Who is this course for?
This course is for anyone with a growing interest in fungi and mushroom cultivation. If you would like to learn how to grow a variety of mushrooms on a small scale then this course is for you. You do not need to have any prior knowledge of fungi or mushroom cultivation as the course is designed to take you through the process of understanding fungi at a deeper level and utilising that knowledge to cultivate a range of gourmet and medicinal mushrooms.
You will learn:
- The fascinating biology, ecology, and history of the Fungal Kingdom
- Basics of wild mushroom identification fungal foray
- The core principles and paradigms that underlie the art and science of cultivation
- Aseptic (“sterile”) practices with agar, grains, and wood-based materials
- Cloning mushrooms and maintaining a culture
- How to make the perfect Grain Spawn!
- Bulk spawn production, processing growing mediums and substrates
- Appropriate, low-cost, and low-tech cultivation methods and tools
- Lab and fruiting environment designs for home, farm, or community scale projects
- Log cultivation – the practice and variety of applications
- Outdoor mushroom garden design and installation
- Application of fungi with integrated agro-ecosystems
- Working with Mychorrhizal Fungi
- Place-based resource management and systems design principles
- Fungal integration into various permaculture-inspired regenerative living systems
- Post harvest processing including extracts and tinctures
The course content is supported with extensive notes and as a participant you can join our mushroom growers support forum.
It is a busy a weekend and we pack a lot in! The sessions take place in and around the woodland (so good footwear is essential), in the workshop and our laboratory. There are practical activities throughout and you get to take home the substrates, preparations and cultures made over the weekend including:
- Oyster fruiting bucket
- Oyster straw bag
- Cardboard Spawn (Wine Cap)
- Inoculated Log
- Jar of Grain Spawn (choice of species)
- Enriched Sawdust Fruiting Block (rieshi or shiitake)
- Agar media Petri dishes (choice of species)
- Liquid Culture Syringe (choice of species)
- Lions Mane capsules
Mushroom Species You’ll Learn to Grow Include:
- Garden Giant (Stropharia rugosoannulata)
- Pearl/Tree Oyster (Pluerotus ostreatus)
- Lion’s Mane (Hericium erinaceus)
- Reishi (Ganoderma lucidum)
- Turkey Tail (Trametes versicolor)
- Maitake (Grifola frondosa)
- King Oyster (Pleurotus eryngii)
- Shiitake (Lentinula edodes)
- Elm Oyster (Hypsizgus ulmarius)
- Nameko (Pholiota Nameko)
- Wood Blewitt (Clitocybe Nuda)
- Shaggy Ink Cap (Coprinus Comitus)
Course Tutor – James Scrivens
James Scrivens has been cultivating mushrooms for 12 years, with the past 10 years as Head Grower at Coed Talylan. Specialising in natural methods of cultivation, he utilises the 70-acre woodland at Coed Talylan to grow shiitake and turkey tail commercially on log culture, as well as small to medium scale cultivation of a range of other species for subsistence and local markets.
Three years ago, he launched the Farming with Fungi project, which explores the role of fungi in sustainable agriculture. This initiative promotes the integration of mycology into horticulture and regenerative farming, demonstrating how fungi contribute to soil health, nutrient cycling, and resilient food systems. He also founded the Refungium, a fungal-centred ecological restoration project focused on regenerating degraded landscapes through fungal remediation and habitat restoration.
For the past eight years, James has been running the Mushroom Cultivation course, developing Coed Talylan’s infrastructure as a hands-on showcase for a wide range of cultivation methods. The course provides practical training in mushroom production, from small-scale home growing to commercial operations, with an emphasis on low-tech, sustainable, and accessible techniques.
His work highlights the vital role of fungi in agriculture and ecology, advocating for the integration of applied mycology into horticulture, forestry, and agroecosystems. Through research, education, and practical application, he continues to explore the potential of fungi for food, medicine, and ecological restoration.
This two day practical course will provide you with a background in the fascinating world of fungal biology and the core principles and practices that underlie the art and science of mushroom cultivation. By the end of course you will have everything you need to start growing your own mushrooms at home, on your farm, or in your community, including the mushroom spawn to get you started!
Coed Talylan is a 70 acre woodland on the western edge of the Brecon Beacons. Nestled below the iron age hill fort of Garn Goch in the foothills of the Black Mountain it offers a secluded and peaceful location for our course participants to learn and explore the potential of applying agroecology within a co-sufficient community.
We endeavour to make our courses and events affordable to all. Unfortunately, we do not receive any external funding and rely on large amounts of voluntary input. Concessions are available for pensioners, unemployed and full-time students.