Are you curious about the natural world around you? Maybe a little jealous of the classes that the Mountain SOL student in your life gets to participate in? Well, Aurora Lights Herbal Medics has a summer packed full of workshops for adults and older children focusing on plants and mushrooms. We will cover identification, cultivation, medicinal uses, and much more!
Unless otherwise noted, these classes will take place in our Cheat Mountain outdoor classroom outside of Beverly, WV. Participants of all ages are welcome (although these classes are planned with adults in mind) and there are family or group discounts available at request. Please contact me at [email protected] for more details, directions, or to RSVP!
Grow-It-Yourself: Mushroom Cultivation
March 25th, 10AM-3PM
$45 per person, lunch is included
Come learn the basics of mushroom growing through log inoculation of shiitake and oyster mushrooms. We will teach you a method that you can use at home, exploring several different tools that we can use to accomplish our inoculation. Each participant will take home at least two oyster and two shiitake logs, and will eat the fruits of their labor once the mycelium takes hold! We can cut down logs to fit in your cars if need be, so no worries about transportation.
This class will be held in our out-door classroom so please dress appropriate to the weather. If we get much snow we will reschedule but have no date as of now.
Please RSVP and check for availability as this class will be capped at 10 participants. Please contact us with dietary needs.
Spring Ephemerals
April 1st, 12:30-3:30PM
$10 per person
This course focuses on the fleeting edible and medicinal plants of spring. These plants are the first to shoot up and take a chance on the weather, and often disappear as the canopy closes and other plants soak up the sun. This course will also touch on some mushroom identification. We will be taking a walk through the forest of moderate difficulty, both on and off trails. Sturdy footwear with good ankle support is recommended. This class will be re-scheduled to April 8th at the same time if the weather is too unfriendly (snow, sleet, freezing rain, exceptionally high winds), but we will persevere through some rain if forecasted so please remember rain-gear.
The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly: Spring Mushrooms
April 22nd, 12:30-3:30PM
$10 per person
Spring is one of my favorite seasons for mushrooms! Some of the weirdest, and tastiest fungi pop up this time of year amidst the bourgeoning weeds and trees. Come and find Devil’s Urns, Wood Ears, Gyromitra, Dryad’s Saddles, Scarlet Cups, and more on the mountain with us! We will take a hike of moderate difficulty, both on and off trail, so please wear sturdy footwear with good ankle support. As always dress appropriate to the weather as we will be out rain or shine (but maybe not snow).
May Medicinal Kick-Off
May 20th 10:30AM – 4:30PM and optional afterparty!
$55 per person (including lunch), optional $10 dinner after
This is an intermediate herbal medicine making class that is open to folks of all experience levels. The workshop follows our class from last year where we covered maceration tinctures and simple salves. Our May Kick-Off will explore some more advanced methods of medicine making and herbal preservation
including percolation tinctures and infusions. We will discuss formulas and recipes, and we will go a bit deeper into the medicinal function of the plants that we will be using. Lunch will be included in this workshop. Each participant will take home generous samples of the remedies that we will learn to make together. After the workshop we will have an optional dinner and afterparty with free camping nearby, so please BYOB and your instruments and lets start off the summer right! (There might even be some surprise performers!)
This workshop will be held in our outdoor classroom and will be rescheduled if the weather is too severe. Otherwise please wear sturdy footwear and dress appropriate to the weather. If you plan to camp check the forecasted temperatures for Snowshoe for an idea of what they will be at our home.
Please contact us if you have any specific dietary needs.
Eat The Weeds
June 3rd, 10th, and 17th 2:00PM-5:00PM
$10 per session, $25 as a bundle
Learn to look at those pesky weeds in a new light! Come with me to focus in on our gardens and yards to see the most common of plants as useful, edible, and medicinal. You will come to love and respect, and yes, eat the weeds!
This class will be held in our outdoor classroom and on our property. Our gardens are on some steep slopes so please wear sturdy footwear! As always, bring raingear ?
Grow-It-Yourself Part II: Mushroom Cultivation
June 4th, 1:00PM-4:30PM
$35 per person
Come and continue your mushroom cultivation education with Part II of our GIY workshop! In this portion of the course we will be exploring new substrates with straw and woodchips using oyster and wine-cap mushrooms. Participants will take home one large bag of inoculated straw and will see fruiting within weeks!
This class will be held in our outdoor classroom so as always, wear sturdy footwear and bring raingear.
Mushroom Identification Intensive – Morgantown!
July 9th, 12:30-4:30PM
$20 per adult, $10 per child
Please join us for a mushroom identification workshop which aims to provide a framework from which to build your fungal knowledge! Students of all experience levels are welcome to come learn and share their own knowledge.
We will have an informal lecture in our outdoor classroom in which we will discuss ways to classify and identify fungi. We will also go over a few easy-to-identify edible mushrooms in detail, as well as some dangerous individuals to watch out for. Then we will take a walk and look for mushrooms to identify, admire, and maybe eat!
The location of this class is to be announced but it will be in the Morgantown area.
Mushroom Identification Intensive
July 16th, 12:30-4:30PM
$20 per adult, $10 per child
Please join us for a mushroom identification workshop which aims to provide a framework from which to build your fungal knowledge! Students of all experience levels are welcome to come learn and share their own knowledge.
We will have an informal lecture in our outdoor classroom in which we will discuss ways to classify and identify fungi. We will also go over a few easy-to-identify edible mushrooms in detail, as well as some dangerous individuals to watch out for. Then we will take a walk and look for mushrooms to identify, admire, and maybe eat!
Children are welcome but this course is not specifically geared toward a young mind, however kids are always encouraged to participate at whatever level they are able.
An Introduction to Herbal Medicine
July 31st – August 3rd, 6:00PM-7:15PM each evening
$60 course fee and $15 material fee
Please join me at Davis and Elkins College as part of the Augusta Festival evening mini-course series for an introduction to herbal medicine! In this workshop participants will learn how to identify, harvest, and use 5 basic herbs that are found in our region. We will cover the basics of wild crafting and plant structure as a part of getting to know our medicinal allies. We can also talk about other commonly found herbs for use at home. This class will involve at least one day on the campus trail, which is a well-trod path with easy footing. Participants will explore herbal medicine making with tinctures, infusions, and more! Everyone will take home remedies for use at home ?
More information and registration for this course can be found at the Augusta Heritage Center’s website: https://augustaheritagecenter.org/augusta-schedule/mini-courses/
Mushroom Identification Intensive – 2nd Offering
August 6th, 12:30-4:30PM
$20 per adult, $10 per child
Please join us for a mushroom identification workshop which aims to provide a framework from which to build your fungal knowledge! Students of all experience levels are welcome to come learn and share their own knowledge.
We will have an informal lecture in our outdoor classroom in which we will discuss ways to classify and identify fungi. We will also go over a few easy-to-identify edible mushrooms in detail, as well as some dangerous individuals to watch out for. Then we will take a walk and look for mushrooms to identify, admire, and maybe eat!
Children are welcome but this course is not specifically geared toward a young mind, however kids are always encouraged to participate at whatever level they are able.
This is a repeat of the July course, so anyone interested in both can speak with us about a discount.
Plant Identification Intensive
August 13th, 12:30PM-4:30PM
$20 per adult, $10 per child
Please join us for a plant identification workshop which aims to provide a framework from which to build your floral knowledge! Students of all experience levels are welcome to come learn and share their knowledge. This class will follow the same basic structure as our mushroom ID classes: we will have an informal lecture in our outdoor classroom in which we discuss identifying characteristics and classifications for herbaceous plants. We will cover a few easy-to-identify edibles or medicinals in detail, as well as some dangerous individuals to watch out for. Then we’ll take an easy walk in the woods to find some plants to identify, admire, and maybe eat!
Children are welcome but this course is not specifically designed for them, however their participation is always appreciated.
Women’s Health Weekend
September 9th and 10th
Join Maureen Farrell and Hannah Spencer for an amazing two-day workshop focusing on women’s health. Many of the details of this course have yet to come, however what we do know is that women’s health issues are important to us and we want to share what we know with you. You need not identify as a woman to participate in this workshop, nor need you be in possession of a vagina, uterus, etc.; anyone with a curiosity and passion for this subject is welcome to attend.
In this class, we will cover menarche to menopause and all things in between. We will try our best to talk about basic anatomy and mechanics of the female reproductive system in an accessible manner. We will talk about self-examinations, preventative health measures, being your own advocate and receiving health care, and herbal remedies related to female issues. We also plan to make a few herbal preparations in the workshop as well.
Each participant will take home many hand-outs, herbal remedies, and maybe even some surprise goodies!
This is a two day workshop, location, price, and exact times coming soon!
I look forward to seeing y’all on the mountain this summer where we can learn and grow together!
Stay curious friends,
Maureen
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