Cow patties are the some of the best places to find and pick mushrooms. People know this, hence the popularity of mushroom hunting in many places around the world. People carry out mushroom hunting in the U.S., Australia, and so on.
All you have to do to collect mushrooms from cow patties is to go to a pasture a day or so after a heavy rain, and search the cow patties for them. Mushrooms require humidity to grow, so a day or two after is the best time to begin mushroom hunting.
Below, we will explain in detail how to pick mushrooms from cow patties, and the best tips to try when picking the mushrooms. We are incredibly excited, and we know you are too. So, let us delve into the various vagaries of mushroom picking.
What Are Mushrooms?
Mushrooms are edible fungus that are usually umbrella-shaped. They provide several important nutrients when eaten. Mushrooms have in them protein, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants which have many health benefits to the body such as removing toxins, prevention of some diseases such as diabetes and some forms of cancer, improve heart health and so on.
A lot of people know of the immense health benefits of mushrooms, and they incorporate it in their diet. The Agricultural Marketing Resource Center reported that in 2015, each person in the United States consumed, on average, around 3 pounds of mushrooms.
To recognise a mushroom, you must have noticed certain features such as:
- Stalk-and-cap appearance. The most recognizable mushrooms edible mushrooms have a stalk and cap appearance, such as the button mushroom and portobello mushrooms. This makes them appear umbrella shaped. Unfortunately, poisonous mushrooms, such as the Amanita bisporigera or “destroying angel,” also have a cap and stalk, making it difficult to discern edible mushrooms from their dangerous counterparts. So before you pick mushrooms, be sure of what you are picking.
- Spores. All mushrooms produce spores, but the fate of the spores differentiates types of mushrooms from one another. Some mushroom spores are fertilized sexually, while other spores need to land nearby to produce a new mushroom.
Mushrooms are heterotrophic, and this means that they rely on food sources in their surroundings to grow and for nutrients. These food sources can include animal waste, plant matter, and organic carbon. This is the reason why cow patties are some of the best places to find mushrooms.
Do You Pick Mushrooms?
Pastures are an ideal place to find different kinds of mushrooms such as the Psilocybe Cubensis mushroom, the Panaeolus Cyanescens mushroom and so on. This is because cattle pastures and cattle manure provides the ideal growth environment for diverse mushroom species, and these species are usually in abundant supply, ready to be picked. You can try it too, but before you do, here are some tips. A lot of tips. You will need them.
1. Before picking in any pasture or field, get permission from the owner or farmer if it is not yours. Trespassing is against the law, and people get in a big, fat bind because of it. It is even more important to ask for permission if the pasture has cattle because of course it is. You’re an upstanding member of society after all, aren’t you?
2. It is usually best to ask for permission well ahead of the time you plan to pick mushrooms, because you cannot be certain of when the rain will fall and conditions will be ideal for mushrooms to grow.
3. Take something to hold all the mushrooms in. We recommend a small cardboard box. That way, the mushrooms are not crushed and they won’t sweat. Baskets are usually good too, but you may look like a bit of a nutcase trudging around with a basket. A plastic bag makes the mushrooms sweat and stick together, while a paper bag is too weak because the mushrooms make the paper wet and then it starts to break too easily. So, a small cardboard box is ideal.
4. Mosquito repellent helps greatly too. A wet pasture will likely have a lot of stagnant water packed with mosquitoes, and trying to delicately pick mushrooms while you are getting chomped on by those demon vampire insects with a taste for human flesh is a very hard ask for anyone. So, mosquito repellent, probably important.
5. Never forget water. Seriously, trudging through a humid, steamy field after a rain is horrible if you do not have water. We are speaking from experience here. Just… take water. You’ll thank us later.
6. Take rubber boots. You will be stomping through wet grass and ambling blissfully past through cow poop. So take rubber boots. You can take your favourite Gucci slippers, but anything that happens to it is at your own risk.
6. Go to the pasture about 12-36 hours after a heavy rainfall. Mushrooms are really thirsty things and they require a substantial amount of moisture to adequately grow. These conditions are usually present when the humidity has been high for several days in a row, usually after rainfall.
7. Walk through the field in a grid-like pattern. This is to ensure you cover the area sufficiently. You need to go everywhere to adequately gather mushrooms.
8. While you should search everywhere on the pasture, it is usually best to search shaded areas and all those areas with tall grass. Also search less of fresh patties and more of older piles that have dried and sunk into the grass.
9. Scissors. Scissors are important. It helps greatly in picking mushrooms. It keeps the stems together a lot better once the mushrooms have been picked (because they usually fray if they were snapped). Collect all mushrooms by snipping their stems with scissors 1/2-inch above the base. This allows the cow pile to keep producing more mushrooms. So, scissors. Makes it easier to harvest, preserves mushrooms for longer, and gives chanve for more mushrooms to grow.
10. Take a small knife. You need a knife to clean up the stems of mushrooms you pick and you may need to cut them to check for worms. Any knife will do for this purpose, but a folding pocket knife or a knife with a retractable blade to prevent yourself from accidentally stabbing yourself. Also take a brush so you can clean the tops and gills, ridges, or pores of your mushrooms after you’ve picked them. The less dirt that goes into your basket or bag, the less you’ll have to clean off your mushrooms later.
11. There are many things you should be on the look out for in order to avoid. Here are things you must avoid, and ways to avoid them.
- Angry cows and angry bulls. Cows are generally very placid creatures, and bulls will generally leave you alone if you do not trespass into their territory or anger them deliberately. Ignore the cartoons. However, when they begin to have calves, it is a wildly different story. Cows and bulls are fiercely protective of their calves. Now this calving season is right alongside mushroom season too (that is, spring through summer). To avoid causing too much trouble, stay near a fence if cows are close, or near long grass and trees. If you manage to agitate the cows in any way, run and hop over the fence or into a tree or long grass, and think about why you managed to agitate one of the most placid of farm animals.
- Kangaroos. For all you mushroom enthusiasts picking Australia, avoid kangaroos. You probably know this, but if you don’t, please know now that kangaroos do not deserve the good PR they get that portrays them as whimsical little weird hoppers. They are astoundingly ripped boxers with freaking powerful legs for kicking and sharp claws for disembowelment. So avoid them. Usually, they hop away when you come close, but if one keeps watching you and does not move, back away and don’t bother them. Then run as fast as you can.
- Snakes. Snakes, the slithery things, like green grass and generally humid conditions, so ensure you keep your eyes open for them. Snakes usually don’t bother you if you do not bother them, so if you see a snake, mice away quietly.. If you get bitten, get to a doctor or hospital. Many snakes are venomous. Do not take any chances.
- Dogs. A lot of pastures in farms have dogs. They are usually not that aggressive, but in general, try not to get bitten. Get out of a dog’s line of sight and if it begins to chase you, scramble up a tree and wonder if getting mushrooms really merits putting yourself in harm’s way like this.
- Spiders. Generally, it is best to avoid spiders. When walking through trees, use a stick and wave it in the air in front of you to clear away any spider webs. If you do.nir take precautions and you walk blindly into a web, then shake and jump around vigorously while scrubbing you hair to make sure there is nothing on you. You might look a bit foolish, but that is generally better than getting poisoned by a pissed off spider.
- Ticks. Everyone and everything hates ticks, and for good reasons. Those things are neer-do-wells. And they are ugly too. Because they are so very tiny, you may not be able to see them to avoid them, so we advise that you check your legs for little flat black things every now and then and flick them off with the vengeance of the gids, especially after walking through long grass. When you get home, strip naked and check your genitals, legs, hair and other warm areas for any black things. If you find one, dab a little bit of alcohol on it to kill it, then twist and pull it out anti-clockwise with tweezers.
- Wasps. Wasps are bad. They are bees’ less sweet, much angrier, deeply psychopathic cousins. So never trouble wasps.
12. Don’t over pick. So you can have mushrooms to pick in the future, it is best, courteous and considerate to leave some mushrooms behind. Also, please understand that you.may not be the only picker. Do not be greedy. Nature provide, the least you can do is be considerate. So, next time you see that big cluster of mushrooms, leave half for the the next person!
13. When you have picked your mushrooms, take them home and identify them with a mushroom identification guide or let an experienced person do it for you. Ensure that you only eat mushrooms that you are confident are edible so you do not consumed poisonous mushrooms.
In all, just be respectful of nature and the pasture you are picking from and be sure that you follow all the above precautions. Also important is to make sure to clean up after yourself. Do not leave trash everywhere. It is annoying and it is harmful to the environment that gives you the mushrooms to use. Also make sure you do not pick mushrooms in the button stage. People often confuse mushrooms at the button stage. Only stick to picking mushrooms that have opened caps because they are matured.
Where Else Can I Pick Mushrooms?
Mushroom picking is popular around the world, especially throughout most of Europe, Australia, Japan, Korea, parts of the Middle East, and the Indian subcontinent, as well as the temperate regions of Canada and the United States. You can find them in the wild and in forest. You can find them in mushroom farms. You can also find them in your backyard. Just make sure that you know what types of mushrooms you are picking before you pick because many mushrooms are very poisonous.
Finally, note that most mushroom-hunting begins around early May and ends in late September, depending on the region and climate, so be sure of when your season is to prevent wasted efforts. Good luck with the picking then! Ciao.