Where to Plant a Truffle Grove?
Back in 2007, we shot a television field segment in North Carolina with Franklin Garland, of Garland Truffles, along with his wife, Betty, pioneered truffle growing in the Western Hemisphere and produced the first commercially grown truffles in the United States in 1992. Truffles, a fungus that grow beneath the ground, are decadently delicious and probably one of the most exotic and costly delicacies, prized by chefs all over the world. They are also quite fascinating and part of that fascination comes from how they're grown and gathered. Recently, I started to think that wouldn’t it be fun to harvest my very own truffles? I put a call through to Franklin, who happened to be visiting someone near my farm and he had the time to meet with me.
1 Here I am with Franklin Garland, who calls himself the 'truffle czar.' He came to the farm to educate us about his method of growing truffles.
2 Ryan McCallister, my gardener, took very detailed notes.
3 Ralph Robbins, my arborist, found the presentation fascinating, as he had gone truffle hunting last autumn while visiting Italy.
4 Truffles are a fungus that can only survive by attaching itself in a mutually beneficial way to certain types of tree roots in what is called a symbiotic relationship.
5 The resulting combination of fungus, roots and other select organisms form a structure called mycorrhiza.
6 Franklin developed the method of inoculating filbert and oak trees with the Black Perigord Truffle. Inoculated trees can be purchased from him. Trees already planted in the ground cannot be inoculated.
7 We learned about the reproductive cycle of the truffle.
8 This is a photo of some of Franklin's very impressive Black Diamond truffles along with an almond, filbert, and a walnut for scale.
9 In addition to an inoculated tree, truffle development needs well defined seasons with dormancy of at least 90 days.
10 You also need well-drained, well structured porous soil. Preferred is clay based with sandy loam as second choice.
11 You should have high density planting for high density roots. Weeding of the grove is important, as well as tilling for aeration.
12 This is an example of high density planting.
13 For the truffles to grow, the pH levels in the grove need to be high, about 7.6, and should always be maintained with lime. No fertilizer is needed.
14 Franklin uses black plastic as a mulch covering to keep weeds at bay and to maintain soil moisture.
15 He also explained that once the grove has been planted and if all goes according to plan, one must wait a minimum of 5 years before a single truffle can be harvested.
16 Franklin and his wife, Betty, and son, Gavan, own and harvest from several orchards in North Carolina and Virginia.
17 After the 5 year wait, truffles are found by specially trained dogs who sniff them out. Franklin's dog is a lemon beagle named Peedee.
18 Pigs have been used to hunt truffles, but they often eat the treasure. Dogs are more interested in pleasing their master and give up the truffle easily with a little treat as a reward.
19 Franklin was very surprised when Peedee came back with this giant truffle.
20 This is the size of the average truffle.
21 We joked about training the French bulldogs to hunt truffles.
22 A cross-section of a black truffle reveals white fungus veins throughout. The black represents the spores.
23 Another highly sought after type of truffle is the burgundy truffle, which grows throughout Europe.
24 And, of course, the fabulous Italian White Alba truffle - I adore shaved white truffle over homemade pasta! It's flavor is sublime. The white truffle has never been successfully cultivated and is priced up to $2,000/pound!
25 After the presentation, we took a drive around the farm to look for possible locations for a truffle grove.
26 This hayfield on a slope looked promising.
27 Franklin also liked this bright sunny area. I have yet to decide where.
Martha Pins
Martha Tweets
Wow that would be wonderful to harvest your own truffles, I love truffles! Good luck Martha
Posted by: Rowaida Flayhan | April 25th, 2012 at 1:50 am
Oh Martha...5 years from now you will be harvesting your own truffles!! The excitement will be at a feverish pitch. The process is so very interesting and scientific. Who knew?
Posted by: Sherey | April 25th, 2012 at 2:13 am
the pic with martha giving a scowling look at the dog is priceless. I LOVE THE TOWEL he is laying on. so normal.
Posted by: chris | April 25th, 2012 at 7:57 am
Amazing !
Posted by: ann | April 25th, 2012 at 8:22 am
I love the informal pics of everyone hanging out in the kitchen. I would have guessed Martha Stewart would have a home theatre for this kind of thing!
Thanks for sharing.
Posted by: Karen | April 25th, 2012 at 8:41 am
I can't say I've had the pleasure of tasting truffle, I'm very intriqued now! I hope you pck the perfect spot for your truffle grove Martha!
Posted by: Ciindy F | April 25th, 2012 at 9:01 am
I met Franklin and Betty too (first in TX and then at their home in NC) as we were also contemplating putting in an orchard for the black perigord truffle. Even though a period of dormancy is required, I would have thought your area is too cold.
Anyways, good luck - will be interesting to hear how it goes.
Posted by: Joanne in Virginia | April 25th, 2012 at 9:39 am
Hi Martha, What a fascinating blog post today! I have never seen how you could plant a truffle grove on your Bedford farm! Seeing that 2007 TV field segment of Franklin and Betty Garland pioneering truffle growing in North Carolina in 1992 was fabulous and their website is spectacular! How nice that Franklin came to your farm to find a place for you to try growing some truffle! I love it when you try new things and share the great information with us-Fantastic! Can't wait to see the next episode of this great truffle planting process! These photos and your comments are awesome! Thanks so much for sharing this fabulous blog! Sure hope you have another great day! Also hope sweet Francesca is doing better! The Daily Wag says she has an ulcer on her cornea from a scratch while trying to catch a squirrel up a tree and a return of Lyme. My prayers are with her so she will get better ASAP! Jan
Posted by: Jan Erickson | April 25th, 2012 at 9:55 am
Martha,
I don't know much about truffles. Thanks for sharing this blog.
Posted by: KLBrown | April 25th, 2012 at 9:58 am
Hi Martha,
I have never tasted a truffle but have thought about getting some truffle oil just to get an idea of what the fuss was all about. Some bottles are more affordable than others but then I’m sure the taste would be varied also. Thanks for today’s lesson on harvesting truffles which I found quite interesting. I wish you luck with your grove once you decide where it will be. Trish
Posted by: Trish | April 25th, 2012 at 10:17 am
You NEVER fail to amaze me, Martha! I have just bought your book, "Martha Entertains", & have been mesmerized by its beauty and content. Thank you for constantly inspiring me. All of your good works are certainly appreciated!
Posted by: Jonathan Brown | April 25th, 2012 at 12:02 pm
This has been very educational for me. I had no idea you could havest truffles. What a great idea and I would imagine a great business adventure as well. Have you also thought of harvesting mushrooms as well. I remember a post you did on that. I have never had a truffle but this will be on my bucket list now. Thanks Martha. I am every loving your farm!
Posted by: Frances | April 25th, 2012 at 12:44 pm
Thank you for the educational and entertaining blog post today. Can't wait for your PBS show!
Michael.
Posted by: Michael | April 25th, 2012 at 1:51 pm
Martha, you are always thinking ahead. Kudos to you. I just watched a few short clips of you from Maker and enjoyed them thoroughly. Reminds me of the old show (which is greatly missed). Continued good luck in the truffle venue.
Posted by: mona c | April 25th, 2012 at 7:14 pm
I love that there are dishes in the sink!
Posted by: Beth | April 26th, 2012 at 9:34 am
hi Martha
i was thinking it wold be great if the MARTHA BAKES episodes were made available on dvd....any chance of that happening
Posted by: Carmine LaMendola | April 27th, 2012 at 7:48 am
Dear Martha:
I was delighted to hear you were coming back to
regular TV (PBS) I love your program and saw all shows while at NBC. I was not able to follow you at Hallmark because I don't have cable.
Can't wait until fall to see you again!
Thank you Martha, your fan
diana
Posted by: diana escobar | April 28th, 2012 at 6:58 am
Dear Martha, please come to England and make a show. Regards
Cleopatra Russell
Posted by: cleopatra russell | April 28th, 2012 at 3:55 pm
the garlands are really nice people as i recall. does franklin think you'll be successful so far north?
Posted by: Ann M. | April 28th, 2012 at 9:50 pm