Schönewerda (Thuringia) – When you think of truffles, you think of France or Italy – but not Thuringia. Experts consider the Free State to be a land of milk and honey for the cultivation of the noble mushroom (price per kilo between 400 and 900 euros).
Thuringia has lime-rich soils and the right mix of oak, hazelnut and beech trees. “The necessary symbiosis between mushroom and tree works perfectly here – the coveted Burgundy truffle thrives splendidly!” Explains Anja Kolbe-Nelde (42).
Alba (2) and Jette (6) sniff every truffle
The trained bank clerk should know that she runs a 1000 square meter truffle plantation near Schönewerda (Kyffhäuserkreis). She started growing four years ago and trained her two dogs Alba (2) and Jette (6): “With their trained nose you can find every truffle in the ground”.
The two dogs have a lot to do at the moment, because the harvest is in full swing, and truffle cultivation is still a niche here in Thuringia. But there are more and more plantations – for example in Eichsfeld, Nordhausen and Sömmerda.
“That’s why I like to pass on my knowledge to farmers, property owners or private mushroom lovers,” says the expert. And Anja Kolbe-Nelde is pursuing an ambitious goal: “At some point we want to have the best truffle plantations in Europe here. Nobody should smile at us then! “
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