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Soil Characteristics for Tuber magnatum

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Book cover True Truffle (Tuber spp.) in the World

Part of the book series: Soil Biology ((SOILBIOL,volume 47))

Abstract

Tuber magnatum (the Italian white truffle) is closely related to the soil environment and can be found in well-drained soils without gravels, having a neutral to moderately alkaline pH, a high degree of base saturation and enough water all over the year. Further peculiar soil characteristics for its growth are the lack of water stagnation in the surface layers, a very soft consistency and more than 15 % of the soil volume occupied by interconnected macropores. This combination of characteristics is fulfilled only in floodplains and hillslopes where geomorphic processes rejuvenate soils, originating a disordered distribution of particles due to frequent depositions of alluvial materials or to accumulation of soil aggregates transported along slopes by mass movement. These geomorphic conditions are also essential for the soil water regime of truffle grounds and their capability to sustain dense tree canopy cover, thus originating the cool environment required by T. magnatum. Soil suitable for T. magnatum mainly belongs to Calcaric Fluvisols, Colluvic Calcaric Regosols and Fluvic Eutric Cambisols. However, limited changes in adjacent soils influenced by the same soil-forming processes drastically decrease the probability of finding T. magnatum ascomata.

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Acknowledgements

Many of the ideas presented here come from the suggestions of Luciano Lulli, whose knowledge in soil science was the solid base on which this chapter was written down. We also thank our fellow adventurers in the exploration of the soil environment of T. magnatum: Tiziano Panini, Lorenzo Gardin, Fabio Primavera and Aleksa Glišić.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Council for Agricultural research and Economics, Research Centre for the Soil-Plant System, Via Trieste 23, 34170, Gorizia, Italy

    Gilberto Bragato

  2. Institute for Multidisciplinary Research, University of Belgrade, Kneza Višeslava 1a, 11000, Beograd, Serbia

    Žaklina S. Marjanović

Authors
  1. Gilberto Bragato
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  2. Žaklina S. Marjanović
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Correspondence to Gilberto Bragato .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Agricultural Science, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy

    Alessandra Zambonelli

  2. Department of Life, Health and Environmental Sciences, University of L’Aquila , L’Aquila , Italy

    Mirco Iotti

  3. Interactions Arbres-Microorganismes Lab of Excellence ARBRE, INRA, Université de Lorraine, Champenoux, France

    Claude Murat

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Bragato, G., Marjanović, Ž.S. (2016). Soil Characteristics for Tuber magnatum . In: Zambonelli, A., Iotti, M., Murat, C. (eds) True Truffle (Tuber spp.) in the World. Soil Biology, vol 47. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-31436-5_12

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