There are wonderful inhabitants of the forests, created by nature and bringing a lot of joy to lovers of "silent hunting". These are mushrooms. And one of the most common and high-quality are boletus.
The most correct scientific name of this mushroom is red aspen. Although he has many local folk names, the most famous of which is the redhead, or red mushroom. This name is due to its main feature - a peculiar coloring of the hat. By the way, many people do not know the boletus, although this fungus has certain signs that do not allow it to be confused with numerous other representatives of the plant kingdom.
From this article you can find out what the named mushroom with a red cap is, what signs and features it has, where and at what time it grows.
Some interesting facts about mushrooms
Curious facts about mushrooms are based on human knowledge of only a tenth of the properties of these amazing forest inhabitants:
- On average, each mushroom is approximately 90% water.
- There are flying varieties. These are biological microscopic species, which include, for example, mold, which appears in such an easy way even on products.
- Mycelium grows at a speed of at least 10 centimeters in just 1 year.
- Only one specimen of the pale grebe contains enough poison to poison four people.
- There is evidence that mushrooms grow well in the territory of the former Chernobyl nuclear power plant, despite the high level of radiation.
And now let's take a closer look at one of the interesting edible specimens. The boletus, the photo and description of which you can see in our article, is not in vain considered one of the most delicious mushrooms.
Time and place of growth
The first boletus mushrooms appear already in June. Therefore, in some places they are traditionally called "spikelets" (since rye begins to ear during this period). Undoubtedly, the first porcini mushrooms and boletus can rightfully be attributed to them.
Most often this mushroom is found with the name redhead boletus.
It grows mainly in mixed forests, and the mycelium (mycorrhiza) is still mostly associated with aspen, so it is often found among them or nearby.
They can also often be found in young forests, in deciduous forests (especially birch) and in aspen forests. In a dry summer, the boletus can also grow in a more mature aspen forest. It is found (including the red mushroom) even in coniferous forests (for example, in pine forests). You can find it on forest edges and in abandoned fields, overgrown with trees and shrubs. Moreover, this mushroom usually grows in groups.
In the world, the fungus is distributed throughout the Northern Hemisphere (temperate zone). Boletus grows a lot in North America, Central Europe, and they are less common in the mountains of Southern Europe.
Boletus: photo and description
The taste of the mushroom does not depend on the color of the boletus. It is very pleasant in any form and rightfully takes 2nd place after the most famous white mushroom in terms of its taste.
The boletus belongs to the genus Obabok, which is part of the Boletaceae family. All of them have a leg that seems to be covered with darkish scales, and this is very noticeable. Well-known boletus trees also have a similar property of legs.
The color of the cap is one of the most important, but by no means the only sign by which this mushroom differs from others. In addition, the redhead is quite variable in its color. It does not always have a red color (red mushroom). Most often found in the forests are boletus with brown hats, moreover, they resemble porcini mushrooms. There are in nature both almost white and orange boletus. The former are very rare and therefore listed in the Red Book of Russia.
Red mushroom
Often in the people it is called an obabk, an aspen or a chelysh. It should be noted that all types of boletus are edible.and very similar and delicious. They are used in cooking, frying, pickling and soups.
The cap of red boletus in size can reach 30 centimeters in diameter. In shape, it is spherical in young mushrooms and pillow-shaped in more mature ones. The color of the latter varies from brick red to dark red.
Their tubular layer also changes depending on age: from white in young to gray-brown in mature mushrooms. The high leg of all thickens downwards. Mushroom pulp on the cut quickly turns blue and turns purple.
Distinctive features of the boletus
The mushroom immediately darkens on a cut or scrap: first it turns blue and then becomes almost black. For many novice mushroom pickers, this property is alarming and in vain. On the contrary, this is one of the main signs confirming that this is the same one - an edible mushroom with a red cap. And such a change in color occurs in connection with the process of oxidation in air of some substances that are present in the boletus.
There are, of course, more mushrooms that have the same properties characteristic of boletus. Therefore, a mushroom should be judged by several distinctive features.
Here are some characteristic of the boletus:
- red, reddish or brown cap color;
- tubular bottom layer of cap, usually light gray;
- leg with prominent dark "scales";
- blue and then blackening cut.
Young and oldmushrooms
The young red mushroom is very noticeable in the forest, but its peculiarity is that it is able to change its color depending on the vegetation prevailing in the forest, the age and type of the mushroom itself. More mature boletus have a gray-brown cap, which becomes less bright and more and more like a cap of boletus.
Young mushrooms are also peculiar in form. Their cap is neat, small and on a large fleshy leg looks like a thimble on a finger.
Both adults and young mushrooms, quite dense.
If a mushroom is suddenly found soft to the touch during picking, it is better not to take it into the basket. It is overripe and unfit for food.
The main time for the ripening of boletus is August, less often September and October.
Mushrooms with beautiful red-brown or orange caps look great in a basket filled to the top with various edible mushrooms. They are pleasant not only to eat, but also to collect.
