Honey mushrooms in the Leningrad region and St. Petersburg (St. Petersburg) in 2021: what they look like, where they grow, where and when to collect

Content

1 What honey mushrooms look like in the Leningrad region
- 1.1 Types of edible honey mushrooms in the Leningrad region
2 Where to collect honey mushrooms in the Leningrad region
- 2.1 Where are honey mushrooms collected near Voronezh?
- 2.2 Forest areas where honey mushrooms grow in the Leningrad region
3 When can you collect honey mushrooms in the Leningrad region?
4 Collection rules
5 How to find out whether honey mushrooms have appeared in the Leningrad region
6 Conclusion

Honey mushrooms in the Leningrad region in the summer of 2021 began to appear ahead of schedule - already in early June it was possible to harvest, although it was not large. The peak of fruiting of honey mushrooms occurs at the end of summer - beginning of autumn, however, the mushroom picking season is already considered open. You can find a variety of types of honey mushrooms in the forests of the Leningrad region, but before you go picking mushrooms, it is recommended to read their description again - along with honey mushrooms, their poisonous counterparts also begin to bear fruit in large quantities.

What honey mushrooms look like in the Leningrad region

As you can see in the photo below, honey mushrooms are very small mushrooms, the height of which rarely exceeds 12-14 cm, however, in the Leningrad region sometimes larger specimens are found.The shape of the cap of young mushrooms is ovoid, but as it grows it opens, the edges curve upward, and the fruiting body takes on the appearance of a neat umbrella. In the middle of the cap, a small bulge is clearly visible, the color of which may differ slightly from the main one. The diameter of the cap is on average 12 cm. In mature mushrooms, the edge of the cap becomes slightly corrugated.

The pulp is smooth, very tender and juicy. Its taste is pleasant, as is its smell. The color of the pulp varies from whitish to pale yellow.

The length of the leg is about 8-10 cm, and at the cap itself it widens noticeably. Just like the cap, the flesh of the leg is white, sometimes yellowish. Its structure is fibrous. The color of the stem of young mushrooms is yellowish-ochre, close to the color of light honey, but as the fruiting body grows, its stem darkens and becomes brown. Some species have a small skirt on the leg, closer to the cap.

Important! Its color largely depends on the type of wood with which the fungal mycelium is associated. For example, fruit bodies growing under oak trees have a reddish-brown cap, while those growing under acacia or poplar have a light, honey-yellow cap.

Types of edible honey mushrooms in the Leningrad region

In total, there are about 40 different species, of which 10 varieties were discovered in the Leningrad region. A description of edible honey mushrooms in the Leningrad region with a photo and name is presented below.

One of the most popular representatives in this region is the northern honey mushroom (lat. Armillaria borealis). Their height is 10-12 cm, and the diameter of the cap can reach 10 cm. It is convex in shape, brown-orange, but there are also mushrooms with an olive or ocher color.There is a light spot in the center of the cap, and the surface of the mushroom is covered with small scales. The edges are uneven, slightly rough.

The leg expands downwards, its diameter is 1-2 cm. In the middle of the leg there is a characteristic ring-skirt, quite soft. To the touch it seems as if it consists of a film.

In 2021, this variety of honey mushrooms grows in the forests of St. Petersburg (St. Petersburg) in large groups; they are especially often found under birch, oak and alder trees. Fruiting lasts from the last days of August to the end of October. In warm years, honey mushrooms can be collected until November.

Another popular edible species of honey mushrooms in St. Petersburg is the thick-legged autumn mushroom (lat. Armillaria lutea), a photo of the mushrooms is presented below. You can grow them yourself. The height of the fruiting bodies reaches 10 cm, the diameter of the cap of this species is 8-10 cm. Its shape is conical, the edges are dense and bent downwards. The entire surface is covered with small scales. Color varies from brown to ocher. The pulp is dense with a distinct cheese aroma.

Thick-legged honey mushrooms grow on cushions of rotten leaves, remnants of bark and pine needles. Large groups of fungi are found in areas of fires.

Important! Several types of false mushrooms also grow in the Leningrad region. They cannot cause significant harm to health if eaten, however, if you have the slightest suspicion that the mushrooms you come across are inedible, it is better not to touch them.

Where to collect honey mushrooms in the Leningrad region

In 2021, honey mushrooms in the Leningrad region grew in abundance in pine and mixed forests; entire families can be found under old trees. Traditionally, groups of mushrooms can be found in the following places:

on old mossy stumps;
in wet ravines and lowlands;
in an old windfall;
in places of deforestation;
at the base of drying logs;
on the trunks of fallen trees.

Important! Honey mushrooms practically do not grow alone, which makes it possible to distinguish them from their inedible counterparts. They usually cling to stumps and tree trunks in large clusters.

Where are honey mushrooms collected near Voronezh?

There are many mushroom places near Voronezh, among which the most popular are the following:

in the Somovsky forestry, the harvest is harvested near the stations of Dubrovka, Orlovo, Grafskaya and Shuberskoye;
in the Khokholsky district, mushroom groups are found in large quantities near the villages of Borshchevo and Kostenki;
in the Semiluksky forestry, mushrooms are collected near the villages of Orlov Log, Fedorovka and Malaya Pokrovka;
in the Levoberezhny forestry they go to the villages of Maklok and Nizhny Ikorets to collect mushrooms.

Important! It is prohibited to collect honey mushrooms on the territory of the Bobrovsky Nature Reserve, as well as other types of mushrooms. Violation of this prohibition may result in a significant fine.

Forest areas where honey mushrooms grow in the Leningrad region

Spring, summer and autumn honey mushrooms in St. Petersburg can be collected in the following forest areas:

pine forest in the Priozersky district (in the direction of the Vyborg highway);
pine forest in the Vsevolozhsk region;
forest area near Lake Luga;
coniferous forest near the village of Sosnovo;
forest area near the Berngardovka railway station;
the area around the village of Kirillovskoye;
coniferous forests near the village of Snegirevka;
swampy area between the villages of Sologubovka and Voitolovo;
forest area near Lake Zerkalnoye;
an area near the Vuoksa River, near the village of Losevo;
a small forest area near the village of Yagodnoye;
territory adjacent to the village of Zakhodskoe;
forest in the Luga region, near the village of Serebryanka;
Sinyavinsky Gate area, near the village of Mikhailovskoye.

Advice! It is believed that a large harvest can be harvested in forests that are at least 30 years old. It is in such forests of the Leningrad region that there are large quantities of old rotten stumps on which honey mushrooms of various types like to settle.

When can you collect honey mushrooms in the Leningrad region?

Depending on what species honey mushrooms belong to, they begin to bear fruit in the Leningrad region at different times:

Spring ones begin to appear in mid-March and bear fruit until May. Sometimes the harvest season in the Leningrad region is extended until June and even July.
Fruiting of summer honey mushrooms in forests in the Leningrad region occurs from mid-August to the last days of October.
Autumn honey mushrooms in the Leningrad region can be collected from August to November.
Winter varieties bear fruit from September to December. Some of them can only be collected from October

Important! The best time to pick mushrooms in the Leningrad region is early morning. During this period, the fruiting bodies have a fresh appearance after the coolness of the night, which persists for a long time after collection. Such specimens withstand transportation.

Collection rules

It is recommended to harvest mushrooms in the Leningrad region taking into account the following basic rules, which apply to almost all other species:

During harvesting, it is advisable to leave the mycelium intact. To do this, the fruiting bodies are carefully cut with a knife, rather than pulled out. It is also permissible to extract mushrooms using the twisting method. This method of harvesting leaves the mycelium fruitful until next year.
It is better not to collect fruiting bodies growing in the Leningrad region in close proximity to roads.Mushrooms quickly absorb all toxins from the environment.
It is also undesirable to collect overripe mushrooms. Such specimens are often affected by mold.
If there is the slightest suspicion that the found specimen is false, it should be left alone.
The harvested crop is placed in a basket or bucket with the caps down.

Advice! One of the main signs by which one can distinguish the edible variety of honey mushrooms in the Leningrad region from their poisonous counterparts is the presence of a skirt on the leg. Similar inedible species do not have such a ring.

How to find out whether honey mushrooms have appeared in the Leningrad region

Whether honey mushrooms are now in the Leningrad region or not can be determined by the weather conditions:

Peak fruiting occurs mainly at temperatures from +15°C to +26°C.
In extreme heat, fruiting bodies do not grow (from +30°C and above). Mushrooms also do not tolerate drought well - the fruiting bodies quickly dry out and deteriorate.
Mushrooms begin to bear fruit intensively in the Leningrad region after rains. After 2-3 days you can go harvest.

Advice! A favorable sign for mushroom picking in the Leningrad region is thick fog. It indicates high air humidity, which promotes the rapid growth of fruiting bodies.

Conclusion

Honey mushrooms in the Leningrad region traditionally begin to be collected in the spring, however, many species ripen only in June-July, or even later. To ensure that a trip to the forests of the Leningrad region does not turn out to be a disappointment, it is recommended that before picking mushrooms you familiarize yourself with a reference book about what different species look like. It is also advisable to clarify at what time they ripen, and where it is better to look for mushrooms in the Leningrad region.

In addition, it is important to be able to distinguish edible varieties from false ones - despite the fact that they do not cause serious harm to health, in large quantities such a crop can cause serious poisoning.

You can learn more about the features of collecting honey mushrooms from the video below:

Name:	Honey mushrooms
Type:	Edible