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The mushroom season in the Urals begins in spring and ends in mid-autumn. Honey mushrooms in the Urals are one of the types of mushrooms popular among mushroom pickers. The ecological system of the region allows for large harvests; for local residents, honey mushroom is not only a product of winter harvesting, but also brings a good income from sale.
Types of edible honey mushrooms in the Urals
The territory of the Urals is a region rich in forests. Mixed and coniferous forests are found here. A continental climate with short but warm summers and frequent autumn rains is a favorable environment for the abundant growth of honey mushrooms of different fruiting periods.
The Urals are a raw material base for the woodworking industry. After cutting down commercial timber, illiquid wood remains, which is a necessary environment for the spread of saprophytic fungi. The main species that are in demand among the local population are summer and autumn honey mushrooms. In the mountain forests of the southern Urals, the spring honey fungus grows - wood-loving collibia.
In terms of nutritional value, the species is inferior to autumn representatives, but is no less popular. Fruit bodies with a dark brown hygrophanous cap are suitable for any processing method. They grow in colonies on the remains of deciduous wood.
The summer member, Cuneromyces variablea, is a popular mushroom used for commercial cultivation.
Summer mushrooms form large groups on rotting stumps, trunks and branches of birch, less often linden. This is the most delicious representative of the genus, but with a short fruiting period, it grows within three weeks.
The mass collection occurs in the autumn, when the honey fungus begins to grow. The mushroom is unpretentious to wood species; it can be found on dead coniferous trees. Settles on oak remains, near the roots of hazel, aspen or birch.
Fruiting lasts for a long time, in warm autumn with periodic precipitation; the last specimens can be found in early November.
Autumn representatives include the thick-legged honey fungus, an equally popular species in the Urals.
Externally it differs from the common honey mushroom in its thick stalk and scaly surface of the cap. The fungus grows only in pine forests on old stumps or trunks of cedars and pines.
Flammulina velvetypodia is classified as a winter species.
The fungus prefers to grow on a poplar or willow trunk far from the soil surface. The fruit body is orange with an oily cap. Characterized by a high gastronomic rating.
No less popular is the meadow honey fungus, growing in clearings, pastures, and near low-growing bushes. Fruiting occurs from spring to autumn in warm weather after heavy rains.
Grows in long rows or in a semicircle.
Where do honey mushrooms grow in the Urals?
Varieties are found in all forests of the Chelyabinsk and Sverdlovsk regions. If we consider the southern part of the Urals, they go for honey mushrooms:
- To Lake Arakul, located between Verkhniy Ufaley and Vishnevogorodskoye in the northern direction.
- To the northwest of Chelyabinsk. Representatives of the mushroom kingdom grow in the forests adjacent to Lake Kremenkul.
- To the Ilmensky Nature Reserve, where all types of trees are found. This is a popular place for collecting thick-legged honey mushrooms.
- To the area of the Taganay National Park.
Famous mushroom places throughout the Urals in massifs near populated areas:
- Kasli;
- Norkino;
- Tomino;
- Kyshtym-Ozersk;
- Troitsk;
- New keys.
In the Sverdlovsk region, areas popular with mushroom pickers are:
- Krasnoufimsky;
- Serovsky.
- Kamensky;
- Nizhneserginsky;
- Krasnouralsky.
When honey mushrooms grow in the Urals
Each species begins to bear fruit at a certain period. The timing may vary within 10 days depending on the temperature and amount of precipitation. Varieties grow in the following periods:
- The first colonies of wood-loving collibia begin to appear after the daytime temperature reaches +10 0C, and will not drop to zero at night. In the Urals (approximately in May) spring rains occur, and immediately after them you can harvest. The second fruiting of the species occurs in the autumn months with the same temperature regime.
- Cyneromyces variable grows only in a humid environment at temperatures no higher than +200 Fruits abundantly, forms large colonies on aspen or birch dead wood from mid-June to early July.
- Autumn species begin to appear at the end of August, the peak of yield occurs in mid-September, mushrooms are collected throughout the region where there are mixed or coniferous tree species.
- Flammulina is the last representative of the mushroom season. The formation of fruiting bodies begins at sub-zero temperatures. Grows even at -15 0C, then the growing season stops at the first thaw; for the Urals this is the end or mid-February.
Collection rules
Harvest away from industrial cities, because fruiting bodies accumulate carcinogens and heavy metals, so edible species can cause poisoning. For this reason, they do not take mushrooms near the highway or city dump. Overripe specimens are not suitable for processing. It is not recommended to go into an unfamiliar forest alone without a means of communication and a supply of food. It is best to go accompanied by an experienced mushroom picker or with a compass.
How to find out if honey mushrooms have grown in the Urals
You can determine when honey mushrooms will start to appear in the Urals by looking at the temperature. Each species begins to grow at certain rates. Autumn harvest begins after the temperature drops to +15-17 0C and heavy rains. Fruiting bodies are formed within a few days, the main fruiting is recorded a week after precipitation. Local residents know mushroom places; many sell the harvested crops. The appearance of mushroom products on local markets can also be considered the beginning of the season.
Conclusion
Honey mushrooms in the Urals grow in all massifs, in mountain and lakeside meadows. Each species forms fruiting bodies at a certain time. The harvest continues throughout the year. Spring mushrooms open the season and winter mushrooms end. The climatic conditions and ecological system of the Urals allow for a bountiful harvest, especially in the fall.
