Collecting
Mushrooms
Collecting mushrooms is something of an art, a skill if you will. It is much more than just tramping through the forest after it rains frantically picking each and every mushroom you see. You will be more likely to enjoy the “fruits” of your hunt if you take a deliberate but careful approach each time out (Arora, 11).
An approach of this nature will inevitably include the following four guidelines of collecting:
1. Don’t just collect; observe the mushrooms and their surroundings (helpful in their identification when using classification keys)
2. Be selective; pick only distinctive species in good condition. (decaying mushrooms are all but impossible to identify)
3. Collect several specimens of each kind of mushroom (allows you to assess the variation that exists within a given species)
4. Don’t pick every kind of mushroom you see (mushrooms decay rapidly and identification can be time-consuming)
By picking several specimens of each kind of mushroom and making sure that each species is distinctive and in good condition you will enhance your chances of identification significantly (Arora, 11).
When you first start collecting mushrooms choose a specific quarry if possible for each hunt. This could include only a single species or possibly be as large as a specific genus of fungi like Boletes. Before you go out into the field familiarize yourself as much as possible with the fungi’s fieldmarkings, the substrate in which it grows, and the season(s) in which it is most likely to be fruiting. By taking this approach and if all else fails you will have at the very least determined the locality and / or weather conditions that were not conducive to the fungi’s fruiting. Over time you will develop a more acute sense of what species grows where and what environmental factors are favorable for fruiting (Arora, 11).
Works Cited
Arora, David. Mushrooms Demystified. 2nd ed. Berkley, Ten Speed Press, 1986.