DIY Gourmet Mushroom Cultivation - Warragul

This is a paid event. Tickets can be found here http://tdy.cl/se/o51SUoM

DIY Gourmet Mushroom Cultivation - Warragul

September 21, 10am-5pm
Warragul community house, 138 normanby st, warragul.
http://www.warragulcommunityhouse.org.au/

This 1 day course will give you all the skills you need to start growing gourmet mushrooms indoors and out. You will learn basic cultivation methods along with how you can work fungi into a permaculture system. The course is focused on ways to grow mushrooms that don’t require expensive equipment or scientific knowledge, but we will also discuss more advanced growing techniques.

Included in the day will also be some scrumptious food catered by Tash Can Cook. Participants will enjoy a gourmet lunch and afternoon tea treats made by Natasha. Hot beverages such as tea and coffee will also be available.

Topics covered include:
- The biology and ecology of fungi
- Growing mushrooms on cardboard and recycled paper pellets
- Agar and liquid culture
- Indoor growing methods
- Outdoor mushroom beds
- Mushroom logs
- Integrating fungi with your garden

You will go home with:
- An oyster mushroom grow bag
- Oyster mushroom grain spawn
- Shiitake inoculated dowels that can be used to grow your own shiitake log
- Liquid and agar cultures of several different edible and medicinal species

About your teachers

Natasha Vorogushin’s interest in foraging, sustainable living and permaculture has deeply influenced her career path, spawning Tash Can Cook as a culinary service provider, through her love of foraging for edible mushrooms and cooking with fresh seasonal, locally sourced produce. Her infatuation with mushrooms has lead her to become a skilled identifier of wild Victorian mushrooms and has also expanded her knowledge of home mushroom cultivation skills for culinary uses. Combined with a passion to teach, Natasha also guides seasonal edible foraging tours, instructs cooking classes with a wide range of cuisines, and is also a personal chef and caterer.

Caine Barlow has been cultivating and studying fungi for 12 years. Having studied mycology at a university level, he is no stranger to spending time in labs but has a preference to creating workspaces within kitchen environments where there can be a little more creativity in basic methods of cloning and propagating mycelium. Caine enjoys modifying existing techniques, experimenting with substrates and hacking together equipment for growing environments, but at the end of the day has a preference for growing outdoors if possible. As a regular contributor, “trusted identifier” and admin on a variety of website forums and facebook groups, Caine aims to encourage learning, show how easy fungi are to grow, and inspire others to see fungi in a new light.

Ema Corro started growing mushrooms 6 years ago and quickly became obsessed with fungi. This lead her to complete a biology degree, and she is currently doing Honours researching mycelium composites to create environmentally sustainable products for the transportation and construction industries. Ema has also completed the Permaculture Design Certificate and is involved in a number of environmental and citizen-science organisations through which she has gained hands on experience in land-management and fungal ecology. Ema loves sharing her passion for fungi and is always amazed at how fungi inspire people to care more about the natural world.

MYCOmmunity and BioQuisitive

Proceeds raised from ticket sales will help fund citizen science projects with non-profit organisations MYCOmmunity and BioQuisitive. MYCOmmunity is an organisation that aims to provide access to scientific training and equipment for citizen-mycologists, as well as increase community awareness of fungi. BioQuisitive is a DIY biology lab in Melbourne, providing a hub for accessible, community-centred and safe experiences in the life sciences."