We have been picking mushrooms for a long time. Back in the days of Ancient Russia, in the summer and autumn season, entire families went to the forest to prepare these gifts for the whole winter. Mushrooms, mushrooms, chanterelles and, of course, porcini mushrooms, which are very often mentioned in Russian proverbs, sayings, fairy tales.
Cep, whose varieties depend on where it grows, is eaten in any form: fried, stewed, boiled. It can be dried, pickled, canned. At the same time, most of the useful properties are preserved. For example, mushroom broth is much more useful than meat, and dried porcini mushrooms are twice as high as chicken eggs. The substances found in the porcini mushroom have tonic and antitumor properties. Its extract was once used to treat frostbite.
Ceps grow on almost any continent, with the exception of Australia and Antarctica. They grow throughout the summer until late autumn, but not constantly, but in waves that depend on local and weather conditions. The first wave usually occurs in late June and early July. The most fruitful falls in the second half of August and the beginning of September. The third wave depends on unpredictable autumn weather and may not even come. Cep, whose varieties are diverse, does not grow very fast. The time that passes from the development of the embryo to the mature fungus is on average about a week. Moreover, they grow, as a rule, in families. Therefore, having found this handsome man in the forest, you should carefully look around: for sure, more than one will be found somewhere nearby.
They prefer to settle in birch or mixed forests. In a white mushroom, the color of the hat can be very different: brownish, light brown, sand. With excess moisture, it may be a little mucous. The leg is thick, ovoid, elongates somewhat with age, remaining thickened below. The flesh is white, but on the cut it may turn slightly blue. After drying, the bluish tint disappears, and the mushroom again turns white.
The famous Soviet scientist B.P. Vasilkov, who studied mushrooms and is the author of many scientific works, described 18 species of whites, depending on the season, climate and other external conditions. It is generally accepted that the white fungus, the varieties of which can have different forms, belongs to one species - Boletus edulis. However, some scientists who conducted similar studies believe that 4 of them are independent species.
Varieties of ceps
In our forests, the following subspecies are most often found:
- Dark bronze. It has a wrinkled dark hat of various shades (brown, tobacco, dark brown, with a greenish tint). He prefers to settle in a warm climate: in beech, hornbeam or oak forests of the southern or western regions.
- Reticulate. The hat is usually light shades (straw-buffy, cream) with small cracks and scales in the center. The tubular layer is yellow. The leg is short, cylindrical in shape, a light mesh is clearly visible on it. Most often found in mountain oak or hornbeam forests.
- Oak (oak forest). This mushroom with a light brownish hat is sometimes considered as a separate species.
- Birch. The top is brown in color, but it is also light (almost white). The leg is dense, club-shaped, with a mesh pattern. The tubular surface is yellowish.
- Spruce. The hat is brown, with a slightly sharp shape. Tubular surface in yellow hues. The dense white flesh of this mushroom, which has a pleasant smell, does not change color when cut.
- Pine. It has a large brown hat (purple tint is possible) and brownish-red flesh.
Caution! Poison!
Cep, whose varieties are well known to experienced mushroom pickers, still has a dangerous double. This is a bile fungus (bitter or bitter).
In appearance, these are ordinary porcini mushrooms. Photos of poisonous bile and edible white practically do not differ. But there is still a difference:
- the tubular layer of the bile fungus has a slightly pinkish tint;
- gall fungus usually grows at the base of trees or on stumps;
- the leg of the mustard is covered with a darker mesh pattern;
- he has pores;
- it has a sharp bitter taste, which is easy to feel by lightly touching its tongue.
Despite the fact that this mushroom is poisonous, it contains medicinal substances. From ancient times, mustard has been used in folk medicine as a choleretic agent, which is why it got its name.
