Comments from Tim Terry

When we first began in the truffle business in 1994 soil testing was only done by the Department of Agriculture or companies selling fertiliser and neither of those options really wanted to get their mind around the truffle as fertiliser companies were not going to sell much fertiliser and it was probably a little complicated for the Department’s resources.

So what I set about doing was to find an independent lab to take the challenge and this is when I was introduced to SWEP.

I took many samples from producing French Truffleries while visiting the region and sent them to SWEP for analysis, and from these we developed benchmarks for what we were trying to achieve. I found this approach has worked very successfully and after hundreds of tests now going through the lab we have a large database of information what works for growers in many soil types.

In addition to their independence and already detailed analysis, being able to include additional tests for things like particle size distribution and total calcium in the soil analysis and then combine these with results of irrigation water analysis are all things not generally covered by a single laboratory, and the level of professionalism with their reports is second to none in Australasia so we are very please to be associated with SWEP.

If you would like to learn more about growing Truffles, please visit my website: