Latvia's mushroom haul a bit disappointing so far

Mycologists admit that the forests are mostly dry, which is why chanterelles are the most common type of mushroom at the moment, while boletus, ceps and other mushrooms will have to wait. Raivis has been an active mushroom picker since childhood, and these days he has already been to the forest trails he knows several times. He said: "In these forests, there are mostly only chanterelles. There are no boletus or other mushrooms. Other years, there are so many boletus that I can't even carry them out of the forest with one basket." He found the first chanterelles early this year on June 22, but after that, his hopes for full baskets were dashed: there are still few mushrooms in the forest. Meanwhile, those who don't want to go out into nature themselves are looking for goodies at the local market. Mirdza, a representative of SIA "Rembāni", said: "The son-in-law had gone to the hunting fields, where mushrooms grew last year, but this year there are none. The forest has been cut down. At first, chanterelles were very expensive, now a bucket costs four euros." Meanwhile, forest harvest buyers are currently paying five to six euros per kilogramme, which is approximately three litres of mushrooms. The price is high compared to other years. A common complaint – and a traumatic one, at that – is deforestation. Forest produce buyer Aļona Tetjuhina said: "In the past, there were mushrooms all the time – from July to August and even September. Now there are chanterelles in one place, but in another place people go into the forest and find nothing. Many say that the forests have been cut down. People even cry. I also went to my usual place, but the forest is no longer there." Aļona has been buying mushrooms and berries for five years. This season, one person brings in an average of about five kilogrammes of chanterelles, although in other years they can bring in ten kilogrammes or more. Mycologist Diāna Meiere admitted that this year's mushroom picking season has not started with a bountiful harvest in other parts of Latvia either. Meiere pointed out: "In my opinion, the mushroom season has started very slowly and also very unevenly. You might think that the situation in Kurzeme is better because there has been a lot of rain there, but mushrooms depend not only on precipitation, but also on temperature. So it's like bees with mushrooms." The mycologist expressed hope that the peak of the mushroom season is still ahead and the situation in the forests could improve. "There is also hopeful news, because a few days ago I saw that a person had picked boletus mushrooms, a really good harvest. Then there was also news from Kurzeme that there are summer boletus mushrooms there," said Meiere. The most active mushroom season is usually from mid-August to October, when there are not only chanterelles, but also boletus and ceps, which are the most popular finds among Latvians.