The fine can amount to several hundred PLN. People who pick protected mushrooms can receive an even higher fine – up to several thousand PLN. Which parts of the forest should you avoid to avoid trouble?
Where is it forbidden to pick mushrooms?
In Poland, you can pick mushrooms with virtually no restrictions and at no cost. Almost 80 percent of the forests are state-owned, and the area covers approximately 7.6 million hectares. However, there are permanent entry bans in some parts of the forest, which you must follow if you don’t want to be fined. Where is mushroom picking prohibited?
National parks and reserves
The ban is based on Article 15.1 of the Nature Protection Act of 16 April 2004. Since national parks and reserves are intended to protect fauna and flora, collecting mushrooms prevents them from reproducing at a natural rate. In addition, mushroom picking requires leaving designated trails and paths, which involves the risk of trampling on valuable plants, destroying undergrowth or scaring away animals. It should also be added that straying from the paths can be dangerous for people, since the forest is natural outside accessible areas. As a result, there are many fallen trees and hanging branches that can harm people. Mushrooms are also food for many species of animals that live in parks and reserves, so by collecting them, we deprive the forest inhabitants of food.
Forest crops up to four meters high
Forestry is a new generation of forestry that is intended to replace felled forest stands. Felling can be caused either by planned use or by the need to carry out so-called sanitary felling due to damage caused by, for example, hail or fire. Entry into forestry areas is expressly prohibited. This is because movement in these areas can destroy young seedlings, which are time-consuming and demanding to cultivate. This, in turn, would make it difficult or impossible to regenerate the tree stand.
Seed stands and experimental areas
The seed stands are distinguished by their high genetic and technical quality. Thanks to this, they are able to produce large quantities of seeds from the most valuable and native tree types, which are then used to cultivate improved forest stands. For this reason, they are excluded from the use of felling. The seed stands are specially marked with continuous yellow stripes. There is also a large letter N on the corner trees. There are also information boards on the edges (No entry – seed stands excluded OB018). Entry into this area is prohibited.
