BERRIES AND MUSHROOMS

 

More than 360 species of forest and bog plants are widely used in medicine. Almost 30% of medicines are made from herbal raw material. Forest berry plants and edible mushrooms are rich in biologically active substances with tonic, bactericidal, anti-inflammatory, hematopoietic and antitumoral action. They include the most important components of the antioxidant system (amino acids and mineral matters), which contributes to excretion of radioactive nuclides from organism and influences the human immune system positively.

The biggest economic value there have such berry plants as bilberries, cranberries, great bilberries and red bilberries. Another economically valuable species is ash berries. People also pick wild strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, stone berries and some other species for their own needs.

Maximum resources of fruit and berry plants are situated in Minsk region (28%) and Gomel region (26%). The biggest resources have bilberries - 33 ths t.(66%), cranberries – 11,2 ths t. (22,5 %), the least - great bilberries (1,3 ths t. or 2,6%) and ash berries (1,1 ths t. or 2,2% from biological resource of all basic species).

Bilberries and cranberries rank first in the volume of storage (up to 5 ths t. and nearby 1 ths t. annually accordingly). The storage of red bilberries and great bilberries is slight.
Only nearby 20 from more than 200 species of edible mushrooms growing in Belarusian forests are storing up: cep, chantarelle, orange cap boletus, brown cap boletus, boletus luteus, morel, saddle fungus, yellow pepper mushroom, milk mushroom, sharp agaric, laserwort, russule, honey agaric, blewits, greenfinch and others.

Volume of commercial storage varies from 4 to 5 ths t. yearly.

Another important kind of forest by-production with great economic and nature-conservative importance is beekeeping. Evaluative productivity of honey in forests is 36 ths t. According to design data it is possible to keep in forests up to 180 thousands bee-families. Actual availability of bee-families in the system of Ministry of Forestry makes 8-10 ths Output of commercial honey from one bee-family averages 4-5 kg. Profitability of beekeeping varies from 20 to 45%.

Export of food and medical forest products has grown: nearby 80% of mushroom products (mostly the chanterelle and the cep) and more than 30% of wild fruits and berries (mostly bilberries) are realized abroad.