Bitter beech bolete Caloboletus calopus
poisonous
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It also tastes strongly bitter, and its spore print is olive brown. In the rooting bolete, by contrast, the stem is hardly red, and it grows on lime under deciduous trees.
View on the mapIdentification in 5 steps
The rooting bolete is a large, pale bolete with a thick, rooting stem and a bitter taste. It is inedible and can be mistaken for edible relatives.
SeasonJuly to October
Spore printolive brown
FamilyBoletaceae
- Cap. The cap is 8 to 20 cm wide, matt cream white to pale ochre, often blotchy and dry and felty.
- Underside. The tubes are yellow and run down the stem; the pores do not change colour under pressure, or only slightly.
- Stem, ring and volva. The stem is thick, bulbous to rooting, white with a fine net; there is no ring and no volva.
- Smell and taste. It tastes extremely bitter at once; spit out the sample immediately.
- Flesh and colour change. The flesh is white and does not change colour, or only slightly.
Lookalikes
It is extremely bitter and inedible and resembles edible boletes only superficially.
Lurid bolete Suillellus luridus
edible with restrictions
It has red pores and tastes mild.
View on the mapCep Boletus edulis
edible
It has white to olive-green tubes and flesh that does not turn blue.
View on the mapSide by side
| Rooting bolete | Bitter beech bolete | Lurid bolete | Cep | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cap | 8 to 20 cm wide, matt cream white to pale ochre | 5 to 15 cm, grey-white to pale olive brown, felty | 6 to 15 cm, olive brown to leather brown | 5 to 25 cm, light to dark brown |
| Underside | yellow tubes running down the stem, pores hardly change | tubes and pores yellow, turn blue under pressure | pores orange to red, tubes yellow to olive green | tubes white when young, later yellowish to olive green |
| Stem | thick, bulbous to rooting | yellow above, carmine red below, with net | yellow to orange red, reddish net | thick, bulging to club-shaped, white net |
| Flesh | white, does not change colour, or only slightly | pale yellow, turns blue when cut | yellow, turns strongly blue, stem base wine red | firm, white, does not change colour |
| Edibility | Inedible | poisonous | edible with restrictions | edible |
Habitat & Season
Calcareous deciduous woods and avenues. From the lowlands to the hills and mountains.
Host trees
Oak, beech, lime, rarely conifers.
Season
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
possible good main season
Under oaks and other deciduous trees.
Mushroom regions with a daily forecast
There are no records per region for this species yet. The country pages lead to all regions with a daily forecast.
Safety
Never eat a mushroom you have not identified with certainty. Not an edible mushroom: do not collect it for the kitchen.
Advice for your country
Ireland
Poison centre:
National Poisons Information Centre (public line)(01) 809 2166
Emergency: 112 · 999
Germany
Poison centre:
Emergency: 112
Mushroom advice: DGfM: find a mushroom expert. Certified mushroom experts of the German Mycological Society (DGfM).
Collecting rules: Mushrooms that are not specially protected may be collected in small quantities for personal use unless a protected area or ban applies. Certain specially protected edible species (e.g. cep, chanterelle, birch bolete) may be collected in small quantities for personal use.
Austria
Poison centre:
Vergiftungsinformationszentrale (VIZ)01 406 43 43
Emergency: 112 · 144
Mushroom advice: Austrian Mycological Society (ÖMG): mushroom advice. Mushroom advice by the Austrian Mycological Society or regional services such as municipal market offices.
Collecting rules: At most 2 kg of mushrooms per person per day unless the forest owner has prohibited collecting; organised collecting events are prohibited. Additional state rules apply (collecting hours, closed seasons), e.g. Carinthia, Tyrol, Vorarlberg, Salzburg.
Why it is not edible
Extremely bitter, inedible.
Do not taste it to test for bitterness: young specimens look similar to edible boletes.
Frequently asked questions
Is the rooting bolete edible?
No, the rooting bolete is not edible. It is extremely bitter and resembles edible boletes only superficially.
When and where does the rooting bolete grow?
The rooting bolete grows from July to October in calcareous deciduous woods and avenues, mostly under oak, beech or lime, rarely under conifers.
Which look-alikes can the rooting bolete be mistaken for?
It can be mistaken for the bitter beech bolete, the lurid bolete and the cep. The bitter beech bolete also tastes strongly bitter and has an olive-brown spore print, but in the rooting bolete the stem is hardly red. The lurid bolete has red pores and tastes mild. The cep has white to olive-green tubes and flesh that does not turn blue.
How do you recognise the rooting bolete?
The spore print is olive brown. The cap is 8 to 20 cm wide, matt cream white to pale ochre, often blotchy and dry and felty.
Related species
- Bitter beech bolete Caloboletus calopus
- Bitter bolete Tylopilus felleus
- Cep Boletus edulis
- Bay bolete Imleria badia
- Birch bolete Leccinum scabrum
- Devil's bolete Rubroboletus satanas
Sources
Photo credits
- Photo: Holger Krisp · CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Bitter beech bolete: Photo: H. Krisp · CC BY 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Lurid bolete: Photo: archenzo · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Cep: Photo: Jörg Hempel · CC BY-SA 3.0 de · Wikimedia Commons
No substitute for having your finds checked in person. No guarantee of accuracy. Updated: 17.10.2026.