Overview

• Recent rain and cool nights have triggered widespread fruiting, with experts calling conditions ideal in early October.
• Common edible finds now include porcini, parasol, bay bolete, giant puffball, field mushrooms and saffron milk cap.
• Crowds are flocking to forests, and demand for guided mushroom tours has grown since the pandemic, advisors report.
• Poison information centers handle hundreds of suspected mushroom poisonings annually, with the green death cap linked to most fatal cases.
• Advisers urge precise identification rather than apps, basket transport, thorough cooking for many wild species, and adherence to 1–2 kg personal limits and protected‑area bans that can carry fines.