Dos and don’ts ahead of mushroom season

The use of tools to find or pick mushrooms is prohibited, the forestry department said on Monday ahead of the mushroom picking season.

Those caught using tools to find or pick mushrooms may receive a €5,000 fine, a year in prison, or both.

They also stressed that the identification of mushrooms must be done after careful observation, by collectors who are able to recognise the difference between edible species and poisonous ones.

“When collecting, it is recommended that pickers remove the foliage above the mushroom and then remove the mushroom itself with careful hand movements. Alternatively, the mushroom can be cut with a knife just above the ground,” they said.

They added that the picking of mushrooms “must be done with care and respect for nature”, saying it is “not so important” whether or not the mushroom itself is collected, but that the fungus under the foliage is not destroyed.

To this end, they urged pickers to only collect the mature mushrooms thus ensuring the mushrooms will reproduce in following years.

As such, they urged people to “follow best practices” and report any violation thereof to the forestry department.