Dave W Posted July 4, 2014 Report Share Posted July 4, 2014 Even though June has been kinda dry here in NE PA, I have run across a few nice Boletes. Didn't see these Kings until after they had been up for a week or so. As beautiful as they look on the outside, the interiors were riddled with insects. I managed to salvage only a few pieces of cap for the dehydrator. I haven't seen any Boletus bicolor yet this year. But I have seen several fruitings of B. miniato-olivaceus. This type is reportedly a sickener. The young specimens seen here look quite similar to B. bicolor. Even the older ones can be mistaken for bicolor. A few differences are... bicolor is typically more solidly red on the lower 3/4 of the stalk. Mini-o has yellow stalk with varying amounts of red overlay on the lower half. Also, the interior flesh of bicolor tends to be more completely yellow than mini-o, which has whitish flesh in the cap. Mini-o shows weak blue-staining on the cut flesh and/or pores. B. badius is a conifer-loving Bolete that bruises grayish-blue on the pores. It's fairly distinctive. When young it may be confused with Austroboletus gracilis or B. chrysenteron. B. subcaerulescens sometimes shows weak blue staining on either the pores or the flesh where the pores meet the cap. This newly emerged button showed no staining. A pine associate. B. subvelutipes is our most locally common red-pored Bolete. Color of the cap and stalk is quite variable. But the almost black bruising of the cap surface and the immediate change to blue of the cut flesh should always be apparent. Not recommended for eating; listed as poisonous in several gudes. July comes in with heavy showers following a week of hot weather, usually perfect Bolete weather. I'l be checking spots for Kings, B. variipes, and Xanthoconium (Boletus) separans. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dakotabob Posted July 4, 2014 Report Share Posted July 4, 2014 Thanks Dave! Are your Boletes late this year? I collected a few Leccinum insigne when I was up north but there should have been a lot up by that time. They ate well, never the less. If there are a lot up, I like to dry some for soups. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave W Posted July 6, 2014 Author Report Share Posted July 6, 2014 Interesting timing on this year's boletes, Bob. Above average temps throughout June set us up for an early start, but lack of rainfall has been a problem. Subvelutipes, miini-o, and edulis were underway by late June... but only a few edulis. The only substantial fruitings I've seen have been in damp areas along streams. I've seen only one Leccinum (L. aurantiacum seen below), and the Xanthoconium types (including separans... which I am told has now been put back into Boletus) seem to be just now getting underway. I haven't yet seen a single B. bicolor, which is often one of the first to appear in quantity. There's been reports these past several years of people getting sick from eating Leccinums. But my wife and I enjoy them sliced thin, salted, and fried until brown and just beginning to get crisp... a side of "facon" to accompany pancakes or eggs. I suspect that some of the reported edibility problems may be due to under-cooking. Leccinums are a bit fibrous and require adequate cooking. My favorites to dehydrate are edulis, separans, subcaerulescens, and B. variipes. Specimens that are post mature but relatively insect free are dried and later used to make any type of soup or sauce in which the rehydrated mushrooms are pureed in the food processor. Prime specimens are stored separately. "Joe's Book of Mushroom Cookery" by Jack Czarnecki (Joe's son) has some excellent recipes for soups/sauces made with boletes. For company the other day, I used an ounce or so of dried separans rehydrated in lobster/sprimp stock to make poached salmon. The chopped mushrooms/onion/garlic are added to the thickened sauce made from the stock/poaching-liquid. A variation on one of Jack's recipes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dakotabob Posted July 6, 2014 Report Share Posted July 6, 2014 I have eaten Leccinums a lot. Like you said, the sickening was probably due to under cooking. They are a very dense mushroom. There was that one case somewhere in New England where they collected kings and Leccinums and got sick. I believe that they collected B. huronensis and mistook that for B. edulis. There was never any confirmation of either species to my knowledge. I will be heading over to Minnesota in a few weeks to collect lobsters, chaga and whatever else I manage to spot. I a lot of kings last year. Most were too bug ridden already to use. Never the less, I did get to dry a few. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave W Posted July 7, 2014 Author Report Share Posted July 7, 2014 I know about the suspected poisoning by B. huronensis, and that Leccinums were mentioned in this case. But there have also been some reports from western NA about L. insigne. Nonetheless, whenever I'm in the Rocky Mountains, I eat plenty of L. insigne at the campsite... never a problem for me or my wife. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Feral Boy Posted July 7, 2014 Report Share Posted July 7, 2014 Anythng new is a potential sickener, if your body/immune system doesn't care for it -- take a SMALL taste of any mushrooms you haven't had before. I feel sorry for anyone who finds out that they have a sensitivity to morels! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave W Posted July 8, 2014 Author Report Share Posted July 8, 2014 I have met a few people who are sensitive to morels. In each case --someone I knew personally-- the sensitivity developed over time, possibly as a result of eating lots on morels. So I try to space out my morel meals. Even if I make a nice haul in May, I dehydrate most of what I find for future use. One summer I developed a sensitivity to Lactarius volemus and L. hygrophoroides. These are very good edibles, often abundant throughout the summer. A Russian friend of mine said that I should wait a few years and them try them again. This worked out for me... although I no longer eat these types in the same quantities that I did that one summer. More boletes... Found this past weekend. Xanthoconium affine and Xanthoconium purpureum These types are okay edibles... if you get them before the insects do, which often seems like an impossibility. Non-staining mild-tasting whitish flesh. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Smalldridge Posted July 8, 2014 Report Share Posted July 8, 2014 Excellent post Dave! I wish we had kings in N.C. Hopefully I will get a chance to post some more bolete photos for you to help me identify. By the way, what is the season for kings in your area? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave W Posted July 9, 2014 Author Report Share Posted July 9, 2014 Weather dependent, we have a split season for Kings. A good flush may occur in late June to early July, and another in late September to early October. Smaller fruitings may occur during the time in between. Also, we have several types of B. edulis... a presumably native version that occurs mainly in hemlock or White Pine forest, another fairly rare presumably native version that occurs under old-growth oak, and perhaps several imported strains that occur under planted conifers, mainly spruce. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave W Posted July 29, 2014 Author Report Share Posted July 29, 2014 Well, this season seems to have featured a resurgence between the "split" in the King Bolete season. I was quite surprised to collect nearly 2 pounds of primo edulis last week. Mid-summer is an unusual timing for this. I think a cool spell of weather brought this on. Suillus spraguei always occurs with White Pine. In most guides it's called Suillus pictus. Known as the Painted Bolete. A good edible when young. Specimens with the whitish partial veil still intact are best. Older expanded ones have a flabby texture. Gyroporus castaneus occurs with a variety of cap colors, and along with a variety of tree species. The stalk has a chambered interior which may become completely hollow in age. Stalk breaks/snaps like a piece of chalk. Boleteus hortonii has a deeply wrinkled cap surface. A few other boletes mimic this trait... B. longicurvipes, Leccinum rugosiceps. I have one local spot where this type occurs... a sunny slope of mainly oak, hickory, and ash. The wacky-staining Cyanoboletus pulverulentus (Boletus pulverulentus) occurs in my yard, between some apple trees and an old shagbark hickory. Another wacky stainer, Tylopilus sordidus. Same area of my property every year. Finally, the beautiful Tylopilus rubrobrunneus. Large specimens occur in the same area of my property every summer. Extremely bitter! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Smalldridge Posted July 29, 2014 Report Share Posted July 29, 2014 Great post Dave W. Thanks for the info. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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