain harmful substances that do not disappear during heat treatment. It is very important to know which mushrooms are inedible, because their use in food can cause severe poisoning and even death. Especially dangerous are mushrooms that are similar to edible - their "doubles":
- Bile mushroom - very similar to white. Its second name is a false boletus. If you cannot understand what kind of mushroom is in front of you, cut his hat. If the pulp on the eyes becomes a shade of pink, then the mushroom is inedible.
- Pale toadstool is a plate mushroom with a hemispherical hat of light green, olive or a little gray color. The leg is cylindrical, slightly thickens below. It happens that mushroom pickers confuse a grebe with champignon.
If you see lamellar thickenings on a mushroom - it is poisonous. - False Foam - grows on rotten trunks, stumps and near them. Its main difference from edible honey agaric is the color of the plates. Edible mushroom has plates of olive or whitish color, they are dark in the false foam.
- Pepper mushroom is a poisonous double of an oiler. His hat is brown, round-convex. When the weather is wet or it rains, the hat is covered with mucus, which should not happen to the true butterdish. The mushroom pulp turns red when broken.
- False chanterelle - grows in coniferous forests on stumps and tree trunks. It can grow families and singly. Hat plates are brighter than body color. This symptom distinguishes a poisonous mushroom from an edible one.
Mushrooms in Belarus today delight “quiet” hunters with their number and species diversity. Each mushroom season of the year carries in itself something special and unique. The article describes the order in which mushrooms appear in the Republic of Belarus from the earliest spring to the first frosts. But do not forget that the weather often makes adjustments to the mushroom calendar. In cool weather, mushrooms grow more slowly; in a warm, but not hot crop, they are plentiful. And after good rainfall with decreasing temperature in the forest, mushrooms will reach for light and heat. Remember this when you go on a forest walk with a basket in hand.