Photo by Prof. Atkinson.
Figure 294.—Boletus felleus. Natural size.
Felleus is from fel, gall, bitter. The pileus is convex, nearly plane, at first rather firm in substance, then becoming soft and cushion-like, smooth, without polish, varying in color from pale ochre to yellowish or reddish-brown or chestnut, flesh white, changing to flesh-color when bruised, taste exceedingly bitter, cap three to eight inches in diameter.
The tube-surface is white at first, becoming dull pinkish with age or upon being cut or broken; rounded upward as it reaches the stem, attached to the stem, mouths angular.
The stem is variable, tapering upward, rather stout, quite as smooth as the cap and a shade paler in color, toward the apex covered with a net-work which extends to the base, often bulbous.
The flesh is not poisonous but intensely bitter. No amount of cooking will destroy its bitterness. I gave it a thorough trial, but it was as bitter after cooking as before. It is a common Boletus about Salem, Ohio. I have seen plants there eight to ten inches in diameter and very heavy. They grow in woods and wood margins, usually about decaying stumps and logs, sometimes in the open fields. July to September.
Boletus versipellis. Fr.
The Orange-Cap Boletus. Edible.
