The favorite activity of enormous numbers of people— Picking Mushrooms in Russia By Alexander (Susha) Viazmensky alors Note: Viaamenshy, am artist from Leningrad, recenly spent several ‘oaths Manes A par ofthat ie ‘ize Moga appr Mio esos at L's summer cab, reveling it {he quantities of mushrooms he cou der in watercaors or pen an nk The I Give yours ago 1 had been told that would pick mushrooms in the United States 1 would just have laughed. Yet Tam now living inan un- believably spacious apartment tn Minneapolis and I am cleaning ‘American mushrooms I picked in “American woods. Because Of changes in Russia, it became possible for me to vist my friend Michael Pelismen ‘whom Ihave not seen for 12 years since he emigrated trom Russia, ‘Tre luck led me to meeting Lee ‘Mugali, vice-president of the North ‘American Mycological Association. ‘With him I found myself for the fist time in the mushroom woods of the United Sta Im Russty, musnroom nunting & the favorite activity of enormous numbers of people. Many more people are mushroom picking than, for example, fishing. Children and men and women ofall ages are in- Gulging in mushroom hunting. ‘American mushroomers! What bappypepleyouare bese youare Until the middle of July, in Russia you may seldom meet a hiker in the ‘woods. Soon, though, the rumor spreads that somebody has foutd the first mushrooms. The most impatient ‘mushroom hunters immediatly rush tothe woods, though there ste not yet {too many mishrooms, Eventually mushrooms show up at farmers market. This i the signal for the move: Crowds of people with ‘mushroom baskets fil the morning ‘rains out of the city. In the evening ‘when they come back, the people who are passing by jealously peek into their baskets. However, baskets have ‘usually Ben eovered on the top with small branches or with grass t0 protect the mustuoon from indell fate, inguisiive glances. ‘When the major mushroom fruit- 1s impossible to get on ‘managed to get on the rain will be standing in a jam-packed car for two (oF more Hours, and yet they will con- sider themselves lucky, The most devoted mushroom hunters goto the ‘woods in the evening and stay there fora night, camping atthe fie. AS a reward for that they have avoided ‘crowded morning trains and are the first wo reach mushroom spots ‘AS Tor me, 1 usually db tne other sway: I go 10 the woods in the after hoon in order to run into the least ‘number of people ‘The feeling I experience toward woods and toward mushrooms in nothing else but love. And if there is Tove there will be jealousy around, directed to everyane who abo loves the objet of your love. When mush room hunters run into each other in the woods they silently curse at each her, although "exchanging. pleasantries out loud It becomes par= ticularly upsetting if you meet some- fone at your favorite spots. Twill never turn from the road to my spots if somebody is behind me.I wil pass by Sasha ‘my spots and will return back by a oundabout way, so that I hide mushroom spots fom everyone es All our woods ate invisibly divided among “professional” mushroom hunters. The one who warts to fel in charge of his mushroom spots must ‘painttakinghy review tet at feast ‘nce every other day. He picks ll ‘mushrooms and covers the smallest ‘ones with Teaves to pick them next time. If he does i regulary the other ‘mushroom hunters who may wander there by chance will think that there fare no mushrooms in this place, and ‘they will not rtura there agai, Ifyou do not review your spot for several days someone else may find ‘mushrooms there and he will make {his spot his own, Then you get into ‘competition and the pleasure would “Mushroom the Journal, Winter 1990.91, Page 5‘Detail from a drawing of Lecelnum sp. by Sasha be ruined for both of you. Often in such cass the teal wat begin, Cour petitors spend nigh inthe woods sit. ting at fires not faraway from each lhe. They start (0 look for mush Fons before sunrise. The winner will be the one who has more lime and patience ‘A good mushroom hunter knows saytrconlnst areas, ‘mushroom family (the meaning 0! this word has toe a8 han family rather than the botanical meaning) and its peculiarities. As everywhere else in Russia nowadays the demand for mush- ‘oom exe the supply. I oie ‘woods capacity. You can't finds good ‘mushroom inthe resort areas around Leningrad. Remote woods also noticeably suffer because of increated ‘humbers of ars in recent years Cars drive through in the most heavtiful pine tee forests where the trees grow Wide enough apart w arve Denween, ‘The forests soon turn into networks ‘of roads. Almost nota single rsh: room has a chaneo to lve to sts ma ture age on Such places. Muchrooms do not have a chance 1 multiply and their population decreases con tinvousy. 1m thie regard the problom arises whieh has not yet hit the United States — how to help mushrooms to live and to multiply. T have estab- lished for myself set of rules in my attitude 10 mushrooms. When ‘weather cooperates always wear in the woods shoes with thin Teather Soles, but not oot, x0 that i step fon a mushroom Twill el it and not rush it ‘When I find a mushtoom eaten by ‘worms T do not throw i avay. but £ hang it ona tree brane so that ican scatter spores. Sometimes I break it Page 6, Winter 1990-01, Mushroom the Journal Ino several pieces and hang them in erent plates. IFT nd poou ripe ‘mushroom T overcome my laziness, Femove all mushrooms from my tas. {Ket and put the ripe mushroom on the bottom. Now as Ivale im the forest the mushroom will drop spores ‘through the basket twigs anywitere I w. ‘Rolenus edulis is considered the truly best mushroom in European Russia Its callin Russia Bly Grd (Gite mushroom) because when you ut it it does not turn dark but stays ‘white. When there are enough of them, people donot pick other mush rooms. One fees very fortunate ithe picked his whole basket of whites, Before returning home, many ‘mushroom hunters tak out all mush oom from basket and put them hack again so thatthe most beaut tmusnrooms are_on ane top. The majority cover thelr baskets with pretty branches, leaving the best ‘mushrooms partially visible. All this reminds me of a woman ressing hess she wants 10 show the deauty of her bod modesty makes her cover ft A totally ‘pen hacket with beautiful masts Ooms draws everybody's jealous ‘lances, but it looks shockingly im: modest. Everyone selects thelr own ise in relation to how shy Twas always reluctant to cut beautiful mushrooms. | wanted to Save, somehow, if not heir beauty {hen at eat the memory of them 80 T'started to draw mushrooms Gradually Became my hai wal Inthe woods wih woRiskets—2 ig ne anda small one. earelly pata Small basket the mushrooms Lia {end to draw. { pat mse in been them These muthrooms have To sy Sscltely teak that they ook food on the port Here is my favorite mushroom recipe Sasha’s Ceps lay but do not Moat Put butter, cut potatoes, onions and sat n wih the mushrooms. Youhave to add just a litle more salt than Yyou would usualy put In. Cook the dish until potatoes are ready. § minutes betare the endof cooking, put Insour cream, Bolen edulis prepated Vike that is the best dish I know. Eaitoe’s note: For those who have not eaten Ress te low of rng ie ‘woods must be alma se repugnant asthe feelings of disgust ur consal residents have for those who drive foursmhecirs ‘eno ne beac. But tere ate ewer roads in Russa than we have hereinthe US, and Aiving ot 00d # more commonly done For those who question the elles of ‘verpicking mushrooms, Sasha offers us ‘race that there fs cause 19 worry, Be fnuse Russians ae sch ents about ‘mushrooms, thet iste hope of esicning the hares around the eis, partes ‘asthe food peobiemsinereae inthe USSR ‘When food i plain and sare, using ‘mushrooms both at nd and scent becomes a necessity, and “conservation” wl take aback sat to neces Ths hap ened during the war years in Moseow with the trees. When Tasted there recent T ‘aw almost no old tres. They had athe sed for enokng and or heating homes. Russians are modest people The dea of puting oneself orward, or bragging, not Exxtnmary. Sasha's description of3 oman “resin ers ea paral to bowing Of ‘mushrooms i evidence of hs socal pres sure, Some ofthe problems of presto tay be connosted withthe same cherae- Tens, if you consider that enteprenes ship ells for the wil to push oneseit forward, to compete, punishable besvior {or mony year under Sala ad it Ra lowers, “Though Sasha has now returned to Leningrad, a Rusian fend io Minnesota, ‘Mite! Pcs, mas some ot Des paint ings for sale. These ae his Sole way of faring money enough for return trp 0 thes. ‘sasha may be able to return 10 the United Sates. Ifyou ae interested in is paintings, you may contat ian through Mie ever gota paw on him. The fellow vas so bly lacersted and bruised be “use e Kepe running into tress and brush ‘A few adjustments had to be made for forays weekend (it was Thanksgiving it Canada) because several drenching rains had dislodged fot of rocks and Soil im this rather unstable geological ata, and landslides plas mod sits bocked roads. Some forayers took to the gondotss, nding snowfall inthe Upper regions which they claimed obliterated all but the magnificent specimens. (Listeners werent sure Whether the dimensions were eg. yerted)