Uptake of Radiocesium By Mushrooms

After the Chernobyl accident in April 1986 the Cs-134, Cs-137 and K-40 activity of mushrooms of different genera and their corresponding soils from woods located in the province of Umbria (Italy) was determined. The results indicated: a temporally increasing trend for Cs-137 up to a "limit value" depending on local fallout in 1986; different cesium concentrations in various mushroom genera; and uptake of potassium from soil that did not appear to compete with cesium uptake. No reliable correlation can be inferred between the cesium content of the soil and those of mushrooms