What Season Are Mushrooms Available? Detailed Guide to Picking Times and Precautions

Mushrooms consist of two parts: the mycelium and the fruiting body. The mycelium is the vegetative organ, and the fruiting body is the reproductive organ. But do you know what season they are available? Which month is it picked? What should you pay attention to when picking? According to Uncle Li from Dali, Yunnan, generally under natural conditions, the second and third months of spring are the time to pick mushrooms; when it is too cold or too hot, no mushrooms grow.

When are mushrooms picked?

The best time of day to pick mushrooms is in the morning; not only do they contain more water and taste better, but they have also been exposed to sunlight for only a short time, and there are fewer mushrooms that have already aged.

What should you pay attention to when picking mushrooms?

When picking mushrooms, pay attention to whether they are poisonous:

1. Look at the growing area. Edible, non-poisonous mushrooms mostly grow on clean grassland or on pine and oak trees, while poisonous mushrooms tend to grow in dark, damp, dirty places.

2. Look at the color. Poisonous mushrooms have brightly colored caps, with colors such as red, green, ink black and violet; purple ones in particular are often highly toxic and tend to change color after picking.

3. Look at the shape. Non-poisonous mushrooms have a relatively flat cap with a smooth surface, no ring on the cap surface, and no volva at the base; poisonous ones have a cap with a raised center and an odd shape, a thick, hard cap surface, a ring on the stem, and a slender or thick elongated volva that breaks easily.

4. Look at the secretions. Tear open the stem of a freshly picked wild mushroom; a non-poisonous one has clear, water-like secretions (a few are white), and the cap does not change color when torn; a poisonous one has thick, concentrated secretions that are reddish-brown and easily change color in the air after tearing.

5. Smell the odor. Non-poisonous mushrooms have a distinctive fragrance, while poisonous mushrooms have an odd smell, such as pungent, sour and astringent, or foul and fishy.

6. The test. When picking wild mushrooms, you can rub a scallion on the mushroom cap; if the scallion turns greenish-brown, it proves the mushroom is poisonous; if it does not change color, it is non-poisonous.

7. The boiling test. When boiling wild mushrooms, add a few stalks of rush pith, a little garlic or rice and boil together; when the mushrooms are cooked, if the rush pith turns greenish-green or purplish-green it is poisonous, while if it turns yellow it is non-poisonous; if the garlic or rice changes color it is poisonous, and if it does not change color and keeps its original color it is non-poisonous.

8. Chemical identification. Take a suspicious mushroom that you have collected or bought, extract its juice, soak a piece of paper in it, and immediately add a drop of dilute hydrochloric acid or white vinegar on it; if the paper turns red or blue, it is poisonous. (Do not pick wild mushrooms by the roadside, and do not eat them carelessly.)

Appendix: Mushroom storage methods

1. Controlled atmosphere storage

(1) Spontaneous controlled atmosphere: Put the mushrooms in polyethylene bags 0.04--0.06 mm thick, and use the mushrooms' own respiration to create a low-oxygen and high-carbon-dioxide environment inside the bag. The bag should not be too large; a capacity of 2--4 jin is generally suitable, and the quality remains unchanged for 5 days at 0°C.

(2) Carbon dioxide filling: Put the mushrooms in polyethylene bags 0.04--0.06 mm thick, fill with nitrogen and carbon dioxide, and keep them at 2--4% and 5--10% respectively; at 0°C this can inhibit cap opening and browning.

(3) Vacuum packaging: Put the mushrooms in polyethylene bags 0.06--0.08 mm thick, vacuumize to reduce the oxygen content, and they can be kept for 7 days at 0°C.

2. Ice storage method

During transport, add ice cubes to cool the mushrooms; line the packaging container with a layer of plastic film, place crushed ice 4--6 cm thick at the bottom, place ice bags in the middle, and place mushrooms around the sides; when it is 80% full, fold the surrounding film inward, cover the film with crushed ice about 5 cm thick, and finally cover and transport.

3. Crock storage method

Put cold water 3--4 cm deep at the bottom of a clean crock, set a wooden rack on top, arrange the mushrooms on it, then seal the opening with plastic film and store at low temperature.

4. Chemical treatment

(1) Salt water. After picking, wash the mushrooms with 0.6% cold salt water and soak for 10 minutes, which can precool them and prevent browning; drain the water and store. If, after washing with salt water, they are rinsed with 0.1% ascorbic acid or 0.1% citric acid before storage, the effect is even better. Drain and put into plastic bags for cold storage.

(2) Sodium metabisulfite. After picking, wash off debris with 0.02% sodium metabisulfite, then place in 0.05% sodium metabisulfite for half an hour, rinse with clean water, drain and store; this has a very good color-protecting effect.

5. Irradiation

γ ray irradiation can prevent fresh mushrooms from changing color and inhibit respiration and cap opening; the dose used is 200--300 rad.