Truffles Pest Management

Truffles pest management is an important aspect of keeping valuable truffles from being eaten by pests. 

Truffles are type of fungi that grow underground.  They have been proven to have a type of sexual attractive quality in some animals and research is ongoing to include them into cosmetic products.  This may be one of the reasons, besides from being delicious, that truffles sell for hundreds and hundreds of dollars per pound.

There is one particular past that loves eating truffles. This pest is called a vole. It is a brownish colored rodent that turns white during the winter months. The vole is a hardy scavenger, and it can find truffles with the same ease as trained pigs and dogs that have incredible senses. Yes, it's true that people have trained pigs and dogs to sniff out truffles.

There are a variety of ways to limit vole interference in your truffle crop.  First of all, you can try putting up barriers that will keep them out of an area.  Barriers are usually constructed from either metal or glass and can be quite effective in keeping voles away from truffles.  In addition, a population of snakes and owls view voles as a meal ticket and would like nothing more to have a little snack.  As far as domesticated animals go, if you are not allergic, it may be a good idea to have a cat in your yard or around your property.

Another way you can get rid of voles is by employing traditional mouse traps.  If you bait the mouse traps with something tasty, you will be more than likely to capture a fair number of voles.  There are also a variety of chemical sprays that can be used to prevent voles from foraging in a specific area.  Remember, these chemicals are toxic, and in exchange for a vole free area, your truffles pest management effort may include the use of toxic chemicals.