Boletus luridus — a mushroom of the genus Boletus (Latin: Boletus) in the family Boletaceae. Russian synonyms: common boletus, podboletus, sinak, dirty-brown boletus.
The cap of a mature mushroom is 5-20 cm in diameter, hemispherical or convex, rarely flattens. The cap skin is olive-brown, with very variable color. It is velvety in young mushrooms and sticky in wet weather. The cap turns dark when touched.
The flesh is yellowish, firm, red or reddish at the base of the stem, turns blue, then brown, odorless, not sharp in taste.
The tubes are 2.5-3.5 cm long, free, yellow, later greenish or olive; pores are round, very small, reddish, turn blue when pressed. Between the cap flesh and hymenophore, there is a red pigment layer visible on cross-section.
The stem is 6-15 cm tall and 3-6 cm thick, club-shaped, with a bulbous thickening, yellow-orange in color, reddish-brown at the base, with a convex, reddish-brown reticulate pattern with elongated loops.
The cap color varies greatly, from light brownish-yellow to dark brown, sometimes with reddish-yellow edges. The cap darkens with age. There may be red spots in the middle of the stem and greenish areas at the base.
Forms mycorrhiza with oak, beech, rarely with birch and other tree species, grows on calcareous soils, mainly in sunny, well-heated locations, found in deciduous and mixed forests. A thermophilic mushroom, but occasionally found as far north as St. Petersburg. Widespread in Europe and the Caucasus, rare in Western Siberia and southern Far East. Found isolated in Eastern Siberia (Krasnoyarsk Krai), where it grows together with birch.
Season: July — September, most prolific in August, may appear in May — June.
Edible mushroom of good quality. Most often used pickled (with addition of citric acid, the blue flesh of boletus turns light again), also suitable for drying. Requires thorough preliminary thermal treatment (boiling, water is then discarded).
Antibiotic Bolotol is extracted from this mushroom.
Cultivation of Boletus on a home plot: in a shaded area, on an area of 2.5-3 m2, dig down 30 cm, and fill with nutrient mix.
First layer: (spread on the bottom) fallen leaves, grass or wood bark (10 cm).
Second layer: forest compost or soil under trees (10 cm). Then evenly spread dried mycelium previously mixed with 1 liter of dry soil.
Third layer: plant residues, like in the first layer, but 3 cm thick.
Fourth layer: garden soil (3-5 cm). After sowing, water by drip method.
First mushrooms appear after 1.5-2 months, then every 1-1.5 weeks.
In indoor conditions, cultivate in the same way, but plant in containers. The mycelium lives up to 5 years. Can be cultivated any time of the year.
