1. History of Matsutake

Matsutake mushrooms have a long history in China, dating back to the 4th century B.C., when they were recorded in the Lü Shi Chun Qiu (Spring and Autumn Annals of Lu Shi). In the Tang Dynasty, matsutake mushrooms became a tribute to the royal family and were favored by royalty. In the Song Dynasty, “Compendium of Materia Medica” described the matsutake mushroom in more detail: “Matsutake mushroom is flat in nature, sweet in flavor, and non-toxic. It has the effect of benefiting qi, strengthening the body, nourishing the stomach, dissolving phlegm, regulating qi, stopping bleeding, revitalizing collaterals, inducing diuresis, and aiding yang.”

Matsutake mushroom has very harsh requirements on the growing environment, it can only grow in the primitive forest without any pollution and human intervention, the spores must form a symbiotic relationship with the root system of the pine tree, and the age of the symbiotic tree species must be more than 50 years in order to form the mycelium and mycelial ponds, and at the same time, it needs to rely on the cypress, oak and other broadleaf forests to provide nutrient support, in order to form the healthy sub-entities, so that the place where the matsutake mushroom grows needs to There are three basic conditions, namely, beauty pine, dahlia flower, sandy loam soil, matsutake mushroom must get enough rain before it comes out of the ground, and it must get enough light immediately after it is born, in addition, the temperature, insect injuries, man-made violent collection of mycelium damage and other factors on the growth of matsutake mushrooms will also have a direct impact on the growth of matsutake mushrooms, so it can be said that the birth of each matsutake mushroom is a miracle of creation!

Matsutake mushroom only grows in the primitive forest without any pollution and human intervention, it can't be cultivated artificially, its growth is divided into 4 stages, from spores to mycelium, to mycorrhizae, to the production of the substrate, matsutake mushroom's substrate from the soil to maturity, it usually only takes 7 days, and matsutake mushrooms will be matured 48 hours later will be rapidly aged, the life span is extremely short, matsutake mushrooms rapidly aging, the nutrients of its body to feed the pine tree's roots and soil, its own nutrients ten no one, the surface will be cracked, dehiscence, deodorization and other states, therefore, each fresh matsutake is called “old”. The nutrients of the matsutake mushroom are not stored in one, and the surface of the mushroom will be cracked, stripped of membrane, and deodorized, which is called “old mushroom”. Therefore, every fresh matsutake mushroom is a gift of nature, and the nutritional value of the matsutake mushroom will be greatly reduced if it is made into a dried product. Only amino acids, trace elements, unsaturated fatty acids, vitamins and other basic nutrients will be left. Although it is still a good tonic, its value is very different from that of fresh matsutake mushrooms, and its market price is much lower than that of fresh mushrooms.

Matsutake is widely distributed in the world, from Africa, Europe, Oceania, Asia to North America have matsutake reported, however, Asia for the main production areas of matsutake, matsutake is endemic to Asia, mainly in Japan, the Korean Peninsula, and China's Sichuan Ganzi, Aba Autonomous Prefecture, Tibet Linzhi City, Shangri-La, Chuxiong, Yanbian, Taiwan and other areas, it is reported that the United States and Europe also have matsutake varieties, but the production is scarce and poor quality. Production is scarce, and poor quality, Sichuan, Tibet, Yunnan and other areas of the Tibetan Plateau is the main source of China's national matsutake mushrooms, China's matsutake mushrooms have a total of four major producing areas: Shangri-La, Yunnan, Sichuan Ganzi State Yajiang, Sichuan Ganzi State Damba County Sdana, Aba State, Sichuan, Xiaojin, four major velvet-producing areas of production accounted for the majority of the country's matsutake mushrooms production, the output of the Sichuan to the first, the quality of the Tibetan is better, the reputation is to Shangri-La! Biggest

The origin of the name of matsutake mushroom has a long history and first originated in China. About seven thousand years ago, the matsutake mushroom was born in China's Hengduan Mountains in the Shangri-La primeval forests, in the Song Dynasty, “the history of the evidence of the class of emergency Materia Medica” has been recorded. To the Song Zhezong Yuanyou years (1082 - 1094), Tang Shenwei by “the history of the evidence class ready to emergency Materia Medica” has been enabled, because the fungus was born under the pine forest, buds such as deer antler, so named “matsutake mushrooms,” the Song Dynasty Chen Renyu by the “Spectrum of Mushrooms,” said the fungus for the pine mushrooms In the Ming Dynasty, Li Shizhen's “Compendium of Materia Medica” listed the pine mushrooms under the article of mushrooms, also known as Taiwan mushrooms and mushrooms, and then by the Japanese scholars Kobayashi Yoshio examined that Li Shizhen said in the “Compendium of Materia Medica” “pine mushrooms” that is, matsutake mushrooms, China's consumption of matsutake mushrooms has a very long history in Song and Yuan dynasties is the tribute to the imperial court of the famous mountain treasures, according to records, the Emperor of the Yuan Dynasty consumed “pine mushrooms”, “the Emperor of the Yuan Dynasty consumed ‘pine mushrooms’. According to the records, in the “Spring Plate Noodle” consumed by the emperor in Yuan Dynasty, matsutake mushroom is an important ingredient. Yang Wanli, a poet of Song Dynasty, wrote in a poem describing the matsutake mushroom, “A rain in the empty mountain, drifting osmanthus pine flower juice, soil paste and pine warmth are infiltrated, steaming mushrooms like umbilicus, cut through the fallen leaves and suddenly set up, set aside the fallen leaves in a hundred dozens, wax, yellow and purple light is wet, crispy and soft. The wax face is yellow and purple, and the crispy stem is so delicate that you can easily pick it up, the umbrella is not as good as a hat, the nail is better than a hat, and the fragrance remains in the teeth and the musk is not as good as the teeth.”