Boletus edulis (lat. Boletus edulis) represents the most respected mushroom genus - boletus. If earlier he was called the “king of mushrooms”, today you can say about him - this is the undisputed leader of the mushroom rating. The taste of this hero is incomparable. It is difficult to confuse a porcini mushroom with doubles and inedible analogues - it is so beautiful and unique. Borovik is the most desirable mushroom picker trophy.
What else is called?
His name is white for the ability of the pulp to retain color - boiled, fried or dried, it always remains light. This distinctive feature of boletus was reflected in the popular name. His name is also:
- capercaillie;
- cowshed;
- teddy bear;
- cowshed;
- belevik;
- feather grass;
- yolk and other names.
Features of the cep
Any of the boletus species has a special mushroom aroma and piquant taste. All of them have similar forms, the differences are only in the details. Description of the external data of the most common variety of boletus - spruce (Boletus edulis):
- Hat. The color is brownish brown. Diameter up to 30 cm. In a number of latitudes, they can grow up to 50 cm. The upper skin is tightly adhered to the pulp. Cracks in drought, in the rain - is covered with mucus.
- Leg. Thick, massive, up to 20 cm high. Thickness - up to 5 cm. Form - cylindrical or club-shaped. Expands to the base. Color - white, light brown. On the leg is a mesh pattern. Deeply immersed in soil. On the leg there are no traces of the bedspread - the mushrooms do not have a “skirt”, the leg is perfectly clean.
- Pulp. In mature individuals, it differs in density. Very juicy, white, fleshy, causes appetite for one of its kind. In an overripe state, it has a fibrous structure, and the color becomes yellowish or beige.
- Tubular body. First white, then yellowish. Old specimens have turned green.
- Disputes. The powder is olive brown. Size - 15.5 x 5.5 microns.
To determine the age of the fungus, inspect the hat - in young people it is convex, in the elderly - flat. With age, its color darkens. Old mushrooms are not good for food.
The taste of mushrooms is characterized by the softness of the pulp and the tenderness of the aroma. During heat treatment and drying, the taste is only enhanced.
When and where does it grow?
The distribution area of boletus is amazing - they are found on almost all continents. The exceptions are Antarctica and Australia. Japan, Mexico, Mongolia, North Africa, the Caucasus - boletus grows everywhere. You will not meet him except in Iceland. In Russia, it grows almost everywhere - from the southern latitudes to Kamchatka. Spruce boletus is found in spruce and fir forests.
Each locality has its own fruiting time. In warm areas, the fungus begins to grow in May-June, and bears fruit until October-November. In the north, the growth period is from June to September. It has a long growth phase - in order to reach maturity, it needs to grow for a whole week. It grows in families, rings. Having found one instance, it is necessary to carefully examine the nearby space - there are likely to be several more pieces there.
Prefers to grow in forests:
- coniferous;
- hardwood;
- mixed.
It grows more often under firs, firs, pines, oaks and birches. Where to look for them:
- in places overgrown with lichen and moss;
- loves old forests;
- can grow in the shade, but the sun doesn’t interfere with it - it prefers heated areas.
It does not grow:
- in wetlands;
- in peat bogs.
The best weather for the mass growth of boletus is fast-passing thunderstorms, warm nights and fogs.
Rarely found in the forest-tundra and the steppe. His favorite soils:
- sandy;
- sandy loam;
- loamy.
Mushroom pickers tell how to find mushrooms in the forest-steppe. The secrets of mass gathering will be revealed to you, and where the ceps are hiding:
Varieties
In the forests of Russia, mushrooms grow everywhere, and there are a great many of them. It can be seen that they are all of the same kind. They are distinguished only by nuances of appearance. All belong to the first taste category, each has an inedible double. Therefore, starting a "silent hunt", carefully study the external signs of those mushrooms that are found in your area.
Pine
Its external features practically repeat the general description of boletus. What are the differences:
- The hat with a diameter of 8-25 cm is red-brown. The hue is purple.
- Pulp. Under the skin is pink.
- Leg is very thick, short - up to 15 cm. Above - light brown mesh.
- The thickness of the tubular body is 2 cm. The tint is yellowish.
It has an early shape, characterized by a lighter hat and flesh. Growth begins at the end of spring, and continues until October. Settles under the pines - hence the name. With them, he forms mycorrhiza - fungus root. It is found on sandstones, alone and by families. Distribution area - Europe, America, the European part of Russia.
Birch
Its second name is the spikelet. It is harvested when the heading of rye fields begins. Distinctive features:
- The hat is light yellow, with a diameter of 5-15 cm. The pulp has no pronounced taste. On a break does not darken.
- The leg is barrel-shaped, with a light mesh.
- The thickness of the tubular layer is 2.5 cm. The hue is yellowish.
Prefers to grow under birch trees. They grow individually and in groups. Favorite places - at the edges of the road. Distribution area - Western Europe, Siberia, Far East. Harvest season is June-October.
Dark bronze
Hornbeam or copper. Species differences:
- Rounded meaty hat with a diameter of 7-17 cm. Dark shades. It is sometimes covered with cracks.
- The pulp is white. With a pleasant aroma and taste. In a fault, it changes color.
- It features a massive leg - it is pinkish brown. Covered in brown mesh.
- The tubular layer is 2 cm thick. Yellow, when pressed, it turns green.
Fans of edible delights appreciate the hornbeam more than the "classic" porcini mushroom (spruce).
It grows in deciduous forests in warm climatic zones. Distribution - Europe, North America.
Other varieties
There are also such varieties of ceps:
- Reticulate. He has a brownish or light ocher hat. The leg is short, cylindrical in shape. Can be confused with a moss fly. Prefers beeches and hornbeams. Grows in Europe, North Africa and North America. Has a pronounced mesh on the leg. The fruiting time is June-September. It is rare.
- Oak. The hat is a grayish tint. Sometimes there are light spots on it. It differs from other boletus mushrooms in more loose flesh. Prefers oak groves. Habitats - Caucasus, Primorsky Territory. It has a brown hat, very similar to a bile fungus.
- Semi-white mushroom. The color of the hat is light brown or clay. Dense flesh - smells like carbolic. Distribution area - Carpathian, Polesie, southern Russia. There is no mesh pattern on the leg. The hat is light brown.
Boletus edulis mushroom
White mushroom oak
Semi-white species of porcini mushroom
Who can be confused with?
Usually, boletus is confused with bile mushroom (false boletus). Signs by which they can be recognized:
- By the color of the cut. In the bile fungus, the flesh becomes dark, acquiring a pinkish-brown color. The cep has a white pulp, and the color does not change.
- The leg of the bile fungus has a bright pinkish mesh, in a real boletus it is white or yellow.
- Bile mushroom is bitter. Bitterness does not disappear even after cooking. But when pickling, if you add vinegar, it decreases.
Bile Mushroom (Mustard) - Poisonous False White Mushroom
The cep has one more double - the satanic mushroom. But confusion is less common with him. Experienced mushroom pickers immediately see the difference, but it is significant:
- The color of the hat on the double is from whitish to olive-gray.
- The kink pulp immediately becomes reddish or bluish.
- The leg is covered with a mesh pattern. Its color is the main sign of the satanic mushroom. It is red-yellow on top, red-orange in the middle, and yellow-brown below. It's hard not to notice the difference!
Boletus poisonous double - satanic mushroom
The value and benefits of the mushroom
Borovik is a valuable food product. The calorie content of raw boletus is 22 kcal per 100 g. Ingredients:
- proteins - 3.1 g;
- carbohydrates - 3.3 g;
- fats - 0.3 g;
- dietary fiber - 1 g;
- water - 92.45 g;
- ash - 0.85 g.
Mushrooms - just a pantry of all possible vitamins, minerals and other useful substances. This is a valuable product that combines taste and healthy properties. Ceps have everything the body needs, including:
- Selenium. There is so much pulp in it that the consumption of mushrooms is able to withstand oncological diseases in the early stages.
- Vitamin C - normalizes the work of all organs.
- Calcium, Iron, Phosphorus and other vital elements.
- Phytohormones - eliminate inflammation.
- B vitamins - strengthen the nervous system, contribute to the normalization of energy metabolism, improve memory and sleep, prevent infection by infections, increase mood and appetite.
- Riboflavin - normalizes the thyroid gland, promotes the growth of hair and nails.
- Lecithin - useful for patients with atherosclerosis, anemia. Cleanses blood vessels from cholesterol.
- B-glucan - an antioxidant that protects the immune system, saves the body from fungi, viruses, bacteria.
- Ergotionein - renews cells, restores the liver and kidneys, is useful to the bone marrow, improves eyesight.
Harm
Mushrooms contain chitin, which is poorly absorbed. It may damage:
- children
- pregnant
- people with sick kidneys and gastrointestinal diseases.
Ceps are able to absorb harmful substances from the environment. Do not collect them near enterprises and industrial areas.
Spores of boletus, like other fungi, can cause negative reactions in allergy sufferers. The main danger is the consumption of a double - bile fungus. Therefore, you need to carefully study the signs of this inedible species.
Food use
White mushroom is a low-calorie food product. Suitable for boiling, frying, drying, stewing, pickling. The cooked pulp is distinguished by tenderness and a mushroom smell.
The use of ceps in dried form allows the body to absorb up to 80% of proteins. Nutritionists advise eating dried mushrooms.
The strongest aroma is in dried porcini mushrooms, dried according to the correct technology - it is important that the flesh lose moisture gradually. Mushrooms are considered heavy for digestion food. But it is dried mushrooms - the most affordable mushroom product for digestion.
Growing
White mushroom, despite its unsurpassed taste, is not grown on an industrial scale - unprofitable. Usually, amateur gardeners are engaged in cultivation. On the plot there must be coniferous or deciduous trees. There should not be fruit trees, cultivated shrubs and vegetables nearby. The most difficult thing in raising boletus is creating conditions for the successful creation of connections between tree roots and mycelium.
It is advisable that the site is adjacent to the forest. If this is not possible, you need to have at least a few pines, aspen, birches, oaks or firs on the future "plantation". Trees on the site must be 8 years old. Ceps can be grown in two ways - from the mycelium and from the hats.
Cultivation of mycelium
Growing begins with the purchase of planting material. You need to buy mycelium in specialized stores. Next, prepare the site and plant mycelium:
- Near the trunks, the soil is exposed. The top layer is removed - about 20 cm. The diameter of the circle should be about 1-1.5 m. The soil removed is preserved - it will be needed to cover the crops.
- A layer of peat is applied to the plot prepared for planting. Use of rotted compost is allowed. The fertile layer should not be thicker than 2-3 cm.
- The mycelium is placed on top. The interval between adjacent pieces is approximately 30 cm. The pieces are laid out according to the principle of a checkerboard pattern.
- The mycelium is covered with previously removed soil. Abundantly watered. Under one tree you need to pour about 3 buckets of water. Pour carefully - so that the soil does not erode.
- Then mulch the watered soil with straw. The layer thickness is 30 cm. This is done to maintain the desired humidity - so that the mycelium does not dry out. You need to water the crops weekly. Be sure to put nutritious nutrition in water.
Before freezing, the areas with mushrooms are covered. For warming, you can use - moss, spruce spruce branches, fallen leaves. With the advent of spring, insulation is raked with a rake.
A year will pass, and it will be possible to remove the first fungi. If you properly care for mycelium, water and feed on time, the mushroom "plantation" will bear fruit up to 5 years.
Hats growing
To implement this method, you will need to get some mushroom caps. Find mature, or better - overripe mushrooms in the forest. The hat should be at least 10 cm in diameter. It is best if the hat has a greenish tint when it breaks - it indicates the maturity of the spores.
When collecting hats, you need to remember - under what trees mushrooms grew. It will be necessary to sow spores under the same trees. If the boletus is found under the spruce, it is unlikely that it will take root under a birch or aspen.
The procedure for preparing the site and planting seed:
- Soaked in a bucket of water with a dozen hats. It is advisable that the water be rainy. Add one liter per 10 l:
- alcohol - 3-5 tbsp. l .;
- or sugar - 15-20 g.
Mushrooms should be soaked no later than 10 hours after harvesting - otherwise they will deteriorate.
- After 24 hours, the mushroom caps should be kneaded. Mnut, until you get a mass similar to jelly. After filtering it through cheesecloth, water is separated from the mushroom tissue with spores.
- Prepare a place for landing - exactly as in the previous version. But be sure to water peat or compost with tannins - for disinfection. To prepare the solution take:
- black tea - 100 g;
- or oak bark - 30 g.
Tea is brewed in 1 liter of boiling water. The second option is to boil oak bark for 1 hour. The cooled solution is watered with soil - 3 l under each tree.
- Then they begin to plant - on the prepared fertile layer pour water containing the spores of the boletus. The solution during pouring is stirred. Crumpled hats are placed on top, the landing is closed with previously removed soil, covered with straw.
Mushrooms can reach yields of up to 250 kg per 1 ha. Under each tree, during the season, you can collect a bucket of ceps.
It remains to take care of the crops - to water regularly, not sparing water. If the earth dries, the mycelium will die before it sprouts. For winter, the site is insulated with spruce branches or leaves. In the spring - they are raking. The first mushrooms will appear next summer or autumn.
Indoor cultivation
It is possible to grow mushrooms indoors:
- First, the rooms are sterilized with a 1% chlorine solution - it kills mold and parasites.
- Create warm and humid conditions. Put barrels of water or put wet sawdust.
- Prepare a substrate with mycelium. Stack it in bags. Make incisions.
- Bags are placed at intervals of 5 cm.
- The temperature is maintained at + 23-25 ° C, not more. Excess will destroy the mycelium.
Borovik deservedly received his royal status - he surpasses all known mushrooms in taste and usefulness. If it is not possible to find a sufficient number of mushrooms in nature, they can be grown artificially.