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Whatever the method of working and maintenance that will be adopted later, special attention must be given to the preparation of the soil for planting.
Planting can be done from October until the end of March, or even April if you irrigate. Before planting, it is essential to loosen the soil so that the mycorrhizal truffle plant can develop harmoniously and produce tuber melanosporum.
Preparation should ideally take place a few weeks before planting. planting, so as to be able to clean up the soil and rid it of herbaceous competition which could hinder the development of the truffle oak.
For good preparation of the plot, plowing is recommended. This can be done in several different ways, either over the entire plot, or only in strips 2 m wide, at the location of the rows of planting.
After ploughing, the ground will be harrowed so as to level it and have a perfectly soft ground.
Another technique consists of loosening only the planting hole that will receive the truffle plant. It can be done either with a tiller, or using a mini shovel and special tools if you have large surfaces, or by other means. It will be necessary to loosen on a surface of 1 m² and on a depth of 20 cm minimum. In these different ways, we will keep a very flexible soil and we will stimulate the formation of roots, therefore of mycelium conducive to the formation of truffles.
Maintenance
Grassy driving :
This type of driving is only suitable for land with very good aeration structures (sandy, presence of stones) with a very low clay content. For grassed management, the aim is to preserve existing plants, especially herbaceous ones, but also other associated plants that are very beneficial for truffle growing (lavender, thyme, etc.).
Even with this mode of management it is essential to work the perimeter of the plant in order to maintain good aeration as well as good flexibility to allow the mycelium and the truffle to have an optimal development. This localized work can be done manually (grelinette, bigot...) or mechanically. To do this, we have developed a specific tool to be installed on a mini-excavator: The GRELIMECA®
It will be necessary to take care to carry out the interventions (mowing or crushing) only in dry periods to do not compact the soil.
Soil tillage driving :
This pipe is by far the most used, it has the advantage of limiting the evaporation of water, which will prevent capillary rise and locate the roots. The mycelium will therefore be a little deeper in the ground and thus prevent the truffles from freezing during the winter.
After plowing the plot and planting, for the first four years, the harrow will be harrowed superficially (10 cm maximum by always respecting the same depths from year to year).
This will promote aeration around the young truffle plant and limit herbaceous competition.</strong > From the fifth year, we will pass only once a year, in the spring, so as not to disturb the fruiting of the truffle in April.
Whatever the method used during planting, the young truffle plants will undergo a fairly critical phase, which is called root recovery. This delicate phase requires special attention.
Indeed, the success of the plantation will directly depend on the care given to the young truffle plants. This care must be provided for a minimum period of two to three years.
During the first years, watering the plant and individual hoeing of at least 1 m2 is imperative in order to to allow hydration and aeration of the soil. On the one hand to promote the growth and the recovery of the tree, on the other hand to allow it to maintain a good mycorrhization.
It will be necessary to take care to always keep a good sun exposure, especially in dense plantings. Maintaining an open environment is fundamental. To maintain this openness, size remains the main means. From the second year we will practice pruning which can be done in different ways depending on the mode of cultivation envisaged.