Truffles, mushrooms and mycorrhizas
© Truffles and Mushrooms (Consulting) Ltd
Cultivation of edible mycorrhizal mushrooms (EMM) in New Zealand
Edible Forest Fungi New Zealand Limited
Edible Forest Fungi New Zealand Limited
Progress in the cultivation of edible mycorrhizal mushrooms has been pedestrian since the Périgord black truffle was first cultivated in the first half of the 19th Century. However, over the past 30 years scientists have begun to unlock the secrets to growing some of the other 1000 plus mycorrhizal mushrooms and the wonderful array of flavours they have to offer. Some of these mushrooms have either accidentally found their way into the Southern Hemisphere or have been deliberately introduced.
Edible Forest Fungi New Zealand Ltd was established to investigate producing these edible mycorrhizal mushrooms either in specialised plantations or as secondary crops in plantation forests. The harvest and sale of truffles or mushrooms during the life of a forest will offset the cost of establishing the plantation and, under some circumstances, the income from the sale of the truffles and mushrooms may exceed the value of the timber. Even modest quantities of these mushrooms may generate sufficient income for a grower to delay felling a plantation until timber prices are optimal.
Each of the mycorrhizal mushrooms along with their host trees require a unique set of conditions to grow and fruit. The saffron milk cap only grows on acidic soils such as those suited to radiata pine (Pinus radiata). In New Zealand it has fruited from just north of Dunedin to Nelson in the South Island and as far north as Gisborne and the Waikato in the North Island. Because it grows widely in Scotland we are confident it will also grow in Southland. Another mushroom in great demand is porcini (Boletus edulis) which grows both on pines and broadleaf trees. Below are some links to some of Edible Forest Fungi New Zealand Limited’s (EFFNZ) publications.
Edible Forest Fungi New Zealand Ltd was established to investigate producing these edible mycorrhizal mushrooms either in specialised plantations or as secondary crops in plantation forests. The harvest and sale of truffles or mushrooms during the life of a forest will offset the cost of establishing the plantation and, under some circumstances, the income from the sale of the truffles and mushrooms may exceed the value of the timber. Even modest quantities of these mushrooms may generate sufficient income for a grower to delay felling a plantation until timber prices are optimal.
Each of the mycorrhizal mushrooms along with their host trees require a unique set of conditions to grow and fruit. The saffron milk cap only grows on acidic soils such as those suited to radiata pine (Pinus radiata). In New Zealand it has fruited from just north of Dunedin to Nelson in the South Island and as far north as Gisborne and the Waikato in the North Island. Because it grows widely in Scotland we are confident it will also grow in Southland. Another mushroom in great demand is porcini (Boletus edulis) which grows both on pines and broadleaf trees. Below are some links to some of Edible Forest Fungi New Zealand Limited’s (EFFNZ) publications.
De Licio® (Edible Forest Fungi New Zealand Ltd - www.effnz.co.nz) downloads
