The white truffle, the most expensive fungi in the world, is now in season. This rare truffle that is only available for these few months of the year are almost exclusively from one part of Italy. They fetch staggering prices of thousands of pounds per kilo, and are the ultimate culinary luxury. One of the reasons that these truffles are so expensive is that wild harvests continue to decline.

Our first annual grower’s seminar was held on the 18th of this November. It was a resounding success and we would like to thank everybody who came. The day started with a presentation by Dr. Paul Thomas and was then filled with plenty of Q and A time. We love meeting fellow truffle enthusiasts and enjoyed the day so much that we are planning to hold two seminars every year from now on. The next one is scheduled for March 2012, if you would like to attend pleaseemailshop@plantationsystems.com

If you are interested in creating a truffle plantation please contact us at: invest@plantationsystems.com or Tel: 01422 844095. We will send you a free information pack and provide a free soil test to assess the suitability of the potential site. Now is the perfect time of year to get the ball rolling, as the prime time for truffle tree planting is just around the corner and MSL have trees in stock for planting this season.

The Woodland Trust is calling on the public to help them track the early signs of autumn to see if it is affected by the unusual seasonal events that have taken place so far in 2011. With spring 2011 possibly being the earliest on record, one school of thought suggests that an early spring will be followed by an early autumn since leaves may have a “shelf-life”. Another believes that trees will remain growing as long as temperatures remain high and water is available.