Plate 62, Figure 174.—Boletus luteus. Cap drab to hair-brown with streaks of the latter, viscid when moist, tubes tawny olive to walnut-brown, stem black dotted both above and below the broad, free annulus (natural size). Copyright.
An examination of the figures of the European plant shows that the veil often slips off from the lower portion of the stem in B. luteus, especially in the figures given by Krombholtz, T. 33. In some of these figures the veil forms a broad, free collar, and the stem is then dotted both above and below, as is well shown in the figures. In other figures where the lower part of the veil remains as a sheath over the lower part of the stem, the dots are hidden. I have three specimens of the B. luteus of Europe from Dr. Bresadola, collected at Trento, Austria-Hungary: one of them has the veil sheathing the lower part of the stem, and the stem only shows the dots above the annulus; a second specimen has the annulus in the form of a collapsed ring near the upper end of the stem, and the stem dotted both above and below the annulus; in the third specimen the annulus is in the form of a broad, free collar, and the stem dotted both above and below. The plants shown in Fig. [174] (No. 4124, C. U. herbarium) were collected at Blowing Rock, N. C., during September, 1899. They were found in open woods under Kalmia where the sun had an opportunity to dry out the annulus before it became collapsed or agglutinated against the stem, and the broad, free collar was formed. My notes on these specimens read as follows: "The pileus is convex, then expanded, rather thick at the center, the margin thin, sometimes sterile, incurved. In color it runs from ecru drab to hair-brown with streaks of the latter, and it is very viscid when moist. When dried the surface of the pileus is shining. The tubes are plane or concave, adnate, tawny-olive to walnut-brown. The tubes are small, angular, somewhat as in B. granulatus, but smaller, and they are granulated with reddish or brownish dots. The spores are walnut brown, oblong to elliptical, 8–10 × 2–3 µ. The stem is cylindrical, even, olive yellow above, and black dotted both above and below the annulus."
Figure 175.—Boletinus pictus. Cap reddish, tinged with yellowish between the scales, stem same color, tubes yellow, often changing to reddish brown where bruised (natural size). Copyright.
Boletinus pictus Pk.—This very beautiful plant is quite common in damp pine woods. It is easily recognized by the reddish cottony layer of mycelium threads which cover the entire plant when young, and form a veil which covers the gills at this time. As the plant expands the reddish outer layer is torn into scales of the same color, showing the yellowish, or pinkish, flesh beneath, and the flesh often changes to pink or reddish where wounded. The tubes are first pale yellow, but become darker in age, often changing to pinkish, with a brown tinge where bruised. The stem is solid, and is thus different from a closely related species, B. cavipes Kalchb. The stem is covered with a coat like that on the pileus and is similarly colored, though often paler. The spores are ochraceous, 15–18 × 6–8 µ. The plants are 5–8 cm. high, the caps 5–8 cm. broad, and the stems 6–12 mm. in thickness.
Figure [175] is from plants collected in the Blue Ridge mountains, Blowing Rock, N. C., September, 1899.
Boletinus porosus (Berk.) Pk.—This very interesting species is widely distributed in the Eastern United States. It resembles a Polyporus, though it is very soft like a Boletus, but quite tenacious. The plants are dull reddish-brown, viscid when moist, and shining. The cap is more or less irregular and the stem eccentric, the cap being sometimes more or less lobed. The plants are 4–6 cm. high, the cap 5–12 cm. broad, and the short stem 8–12 mm. in thickness. It occurs in damp ground in woods.
The pileus is fleshy, thick at the middle, and thin at the margin. The tubes are arranged in prominently radiating rows, the partitions often running radiately in the form of lamellæ, certain ones of them being more prominent than others as shown in Fig. [176]. These branch and are connected by cross partitions of less prominence. This character of the hymenium led Berkeley to place the plant in the genus Paxillus, with which it does not seem to be so closely related as with the genus Boletus. The stratum of tubes, though very soft, is very tenacious, and does not separate from the flesh of the pileus, thus resembling certain species of Polyporus. Figure [176] is from plants collected at Ithaca.