When Are Matsutake Mushrooms in Season? A Full Breakdown of Price per Jin and Varieties

Matsutake mushroom, scientific name Tricholoma matsutake, also known as songxun, hejun, and taijun, has a unique and intense fragrance and is a rare and precious natural medicinal mushroom in the world. So which month is it on the market? How much is it per jin? How is it cultivated? It is reported that the harvest and market season for matsutake mushroom is generally July to October.

How much is matsutake mushroom per jin?

Matsutake mushroom is produced in Yunnan, and the general price depends on the season and the size of the matsutake itself: in June the yield of matsutake is low and the price is the highest; from July to August the yield gradually increases and the price gradually decreases; in September and October it returns to a high level. The price each month is also related to that month's precipitation; when precipitation is high, matsutake yield is large and the price falls.

June: above 1500 yuan;

July: 300-1000 yuan;

August: 300-500 yuan;

September: 300-1000 yuan October: above 800.

Dried matsutake: (prices are relatively stable and remained basically unchanged from January to May 2017; as for how prices will move after large quantities of matsutake come on the market in July/August, it still depends on this year's matsutake yield.)

Dried matsutake with skin, 850 yuan/kg;

Peeled dried matsutake slices, about 1100-1400/kg;

Frozen matsutake: (prices are relatively stable and remained basically unchanged from January to May 2017; as for how prices will move after large quantities of matsutake come on the market in July/August, it still depends on this year's matsutake yield.)

3-5cm Grade A without added ice, 130 yuan/kg;

5-7cm Grade A without added ice, 160 yuan/kg;

7-9cm Grade A without added ice, 170 yuan/kg;

What varieties of matsutake mushroom are there?

1. 1. Shangri-La matsutake

Yunnan's matsutake output accounts for 40% of the national matsutake output, while Diqing Shangri-La matsutake accounts for more than 65% of Yunnan Province's fresh matsutake exports.

2. Yajiang matsutake

Yajiang is located in the southern part of Ganzi Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province, in the middle reaches of the Yalong River, and in the middle section of the Hengduan Mountain range in the southeastern part of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, with a continental monsoon plateau climate. Yajiang County has unique natural, climatic and geographical conditions for the growth of edible fungi such as matsutake, producing more than 6000 tons of wild fungi annually, including more than 1000 tons of high-quality matsutake annually.

3. Sidana matsutake

Sidana matsutake has a unique flavor, a smooth and moist mouthfeel, and is full of elasticity; after eating, its lingering fragrance fills the mouth, with a distinctive fresh aroma. Sidana matsutake is rich in protein, fat, cellulose, various amino acids, and unsaturated fatty acids; it also contains rare nutritional elements seldom found in other fungi, such as β-gluconic acid, nucleic acid derivatives, peptide substances, organic germanium Ge124-239PM, and polysaccharide LPB, and has the ability to increase SOD activity, accelerate the scavenging of free radicals, delay the decline of tissues and organs, improve cardiovascular function, promote metabolism, and enhance the human body's ability to resist viruses, resist cell mutation and increase immune function.

4. Xiaojin matsutake

Xiaojin matsutake has bright color and a plump body. It is umbrella-shaped, with a brown cap and a white stem, both of which have fibrous, downy scales. The flesh is white, tender and thick, with a delicate texture, excellent taste, and a rich aroma and high nutritional value. It grows in the humus soil of the high semi-mountain oak forests of Xiaojin County; those that have not yet opened and spread are the top grade, while those that have opened into an umbrella shape are slightly inferior; both have extremely high nutritional and economic value.