Taming the Truffle: The History, Lore, and Science of the Ultimate Mushroom

Ian R. Hall has traveled widely and his knowledge of mushroom cultivation is international in scope. His firm, Truffles & Mushrooms Consulting Ltd., aims to further the cultivation of edible ectomycorrhizal mushrooms. He also directs the activities of Symbiotic Systems N.Z. Ltd, a company that studies the beneficial effects of mycorrhizas in forestry. Hall has published on a variety of topics in addition to edible mushrooms and mycorrhizas, including the pathology of grasses oversown into tussock grasslands and greenhouse design. He completed his PhD at New Zealand's Otago University, where he studied with Geoff Baylis. After his post-doctoral fellowship with Jim Gerdemann at Illinois University, Hall returned to New Zealand to work as an applied mycologist and plant pathologist with the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries (MAF Technology). Gordon Brown holds undergraduate degrees in liberal arts and commerce from New Zealand's University of Otago, and collaborated with Ian R. Hall on two previous books on the cultivation of truffles in New Zealand. Since 1991 Brown has edited at the Otago Daily Times (Allied Press) and previously was the southern region journalist for the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries (MAF Technology). Brown has travelled extensively and witnessed first hand the turmoil in Southeast Asia in the early 1970s. He and his wife, Erina, run a proofreading and editing company, All Write NZ Ltd., which specializes in editing for Southeast Asian clients who speak English as a second language. Alessandra Zambonelli is regarded as a foremost expert in Italy on truffles. A professor and researcher specializing in mycology and applied plant pathology at the University of Bologna, she has published numerous articles on truffles and their cultivation. She is the president of the Italian Mycological Association (Unione Micologica Italiana) which connects mycological groups from all regions of Italy.