Events & Online Courses
Our program offers events both in person and online. Any upcoming events will be posted to this page.
Online Courses
Both online courses are available for self-study at ANY TIME by registering through the links below. Enrollment includes lifetime access to the materials and we offer live updated sessions each spring semester in six-week blocks. BF 151 usually runs live from January - early February and BF 153 from mid-February through late March.
BF 151: Woodland Mushroom Cultivation
Growing Mushrooms on Logs, Stumps, and Woodchips
This course trains new and experienced farmers in the background, techniques, and economics of farm scale woodland mushroom production. Students will learn the basic biology of mushrooms, cultivation techniques for shiitake, oyster, lions mane, and stropharia mushrooms, proper conditions for fruiting, management needs, and harvesting and marketing mushrooms.
BF 153: Indoor Specialty Mushroom Production
Cultivating in Spare Rooms, Basements, and Buildings
This course trains new and experienced farmers in the background, techniques, and economics of farm scale indoor commercial production. Students will learn the basic biology of mushrooms, cultivation techniques, proper conditions for fruiting, management needs, and harvesting and marketing mushrooms.
Webinar Series
Previous webinar recordings can be found on your YouTube Channel via this link.
Regulations, Certification, and the Specialty Mushroom Industry
Join the Cornell Small Farms Program and CCE Harvest NY in an opportunity to learn how to navigate the various regulations and certifications in a specialty mushroom enterprise. The type, location, scale, and markets of a given farm all affect the programs that farmers are required or can choose to join.
Specialty mushrooms are defined by USDA as any species not belonging to the genus Agaricus (button, crimini, portabella). Examples of programs we will discuss in this two-part series include FSMA Produce Rule, GAPs (Good Agricultural Practices), New York Grown and Certified, Certified Naturally Grown, and Organic Certification.
This content will expand on resources already available in our Harvest to Market guide at CornellMushrooms.org. Both webinars will be recorded and posted for later viewing. Registration is free for anyone interested in learning about these topics.
GAPs, FSMA, and Food Safety in Mushroom Production: Webinar #1
January 26, 2022
3pm - 4:30pm
This session will cover how contamination is spread, provide an overview of microbial risk reduction, basic food safety practices, and clarify the differences between food safety audits vs. inspection. We will also hear directly from Smallhold, a NYC-based certified organic mushroom operation that uses a distributed farming network and local, urban farming hub to sell specialty mushrooms and is a participant in the GAPs certification program.
Speakers:
Yolanda Gonzalez, Cornell Cooperative Extension, Harvest NY
Robert Hadad, Cornell Vegetable Program
Hannah Shufro, Smallhold
Certification of Mushroom Production Practices: Webinar #2
Feb 23rd 2022
3pm - 4:30pm
Several options exist for verification programs that growers can utilize to certify their production practices and increase their market potential. This webinar covers the practices and procedures for becoming Certified Organic, Certified Naturally Grown, and New York Grown and Certified. Hear from the people who offer these options and from mushroom growers who utilize them, and get your questions answered.
Speakers:
Alice Varon, Certified Naturally Grown
Jessica Terry, NOFA - NY
Participating Farms TBA
