Cut or Pluck- How to harvest a mushroom Feat. Paul Stamets

[@lillith665]

Thank you so much for taking the time and putting in the effort to compile all of these opinions, and adding nuance to the discussion! I'm often most concerned about creating genetic bottlenecks or reducing the genetic diversity/future viability of patches. I do worry a little that we're causing an unnatural genetic drift due to the *volume* humans harvest, compared to wildlife. Trees, too, have been around for eons...and we've deforested much of the world. So I appreciate the reassurances on harvesting methods, but I hope more people take to heart the bits about not trampling and only taking what one needs.

[@FrederickDunn]

This is, as always, very VERY interesting! I've been long awaiting Paul's update on food for honey bees, including the interesting potential for varroa control as well as the micro-biome of the honey bee workers. . Has any progress been made? I wish you all the best. AND, I hope that some of the honey bee nutrition information begins to come out and will bring good news. Thank you.

[@smithz749]

HIT UP . MACROPAUL6..

[@PHill]

Seems like a different topic than is covered in this video.

[@naturallynorthwest9748]

@Frederick Dunn , I'm also interested to hear the status of Paul's research regarding honey bees. I reached out via email to his website Fungi Perfecti in November asking about the status of the BeeMushroomed Feeder and when/if they'd be available. They sent me a detailed response letting me know they hope to release the Feeder and extracts sometime in 2023, but due to various regulatory hurdles and manufacturing setbacks, its taking longer than expected. They even went as far as to give me a detailed breakdown on how to create my own mushroom extracts to feed my bees! I was impressed with their response. Let me know if you're interested. I can always forward you the email! P.S. I love YOUR channel too.

[@representextual]

I commented these 3 things separately but figured I'd also make a single comment with all of my responses to the video. 9:30 A mycologist/microbiologist friend of mine told me it's an electromagnetic effect... but, you know... I haven't personally verified this. 18:26 the spores could also simply be on your shoes from having been standing/crouching/walking right next to the sporulating mushrooms. 20:53 I think it's more likely the compaction of the soil, which would break a large amount of mycelial threads and also make it harder for mycelium to grow through the denser medium. Mycelium needs to breathe. Thanks for the great vid. I've been more of a cutter than a plucker, and also a "squish the butt into the ground somewhere else if you accidentally pull it out" kinda guy. And any trimming I do on-site, I throw the scraps around to help distribute things. At 5:50 Paul mentions that certain Psilocybe species can regrow from stem-butts but this is true of many other mushrooms as well. I think this video is a great example of how having a larger perspective of the subject matter helps to gain a greater understanding of the bigger picture... I will now be less concerned about plucking, but I will continue to "plant" the trimmed butts (trimmed to keep the debris out of my basket) back in the ground somewhere else, and to scatter any trimmed cap bitsso that they might still drop some spores from a further distance. Oh... and some mushrooms can propagate from the "meat" of the cap too.

[@c.garrett4968]

Excellent Episode! Thank you so much for bringing Real clarity to this long-debated topic. Absolutely loving your channel, by the way.

[@danzinder179]

What a cast! Great video.

[@representextual]

20:53 I think it's more likely the compaction of the soil, which would break a large amount of mycelial threads and also make it harder for mycelium to grow through the denser medium

[@northernwildharvest]

Great video, very well put together and lots of great guests. Paul makes a great point saying to look at things circumstantially, we are always applying this logic and it's why we usually travel to more remote places when harvesting, because the ecosystems are intact. With commercial Pine mushroom harvesting, the oldest member of our group has been harvesting in the same patches for 35 years now - he has never used any harmful techniques like raking and always tries to spread the flags around to spread spore to new areas. Seeing the patch expand over the years and actually become more fruitful has been fascinating. In regards to morels, we tend to cut and only take mushrooms mature enough to be releasing spore, using carrying containers that allow the spores to escape to new areas during long hikes out of the bush. The reason we cut is because we often have little competition in areas we are harvesting, because they are remote, and so we really get a chance to watch how the mushrooms react. Many times we have watched a Morchella tomentosa fruit out of the same base or within 1cm to where a Morchella sextelata/septimelata previously fruited. Plucking might not be harming the mycelium but it is definitely reducing the overall crop of burn morels within a season. Too many times I have reached over a log and hastily plucked a morel, only to see multiple pins attached to the stipe of the mature morel I was targeting.

[@smithz749]

HIT UP MACROPAUL6

[@stevenlandseadel2494]

Nice production. I feel left out😅 you interviewed all my friends🤣

[@mushroomwonderland1]

It's such a large community, I'm constantly meeting new people who are amazing mycologists. I'm still fairly new in the community, so it's awesome to be able to walk with such giants and to meet so many interesting and educated people.

[@representextual]

18:26 the spores could also simply be on your shoes from having been standing/crouching/walking right next to the sporulating mushrooms

[@21a551]

Excellent work.

[@adamgeorge8218]

Great video! Observations of commercial pickers, many with multiple decades of field experience, would make a nice addition. I notice we are mostly absent from the new wave of educational mushroom videos. Maybe just too hard to find us? Lol. 😉

[@smithz749]

HIT UP MACROPAUL6...

[@PHill]

I have spoken to commercial pickers and seen them in action. Running off way away from the trail or road to hit some great spot located previously, to pick it again, to return with many tens of poinds of mushrooms is physical field evidence that picking is not impacting those areas. Aaron cut a part where I addressed that due to technical problems when I filmed. So, yep, no one can find the pros! :) I'm picturing the guy who zoomed past us when we were a not very impressive 100s of yards up the trail into a burn. He had a plastic hamper mounted on on a frame and wasn't even slowing to see how we were doing. He was heading for places he'd found, and the weekenders could have fun wandering the close in areas. His task was to fill that hamper! I'm picturing a short and very stalky fellow returning from points unknown with the 3' stack of folding trays full of King Bolete. Find him or even follow him in the woods? Good luck! with that. LOL. One set of tracks to harvest 80 or so pounds, is low impact on the forest!

[@adamgeorge8218]

@P Hill "you have to pass hundreds to pick thousand " a quote from Nickolas Mendoza, the Michael Jordan of commercial mushroom pickers! R.I.P.

[@northernwildharvest]

@@PHill The situation you just described is exactly what we try to do when commercially harvesting morels. We usually only harvest roadside when we know that there aren't any locals in that area, although often there aren't where we tend to harvest. Common thing for the more serious pickers is to walk deeper into the patch and get into ground where it's really flushing, this is also because it is simply less work to be working your way back towards the road, instead of picking them carrying them in as you go, and then carrying them back out. We always try to get into the good areas and load our packs up from one track when possible, and it is a very low impact way of getting food. I have many GPS recordings of walking the same trail into the bush each day to get into a good patch within a burn, it looks pretty neat at the end of the season when each line is a different color and you see everywhere you have walked!

[@kurzowy]

18:31 I didn't get this part. The harvested mushrooms wouldn't release their spores if they had been cut instead of plucked?

[@hoon_sol]

No, he was just saying that in that particular case he had plucked them rather than cut them.

[@Daytona2]

Thank you for highlighting the science! I'm an interested laymen who's just crashed in from a Google search 😊

[@Cinepobrefilmfestival]

abundantly redundant

[@georgeforeman7621]

Amazing guest list. Nice work!!

[@dcfromthev]

Wow Aaron you had an absolute ALL STAR cast on this video! Thank you for all your work, it is much appreciated and is surely changing the lives of countless fungi enthusiasts around the world!

[@justbeasmr]

This was wonderful. So great to hear from some of the greats and some local mycologists. I appreciate that they touched on many viewpoints and that you included study results. Very good way of introducing opinions without ruffling feathers. I can't wait to see what you work on next! -Dani Arthur, WI WMS

[@representextual]

9:30 A mycologist/microbiologist friend of mine told me it's an electromagnetic effect... but, you know... I haven't personally verified this

[@jefferyscott8148]

Psychedelic's definitely have potential to deal with mental health symptoms like anxiety and depression, I would like to try them again but it's just so hard to source here.

[@Vickyy278]

came across the comments about liberty_capss and I must say he is a genius.

[@ETHANR26]

spam

[@zqzj]

Why does a crushed fruiting body have a negative impact whereas the fruiting body that's harvested has no impact?

[@mushroomwonderland1]

I think what the study was saying is that there's less countable or measurable fruiting bodies at maturity because they were squished when they were young. Still has no effect on the mycelium, if you were to stop trampling that patch the fruiting bodies could mature, resulting in an overall higher yield.

[@gingerrides]

Very informative, thank you. You put a lot of effort into producing that and it is appreciated.

[@nekstprojekt]

Another excellent episode. Thanks for sharing your (and their knowledge).

[@therootking]

I wish you all would do a video about morels growing. So many people say they don't grow even when the evidence proves it.

[@stevenlandseadel2494]

Huh?

[@billlumberg5746]

Happy foraging everyone!

[@nickwhite2569]

Can't wait to watch this while I eat dinner tonight! I've been excited for this!

[@82Julian]

Georgeus video Friend 🤙💪, really appreciated!!

[@sopheap4177]

Great video!! I'm sharing this...❤️

[@desperadodeluxe2292]

My 0.2 is to cut edibles because of dirt. unless you want to take it and use it to spread the spores. I'd say pulling is better for IDs and how it's growing in the environment. Really depends on species because plucking can pull a whole portion of stem you didn't see. Edit posted B4 watching alot of that's covered 😎

[@torryclark4983]

I've been anxiously waiting for this one...Absolutely excellent show with so much information. Keep up the great videos Aaron, you never disappoint. My fav channel by far.

[@mushroomwonderland1]

Thank you so much for your kind words. That kind of feedback motivates me! Mush love🍄❤️

[@EdibleWildFood-1]

Thank you for this well-balanced video! Great information that is appreciated!

[@gardengatesopen]

Very Cool video!! 👍

[@elvertia6374]

i havent watched the full video but i know that mushrooms are tough bastards that will always come back, you cannot kill them in a way that matters

[@matthewb8229]

What a well balanced video. No "preaching" about what is right or wrong i.e. pluck or cut. The biggest take away is tread lightly.

[@adammccrae2990]

Good Stuff Brother!

[@benjaminlaster3773]

Assuming all species respond the same way to certain stimuli seems very short sighted. I feel like you did a fine job with this video. Lots of food for thought.

[@julianclaytonvanwyk9073]

In my humble opinion if u watch how various wild animals eat from th wild u can learn a lot bout what might b best practice for harvesting that species ... Some animals munch th cap an stalk essentially cutting th stem... Sum animals will dig up a particular species .. Harvesting mushrooms for commercial purposes is just wrong.... Harvesting for personal use is ok..... That's why we hav th brains to develop teckniques for growing outside of nature..... Leaving a stem-but or leaving sub-surface mycelium exposed, leaves tissue open to dfrnt pathogens from iether tecknique..... My personsl take is thst as conscientious pickers as long as we re-introducing th tissue back into nature, an protecting th foraging site by covering over wth local material we can make choices based on nature an science an ethics..... So ya th big problrm is ppl who just take an take wthout giving back, for commercial purposes, or maintaining th practises ive mentioned above 😜 enjoy dont fight an argue..... Take care🙏

[@thnkblu.2206]

Perfect

[@smithz749]

HIT UP MACROPAUL6..

[@marcm2277]

Good video, it's good to hear from the experts and the research. If it grows out of a log or the ground I tend to pluck and trim the dirt off. It's hard to imagine disturbing oyster mycelium by plucking for example. As far as mycorrhizal mushrooms go, I do find it pleasing to get low to the ground and hear the squeak as I cut a mushroom even with the ground, but there's no way around causing some amount of damage and hypothetical chance of infection if that were an argument one way or the other... Realistically, how clean is that knife a person would be harvesting mushrooms with all day anyways? It's not science, but I've always thought cutting creates a rather large gaping wound on the organism compared to plucking. My impressions is that many mushrooms seem to form an almost natural breaking point with mycelium where it's just a couple strands of mycelium breaking instead of a huge section of flesh that does not want to break as naturally (try tearing a stipe in half without using a knife as easily as a mushroom can be plucked by the base). Also the fruiting body rots at the end of the season regardless, yet the mycelium lives on; so it stands to reason that the mycelium generally has the means to survive whatever infection might be introduced by either cutting or plucking. Mushrooms are pretty tough.

[@mushroomwonderland1]

Yes you made some good points. And I think Paul said it perfectly in the video, there really is no inside of the organism to become infected. Mycelium is in constant contact with nature, we have a tendency to think in terms of plants, like there's an inside and an outside. Mycelium is not that way. It's just strands of single cells stacked against one another, there's no sheath around the outside or any sort of protection, or an inner layer. It's hard to get our brains to not think about plants, because that's what they teach about in school, but they never mentioned mushrooms. 🍄🍄🍄

[@marcm2277]

@@mushroomwonderland1 surely the cell walls define what is technically inside and outside the organism? I think I get what he's saying though, there's no brain, stomach or other essential organ to damage, it's all just mycelium. That somehow makes it seem all the more amazing and kind of absurd that mushrooms are even a thing that happens.

[@Blueprint4Murder]

Squirrels dig brick caps out, and deer eat the stems of russilla. The countless generations of animals don't seem to worry about it so I am not too worried about it. I only harvest what I can carry in my hands or some times I will turn my shirt into a bag if I know I will eat them. I think that is much more important is only taking what you can use. Where you run into problems is by trying to sell or have festivals around natural resources. While you might love mushrooms and want to share them with others It is better just to keep them to your family and if you are going to share with someone make sure they are like minded.

[@mikexibalbafarms4169]

The homie Adam!

[@adammccrae2990]

... yes? 🥰

[@mikexibalbafarms4169]

@@adammccrae2990 so bad ass you know mushroom wonderland!!! Mush love and good take on the plucking 🍄🍄🍄🙏🍄💚

[@dcfromthev]

One big question I have been pondering is: Does the mycelium "know" when individual mushrooms are disturbed / damaged / removed ? Does harvesting mushrooms affect when/if the next fruiting will occur? Does the mycelium feel the need to "replenish" fruits lost to picking or other damage? The more I type the more questions I have haha, I could go all night!

[@PHill]

I think if there is energy left in the mycelium to produce another fruiting body it will. Will they new mushrooms come up in some kind of cycle? Will the mycelium produce a new fruiting body to replace the now missing one? That is not my impression. Patches can be irregular.

[@MOUNTAINOUS]

i cut hedgehogs. i pluck king boletes. i cut admirable boletes. etc. i lived on mt hood in oregon for 15 years. i went to the same spots in the mt hood forest and i went there year after year. always the same patches where there. same areas. i documented it on youtube. i made tons and tons of mushroom hunting and harvesting videos in the mt hood forest for years and years and years. i made so many videos hunting mushrooms. my friends all lived on mt hood with me. we all hunted for mushrooms year after year. doing this method. always good patches year after year. i cut bad ones. cut them up. toss them around. i would kick big old boletes and blast them into many pieces if they were buggy. spreading spores all over etc etc

[@julieweber3398]

I plunk them if I can. Cut 'em if I can't. Then I put them into my basket after I've waved them around in the air a bit to disperse some spores. I may or may not even swing my basket a lot as I walk thru the woods too! No skipping tho!😂

[@nickwhite2569]

I like to take my basket and swing around in circles while singing "The hiiiiiiilllls are aliiive with the sound of muuuuuusiiiiiic"

[@Mycol411]

I think you need to think about it like this even though it’s top and not bottom growth and not mycelium strawberries grow in the same structure I would say now when I pick a strawberry I eat it and I poo it wherever I want

[@mattykay7852]

Why pluck the whole mushroom if you’re just going to throw away the butts and not do anything with them Just cut and leave the base stem in the ground if you’re not going to do anything useful with the butts IDK what’s wrong with people’s mindset 🙄🤕😝

[@mushroomwonderland1]

If you've ever cultivated mushrooms you would know that if you were harvesting your fresh mushrooms, in order to keep them mycelium healthy you would want to remove every chunk of the fruiting body. That would be removing the base too. Leaving the cut base on your mycelium block would leave it open to mold and bacterial infection. Seems to me the best idea is probably pluck the whole mushroom, and then cut the base off and toss it somewhere so it might grow into a new colony.

[@mattykay7852]

@@mushroomwonderland1 That is kind of what I I was saying There would be ppl out there who would pull the while Mushroom out and throw the butts into the bin or do something non useful with them If you pull the whole mushrooms out Definitely make use of the stem butts and regrow else where like you’ve correctly mentioned If not just leave the base in the ground 💁🏼‍♂️

[@mattykay7852]

You have a great channel 😊👍🏻

[@juanbait9670]

Nature and man has been plucking forever, a sharp thin metal blade has only been on the scene for a brief period of time.

[@ArtichokeHunter]

Cutting does tell other people that a human has been foraging mushrooms... could be a positive or a negative, but it's much easier for plucking to either be unseen or to be mistaken for wildlife involvement. (definitely wouldn't try to pluck a resinous polypore though, ha!)

[@fattymcbastard6536]

Yeah well, so does plucking, because when I pluck, I cut off the dirty part of stipe before it goes in my bucket, that way I can follow my trail of mushrooms nibs on the way back out, and my mushrooms stay clean.

[@stephenmccreery6511]

If u cut a mushroom and leave part of them behind it will atract disease down in2 the plant

[@kennyrupert1402]

Plant? What plant?

[@PHill]

Whete is this disease going to go? After an i ch or so, they go out the bottom of the fruiting body to the micro thin threads that hang out in the environment all the time. As I said at the end of the video, there is no inside down there to get inside. But I do appreciate you carefil picking of the whole fruiting body. That's what I try to do too!

[@timmynormand8082]

Really injoyed this one. But I pluck

[@PHill]

As everyone in the video says you don't need to qualify your choice, It was whatever works for you.

[@timmynormand8082]

@@PHill I wanted to qualify mine

[@davidvaughn7752]

I cut... that's just how I was taught. It shows respect. I use a pair of scissors and after I cut them I blow on each mushroom to spread the spores. I also leave some to complete their lifecycle.

[@adammccrae2990]

This sort of comment is part of the main issues with "Cut vs. Pluck". You say you cut because "it shows respect". This *heavily* implies that plucking is somehow disrespectful, which is simply not true. One could also certainly posit that it's disrespectful to leave perfectly good mushroom flesh by cutting, but that's neither here nor there. 🥰

[@PHill]

So what scissors do you use for larger polypores and big thick boletes; LOL. You are obviously referring to a particular type of mushroom, but what's good for one environment - loose wood chips as just one example - may not apply to another situation. EDIT: I understand now how you can use large scissors as your basic tool regardless of mushroom size. That is an interesting approach, as an alternative to a curved in blade like a paring knife.

[@davidvaughn7752]

@@PHill I harvest Chanterelles, Lobster, Morels, and others. I make sure to find the ones whos blades are about 4" long and I see them at Goodwill all the time, (the ones with the plastic handles for cutting fabric) - I feel that they work lot better than a knife, at least for me, and of course Chicken of the Woods and as you point out Boletes I do use a knife or sometimes just one side of the scissor blade. They fit fine in my cargo pants and never had an issue with soil since I stick mostly to the rainforest.

[@davidvaughn7752]

@@adammccrae2990 That's Okay. You don't have to have the same rituals that I do or respect _what I say_ . Yank them out if you wish. If you think leaving some of the stem behind is a waste, then you might think it's a waste to leave _any_ behind for others to enjoy and find or for a few to naturally complete their life cycle. I leave as many as I take. You also don't hear me going through the forest (here in the PNW where I live and recreate) when I'm foraging - I don't trample fern, cut through undergrowth like Salal or Baneberry with a machete or slide down the sides of hillsides tearing up the soil _any time_ I'm foraging... But that's just me. Sorry to offend.

[@PHill]

@@davidvaughn7752 I hope everyone avoids trampling the plants like you do. Either pluckers or cutters can and do leave plenty in the forest. How one harvests each mushroom doesn't address taking or not taking ever visible specimen. But consider only you are not respecting another method by saying "Yank them out". No one with two days experience _yanks_ them; when practical and applicable they loosen and pluck.

[@peterorlov4544]

If mushrooms are talking in a syntax electrical signal I think of them like your teeth and your nervous system. If you cut its like having a decayed tooth it causes pain and can cause sickness. If you pluck then it is like removing the tooth and disconnects it from the nervous system, then you cut the butt off and plant it elsewhere for the tooth fairy to bring you treasures for next year 👌👍

[@PHill]

Pain from cutting a fruiting body causing sickness in mycelium? I think you are over applying the analogy that the mycelium is like a nervous system. By the way, in a real nervous system the pain is caused by the sickness or damage, not the other way around.

[@peterorlov4544]

@@PHill All life forms have electric impulses and biomagnetism

[@jdschuncke]

i have a feeling this subject bothers you haha

[@blackpowder4016]

Needlessly annoying music.

[@EsotericallyObvious369]

You answered your own question. People have been harvesting them for 1000's of years. Pretty sure that's an indication that no matter how they are harvested they will remain and thrive no matter what and anyone arguing about it needs to experience a mushroom ego death because their's is in need of reflection.