Pine bolete (Boletus pinophilus) grows in the wild in highland coniferous forests. It loves company of pine trees the most. It is very seldom found in mixed forests. That is why it is not so popular in Poland as other Boletus species. You may confuse it with porcini at the first site, but the excellent, tender taste of the pine bolete is simply unique. This mushroom will grow well sown for your own use. As soon as it appears it will enchant you with the aroma - in sauces, soups, stews, dried or marinated.

Fruit bodies of the pine boletus emerge in autumn. They are rather squatly shaped. They have a semi-circular, arched cap with a wrinkled surface and a brown-red, matt skin. The pores are small, round, white-yellow and the tubes long and thin. Pine ceps, as they are also called, have a thick, club-shaped stem covered with a dark red netting. The flesh of this mushroom is white, compact, yet soft and tender.

In order to sow mycelium around the tree - preferably a pine - you need to dig three holes 15 cm deep and 30 cm wide. They should be spread in spacings equal ten times the diameter of the tree. Fill them to the half with the soil, place the mycelium there (1/3 of package per hole) and cover with soil. Water the space around every hole with a bucket of water. You may add sugar to it, as it helps the mycelium grow. After that cover the site with moss, needles and leaves.

The mushrooms may start to grow one or two years after the sow. The mycelium stays active for 3 - 4 years.

Growing instructions and the sow-by date have been printed on every mycelium package sold in our garden store.