EUGENE -- The 2010 mushroom-picking season began Tuesday and will continue through Nov. 7.
Officials allow the harvest of naturally growing Matsutake mushrooms in the Deschutes, Fremont-Winema, Umpqua and Willamette National Forests in Oregon during the specified picking season.
A commercial harvest permit is required and costs $200 for the season, or $8 per day with a five-day minimum purchase. Also available is a $100 half season permit, valid for 31 consecutive days.
The U.S. Forest Service requires commercial harvesters to have written permission from the agency to camp in any national forest, except in camping areas designated for that purpose.
