Mushroom foraging: the season, the rules and the one thing you must know

Mushroom foraging is the fastest-growing outdoor activity in Azerbaijan in recent years. It is also the one where people make the most mistakes.

The most important sentence of this article comes first: do not eat a mushroom you cannot identify. A photo on the internet, a phone app or a feeling that "it looks like it" is not enough. Many poisonous mushrooms closely resemble edible ones, and the symptoms of poisoning sometimes begin hours later.

This is why going with a mycologist makes a difference

On the two-day mushroom tour, foraging and scientific study happen side by side with the mycologist Elgun. That means every mushroom you pick comes with an answer to "what is this and why is it like that".

→ Mushroom Foraging and Camping Tour (Lake Khanbulan)
→ Mushroom foraging tour (one day)

The season

In the Hirkan region the main season is autumn — from September to November, with the 3–5 days after rain being the most productive. Different species appear in spring too, but there is less variety.

The rules of foraging

1. A basket, not a plastic bag. In a basket the spores fall back into the forest and the mushrooms "breathe"; in a bag they turn to mush within hours.

2. Cut, do not pull. Pulling one out by the root damages the mycelium — the living network under the ground. Cut it at the base with a knife.

3. Leave old and worm-eaten ones where they are. They are part of the forest's own cycle.

4. Do not pick beside the road. Mushrooms accumulate heavy metals from the soil; the verge of a highway is the worst possible place.

5. Keep them separate. If one mushroom you cannot identify gets mixed in with the ones you can, you have to throw them all away.

The advantage of the camping format

In the two-day version the night is spent beside Lake Khanbulan. Mushrooms are picked early in the morning, while the dew is still there. On a one-day tour you cannot be there at that hour.

If it is your first time camping: What you need for your first camp.