The name Boletus edulis gets applied very generally to the choice edible species of Boletus that do not stain, have white-yellow pores, and have a reticulum on the upper part of the stipe. I generally use the term ‘porcini’ as a common name for all of these species. As I understand it the actual type for B. edulis comes from Europe and is assoicated with hardwoods.

In California B. edulis is most commonly applied to the porcini that grow in pine forests along the coast. It is also sometimes applied to the porcini that grow under pine in the Sierra. It is pretty clear that the Sierran porcini that fruit in the fall are distinct from those that fruit in the sping. It is not clear if the fall fruiting Sierran porcini are distinct from the fall fruting coastal porcini. In my own usage, I use the name B. edulis for both the fall Sierran porcini and the coastal porcini. For the sping Sierran porcini, I use the name B. “rexvernus”. Some people use the name B. pinophilus for this porcini and I have also heard the name B. pinicola used for them. B. pinophilus is a European species associated with pine. According to the Index Fungorum, B. pinicola is a deprecated synonym for B. pinophilus.