During autumn in Tuscany everyone wants to pick up mushrooms and chestnuts. During this September, which is so warm and dry, people are going crazy because there are not the ideal climatic conditions for mushrooms to grow, but it’s just a matter of patience: autumn will soon arrive with its showers and, finally, mushrooms will also come along! 
But be careful and take some minutes to read these instructions. Before wandering in the woods, if you want to gather our scented Tuscan mushrooms and you are a tourist, you have to follow these rules and laws:
First of all, you have to pay a small tax to the Region of Tuscany:
- account number: 6750946;
- for: “Regione Toscana”;
- reason for payment: “Raccolta Funghi”.
The amount is:
- 15€ per one day;
- 40€ per one week;
- 100€ per one year.
Important:
- in the reason for payment, remember to add the day or the week in which you want to go and pick up mushrooms
- remember to add your personal data on the credit transfer
- bring the bill with you when you go pick mushrooms, as well as your id card
Remebert that:
- The maximum amount of mushrooms is 3 kg per person per day (but if you find a giant mushroom you are allowed to collect it J )
- You can gather mushrooms during the day (from one hour before the sun rises until one hour after the sun sets).
- You are not allowed to use tools that can ruin the substrate, such as rakes or things like that.
- You have to put your mushrooms in rigid pockets that let them spread their spores; more specifically: you can’t use plastic bags.
You can’t pick up too little mushrooms, they have to be:
- Boletus Edules (porcini): more than 4 cm
- Hygrophorus marzuolus (dormiente), Lyophyllum gambosum (prugnolo): more than 2 cm
- Amanita Caesarea (ovulo buono): until you can see the gill
Hope you’ll have a lot of fun! If you need some inspiration about the itineraries, take a look at the Tuscany Walking Festival website, while if you need some mushrooms recipes, here they are! 
Source: Regione Toscana web site
