CRAFTSBURY COMMON, Vt. — As the forests begin to fill with our favorite fungi, Sterling College is offering mushroom enthusiasts two opportunities to become practitioners of mycology this summer and fall.
In June, the world-renowned mushroom expert Trad Cotter will lead a course for beginner and advanced students titled Organic Mushroom Farming and Mycoremediation. The author of the best-selling book of the same name, Tradd’s primary interest is in low-tech and no-tech cultivation strategies so that anyone can grow mushrooms on just about anything, anywhere in the world.
During this immersive 4-day course June 20th – 24th, 2022, students will learn about cultivating fungi on small and large scales, incorporating edible mushrooms and beneficial fungi into garden designs, identifying wild mushrooms, cultivating and preparing medicinal mushrooms, and cleaning contaminated soils and polluted water through mycoremediation.
This course is a science-oriented curriculum and it is recommended that students have prior knowledge or brush up on the following topics: Fundamental biology and chemistry related to microorganisms and beginner taxonomy of mushrooms, molds, and mycorrhizae. Registration is currently open for this course and a few spots remain.
In September, artists and makers can learn how to put their newfound mycological knowledge into practice creating beautiful, vibrant, and non-toxic dyes for natural fibers. Mycology & Color: A Chromatic Universe of Mushroom Dyes will be taught by Julie Beeler, artist, educator, and creator of the Mushroom Color Atlas.
During the weekend workshop, September 24th – 25th, 2022, students will spend Saturday in the forest, learning about and foraging for dye mushrooms. On Sunday they will go through various dye techniques, as students explore the myriad of shades these forest friends offer us.
This course allows students the opportunity to define mushroom species and types, understand the identification components of different dye mushrooms, demonstrate mushroom dye baths, analyze the properties of the dye bath to reveal the color, design a color chart of mushrooms and shibori designed silk kerchief and compare colors, processes and compounds of the mushroom dye baths.
Each of these courses is open to the public and will be held on the Sterling College campus in Craftsbury Common, VT. For more information on these courses and other continuing ed offerings from Sterling, visit https://www.ce.
–Sterling College