Passionate about fungi. RD at Mycorrhizal Systems & Honorary Professor @ University of Stirling. bluesky: profpwthomas IUCN (SULi) member @IUCNSULi
UK
Joined May 2009
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On Monday I'm heading to the IPM Future Food Systems Symposium at Swansea University (speaking about mycoforestry). For anyone else heading down, come say hi 👋 newipm.com/
full version of this talk is now online and free to access here: youtu.be/GM3s6yBWSFg?si=b_55…
(1/2) Free webinar, based on our latest paper and hosted by @NATruffleGrower :
Why do some truffle trees produce whilst others do not? This presentation explores new research conducted across North American orchards that seeks to answer this question. Using a unique paired study
(2/3) design, we disentangle the soil chemistry and microbial communities associated with Tuber melanosporum fruition. Framed around the interactions between host plant, truffle fungus, and soil ecosystem, we explore what these findings could mean for understanding and improving
If you're interested in truffle cultivation and based in the UK, this event we are running with Daylesford Organic would be a great introduction - book now for November: tinyurl.com/yc4c7fx7. .
(1/3) Calling all mycorrhizal friends... come and join us at the next instalment of IWEMM in Spain next year. This is an excellent conference and next-years agenda is looking really superb, I hope to see many of you there!
The 12th International Workshop on Edible Mycorrhizal
(2/3) Mushrooms (IWEMM12) will take place in Teruel, Spain, from 12 to 17 April 2027. The official website iwemm12.com is now open, and the organising committee invites all interested participants to complete the pre‑registration form. IWEMM12 offers a unique
(3/3) opportunity to connect with the international community working on edible mycorrhizal fungi and to explore innovative scientific and field‑based perspectives. Updated information on the programme, sessions and excursions is available on the website. iwemm12.com
(1/4) 𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐝𝐨 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐬 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐞 truffles, 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐬don’t? Our new paper, gives some answers…
Studying 93 trees (USA), controlling for confounders (a big difference) we found:
• chemically and biologically distinct soils
(3/3)... with their environment. The paper also has immediate new guidance for truffle growers. Big thanks Robert Chang (American Truffle Company) alongside truffle harvesters and co-author Muhammad Salman Zahid for his superb approach to data analysis… and we are already
(3/4)... well underway in addressing follow-on questions, so more papers are in the works…
Full open access paper: doi.org/10.1016/j.micres.202…
1/3 Are we missing hidden fungal DNA structures?
🧬 Those of us working in sequencing have noticed something - native fungal DNA protocols often lead to unusually high pore-blockage rates.
This may hint at novel genome architecture. If correct, implications would broad...
2/2 In this brief essay (see link) I describe these thoughts and also outline a proposed pipeline for further investigation. These ideas have been spinning around my head for some time, so it’s been good to start articulating them.
🍄 This is a topic I would love to pursue -
3/3 I think it would make a great PhD project, for example.
For anyone who finds this interesting and wishes to follow-up, I’d be very happy to collaborate in various capacities.
Open access link: lnkd.in/eBFmk47J
1/3 Taken yesterday, I had to share these beautiful images
🌳 The roots of scots pine with mycorrhizae of the saffron milk cap (Lactarius deliciosus). The swollen orange root-tips are actually the fungus forming a sheath around the root - a symbiotic structure for the exchange
2/3 of resources. 🍄🟫 The white threads you can see are rhizomorphs - root-like structures of dense mycelium, transporting resources. The tree and fungus support each other. 🔬 We produced these trees in the lab and nursery and they are now ready for planting in the field
3/3 The trees will produce a beautiful edible and annual mushroom crop as they grow and mature.Suitable for a range of soil types and the UK climate - farm agroforestry, backgardens or forestry restocking. To know more about our pioneering mycoforestry: PlantationSystems.com
(1/2)... another new mycoforestry trial site - 9 fungi and 2 tree host species. Emerging data will shape our approach to building the fungi food-forests of the future 🍄🌲
Planted by myself and University of Stirling PhD student Ruairi Hafferty - tiny 1-yr old saplings with..
(2/2)...mycorrhizae quantified with microscopy/PCR. It’s taken a long time to reach this point and theres much more to come - if you’d like to know more or plant a trial, just get in touch! PlantationSystems.com
