MushScout is an Android app for mushroom hunters. It does only one thing: it learns from your outings and tells you When it's better to go back to your seats. It's not one more diary, it's not yet another weather app, and above all it's not a map that promises to take you where the porcini mushrooms are — that doesn't exist.
The problem from which it was born
Those who go mushroom hunting almost always decide the same way: they look at the weather, remember how it went the year before, and choose by nose. The result is that people leave at random, and in half the cases they arrive early or late by a week.
The two sources we have are not enough, and for different reasons. Weather apps tell you what the weather is like, not if it's your time: they know that it rained in the province, not what that rain means for your side. And memory deceives in a predictable way — it keeps good years and crosses away Sundays empty-handed, so we all remember better woods than we have.
What does it do differently
MushScout compares today's conditions to those of times past you, in that forest, you really found something. It's the difference between a provincial bulletin and a forecast that concerns your five hundred square meters.
From there everything else was born: the twelve-day calendar, forest by forest; the line indicating the first available day; and the explanation of what is missing, when the score is low.
The series, in order
The guides below explain the app piece by piece. If you have to read two, read the first two.
- Read the forecast — the score, the twelve days and the day the window opens.
- Where to go today — how to choose the place among those you know.
- How the app learns — the three sources from which the prediction comes, and what proved us wrong.
- Notifications — when the app searches for you, and why it rarely does.
- Save a find — the three-second gesture on which everything rests.
- The diary over time — what remains of each release, year after year.
- Your places on the map — and because no one else sees them.
- Follow more mushrooms — sixteen species, sixteen calendars.
- Go up in altitude — the porcini descend the mountain six hundred meters a month.
- If the forecast is wrong, correct it — when you know more than the model.
- In the woods: offline, GPS, SOS — the one that works at zero bars.
- Cards and security — dangerous lookalikes and the rule that comes first.
- Starting the diary out of season — what to do in December.
How it works, in brief
Save your findings with a tap, even without a field. The app records position, altitude, type of forest and the weather of the previous fifteen days on its own. From that data it builds the forecast for your places, and when conditions open it notifies you.
It works from day one, before your diary even exists: at the beginning the scientific and aggregate parts speak, then the voice of your woods grows on its own.
Three things the app will never do
- It doesn't tell you where the mushrooms are. Nobody knows, and whoever promises it is selling someone else's seats. It says when the conditions are there in the places you found.
- Doesn't share your locations. The coordinates do not leave your phone to other users: no common map, not even between friends, not even during a challenge.
- It doesn't tell you if a mushroom is eaten. Recognition from the photo suggests a name to verify. To eat you need the supervision of a mycologist or the mycological inspectorate of your local health authority.
Free and Premium
The free version is a complete app: you search, you register, you orient yourself, you receive the alert when conditions open up in the forest where you go most, and you see the best place of the day with the real number, not a blurry screen. Premium removes the limits and turns on the part that learns from the history: all the places in the ranking, all the days of the calendar, the weather footprint, complete statistics and data export.
The complete comparison, item by item, is on Free and Premium page. Two things worth knowing right away: recording is never blocked — you always save the mushroom you have in your hand, even beyond the thresholds — and if the Premium expires you lose nothing.
Before you go
A reminder that applies to the entire series: collection is regulated by your region - card, quantity limits, days and permitted areas - and the rules change from one province to another. The painting region by region it's here. And no mushroom should be eaten without the supervision of an expert.
Frequently asked questions
Is MushScout free?
Yes, and it is useful without paying: the prediction of your best place, the diary, the maps, the route and the SOS are included in the free plan. Premium is optional and removes limitations.
Which phones does it work on?
On Android, and it's on Google Play. It is designed for Italy but works everywhere: the mushrooms offered change with the country.
Do you need the field to use it?
No. Save your findings, record your route and consult the maps too without signal: Everything syncs up when you return to cover.
Do I have to register to try it?
To give you an idea, no: the app can be watched without an account. You need to register to save, because that's what allows you to find your data even when you change your phone.
After how long does it start to be useful?
From day one for the general part, and it becomes yours as you record. If you want to shorten the time, you can write down the trips you have already made from memory.
