Pecan Truffles; cultivating a new

commodity

T. Brenneman, M. E. Smith, G. Bonito,

and R. Vilgalys

What are truffles? (No, they are

not made of chocolate!)

• Below-ground reproductive structures formed

by about 200 species of ascomycete fungi to

produce and disperse spores (There are at least

1000 species of hypogeous fungi)

• Spores not discharged; odor attracts animals

(mice, voles, etc.) which eat the truffles and

disperse spores in droppings

Truffles (Tuberales)

• Gathered for food since far back into

antiquity; an anonymous author in 1600

B.C. refers to them “not as a mushroom but

as mysterious products of the earth”

• T. melanosporum (Perigord black truffle)

and T. magnatum (Italian white truffle) are

among the most sought after culinary

delicacies in the world

The Most Expensive Foods

You Can Buy

(MSN - January, 2013)

“Available from September to December, white

truffles are a gourmet indulgence that'll cost you —

around $200 an ounce, which amounts to about 2

pieces. These special mushrooms, which can only be

located by trained pigs or dogs, are found in the

Piedmont region of Italy and are becoming

increasingly rare every year.”

Puffballs are not truffles!

Homogenous gleba

Sterile Base

Mycorrhizae (Gr. Mykes = Mushroom + rhiza = root)

• A symbiotic association between the hyphae

of certain fungi and the roots of plants.

• Truffles are ectomycorrhizae, forming a

mantle of growth over the root tips (vs

endomycorrhizae within the roots)

Ectomycorrhizae

• hyphae grow intercellularly with a mantle of growth over the root tips.

• Root hairs do not develop and the roots are often short and branched

• Widespread in nature on many woody plants such as oaks, beech, willow and pines

• Most are Basidiomycetes (usually in order Agaricales), but some are Ascomycetes

(ex. Truffles)

Mutual Benefits of Ectomycorrhizae

Plant benefits from;

1. improved nutrient uptake

2. roots protected from pathogens

3. plant growth hormones from fungus

Fungus obtains carbohydrates from plant

Pecan mycorrhizae

• Early researchers (Woodruff, 1933)

described 7 different ectomycorrhizae

• Nearly all small roots are mycorrhizal

• Cultivation and drought can destroy them

but they quickly reform

Pecan root with mycorrhizae

Mycorrhizae

Pecan Truffle (Tuber lyonii)

• Discovered in Austin,

Texas under a pecan tree

(Heimsch, 1958)

• Found in Georgia in 1987

at Sunnyland farms, and

since in many orchards.

• Same species reported on

other hosts, but taxonomy

is “in flux”!

Bonito, Brenneman & Vilgalys, 2011

Rank Abundance of

Ectomycorrhizal Taxa on Pecans (Bonito, Brenneman & Vilgalys, 2011)

Pecan Truffles are Edible, and

sell for up to $400/lb (Photo by Rebecca Fyffe)

Several Georgia Restaurants Feature

Pecan Truffles When Available

• Red mule grits custard with shaved pecan truffles and lobster

• Local squash and sage agnolotti with truffled leek crema, sweet leeks and shaved pecan truffles

• Robiolina with Georgia honey and honeycomb, toasted pecans and shaved pecan truffles

• Creamy rice with bacon, collards and pecan truffles

Demand is Great – Why is the

Current Supply so Limited?

1. Cultivating them is not easy

2. Truffles grow underground so they are

hard to find

Sometimes it is easy!

Sometimes it is hard!

Truffles are more fun (and safer)

to find than bombs !

Want purchase a truffle dog?

Mike Osteen

Wynfield Plantation

Albany, GA

910-280-0076

Truffle dogs increase the quantity

and quality of truffles found

Demand is Great – Why is the

Current Supply so Limited?

1. Cultivating them is not easy

2. Truffles grow underground so they are

hard to find

Field Inoculation of Old Trees

Inoculation at Planting

Tuber lyonii fruiting fall, 2012 (Trees inoculated January, 2001)

Scale-up for nursery production?

More Information

• www.pecantruffles.com serving as a clearinghouse for pecan truffle information

• North American Truffle Society at www.natruffling.org has excellent information on truffles in general

• Truffle dog in Georgia pecan orchard on Youtube

http://youtu.be/h514cjmJD84

Pecan truffles –

A fungus with a future!

Photos by Rebecca Fyffe