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Enrollment closes October 27th, 2024. Study 20+ mushrooms in our self-paced online course. Learn how to identify & use chaga, turkey tail, reishi & more.
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*Please note that many of the associations listed under ‘CEUs/PDAs’ do not formally pre-approve online courses for credits, and thus require the student to track their own online course hours to submit for approval for their annual CEU/PDA requirements.
Robert Dale Rogers has been an herbalist for over fifty years and is a professional member of the American Herbalist Guild. He earned a Bachelor of Science from the University of Alberta, where he is presently an assistant clinical professor in Family Medicine. He is also an adjunct professor in Graduate Studies at York University in Toronto, and presently teaches plant and mushroom medicine, aromatherapy and flower essences in the Earth Spirit Medicine faculty at the Northern Star College in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Robert is past chair of the Alberta Natural Health Agricultural Network and Community Health Council of Capital Health. He is a Fellow of the International College of Nutrition, past chair of the North American Mycological Association, and previously on the editorial board of the International Journal of Medicinal Mushrooms. He regularly posts articles of interest in Fungi magazine. The author of 52 books on medicinal plants and fungi of the boreal forest, Robert authored the must-have book The Fungal Pharmacy: The Complete Guide to Medicinal Mushrooms and Lichens of North America. Another of his acclaimed books: A Cree Healer and His Medicine Bundle, was released in June 2015 by North Atlantic Books, and it documents the tenth generation passing down of over sixty traditional indigenous boreal plants and their medicinal benefit. Robert was honoured as an Herbal Elder of Canada in 2015. Today, Robert guest lectures and conducts walks throughout North America on plant and mushroom medicine, and continues to release must-have books on Mushrooms.
Ancient medicine meets modern science.
There are over 5 million species of fungi on the planet, and approximately 500 of these are macrofungi that have health benefits. Macrofungi, which we commonly refer to as mushrooms, have extensive historical use as food and medicine, and their recognized medicinal properties have given them a rightful place in contemporary health care.
This course covers the mushroom basics, including, and not limited to, the definition of a mushroom, how fungi evolved, their anatomy, and insights regarding their relationship with plants. In addition, you will learn the differences between a fruiting body and mycelium and their respective medicinal qualities, whether to wildcraft or cultivate mushrooms depending on their type and the importance of organic practices in mushroom cultivation. Additionally, this course explores 15+ of the top medicinal mushrooms on the market. The most recent scientific research related to each of these mushrooms is shared, along with tips for proper identification in the field. Finally, when relevant, any cautions or contraindications with pharmaceuticals drugs are provided.
Mushrooms can be consumed as food or through various medicinal preparations. This course provides tips about which mushrooms to add to your diet and how to choose good quality mushroom products. And you can follow along with easy steps on how to prepare mushroom medicines at home.
There are many misconceptions about medicinal mushrooms, and this course offers explanations to dispel common myths and leads you on a virtual forest walk to identify mushrooms along the way. The stories and research covered in this course are deeply intriguing, hopefully enough to inspire you to add medicinal mushrooms to your herbal practice.
Upon completion of this course, you will have the ability to:
LIMITED RELEASE — Enrollment closes October 27th, 2024. Upon enrollment, you’ll gain access to the 5-hours of video lessons and the e-book for life. This is course 17 of the Community Herbalist Program.
Section I | Welcome
1. Introduction
2. What is a mushroom?
3. History of medicinal mushrooms
Section II | Myths about medicinal mushrooms
4. Myths about medicinal mushrooms – Part I
5. Myths about medicinal mushrooms – Part II
6. Myths about medicinal mushrooms – Part III
Section III | Medicinal mushroom monographs
7. White button (Agaricus bisporus)
8. Oyster (Pleurotus spp.)
9. Reishi (Ganoderma lucidum)
10. Lion’s mane (Hericium erinaceus)
11. Maitake (Grifola frondosa)
12. Caterpillar fungus (Cordyceps militaris)
13. Shiitake (Lentinula edodes)
14. Chaga (Inonotus obliquus)
15. Liberty cap (Psilocybe semilanceata)
16. Enoki (Flammulina velutipes)
17. Agarikon (Laricifomes officinalis)
18. Amadou (Fomes fomentarius)
19. Fly agaric (Amanita muscaria)
20. Turkey tail (Trametes versicolor)
Section IV| Preparation and explanation of red belted conk
21. Red belted conk (Fomitopsis pinicola) monograph
22. Double extraction with red belted conk (Fomitopsis pinicola) – Part I
23. Double extraction with red belted conk (Fomitopsis pinicola) – Part II
Section V| Forest mushroom walk
24. Forest mushroom walk
Enjoy the highest quality online education, from curriculum through to production.
“The instructor is passionate about medicinal fungi. That along with his ability to breakdown each mushroom, in a clear and concise manner, made my experience extremely enjoyable. I would recommend this course for anyone who is beginning to explore the realm of medicinal fungi.”
Abrahan - Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
“Me and a girlfriend want to start mushroom hunting and I needed to learn some more information before making a fatal mistake. I will be recommending this to lots of people.”
Tiffany - BC, Canada
“I learned much more about medicinal mushrooms which is very useful for me. The instructor is so passionate about his area of expertise, which was lovely to feel that type of energy!”
Tanya - Ontario
“Robert Rogers is an excellent teacher and provides plenty of great content in this course about medicinal mushrooms.”
Luana Meissner - Red Deer County, Alberta, Canada
“This course was so informative and beautifully put together. I am so grateful I took it.”
Rebecca Turnbull - Alberta, Canada
“I would recommend this course as I learned a lot and look forward to getting out in the forest and identifying some of them. I love the music of the plants machine this is so amazing!”
Cathy - Victoria, BC, Canada
“Teacher is an obvious truth-seeker, highly recommend this course. My love for mushrooms has grown.”
Justin - Alberta, Canada
“Excellent. Very helpful in gaining confidence around a difficult topic”
Maria
“I appreciate such a thorough course with a very reputable instructor. Robert Rogers is very knowledgeable and it was a pleasure taking his course.”
Patricia - Calgary, AB, Canada
“I enjoyed learning about the common mushrooms that you see every day at the grocery store or as supplements. Super cool how versatile they are!”
Amy Hadden - Calgary AB, Canada
“This course is full of great information about mushrooms. The instructor was engaging and clearly delighted by the subject matter. He was happy to share his knowledge and did so in an organized and clear way.”
Rebecca Ness - Bexley, Ohio, USA
“A great introductory. Our we on medicinal mushrooms, their uses and contraindications, well presented with great additional stories, studies, anecdotes and more. Always a pleasure learning from Robert Rogers.”
Magdalena Saito - Vanderhoof, BC, Canada
“Great combination of scientific and historical information, interesting anecdotes, and intriguing ideas about psychological and emotional uses of mushrooms!”
Catherine Lundgren - Edmonton AB, Canada
“It felt like high-quality teaching. An excellent introductory course to Medicinal Mushrooms, well-presented by a very knowledgeable and engaging instructor.”
Daniel Kerslake - St'at'imc Territory (Lillooet, BC, Canada)
“I really loved all the information presented in the course. Robert is always such a pleasure to listen to; he has so much knowledge and experience and has a sense of humour that brings a special presence and warmth to his teachings. I’m always inspired after listening to him.”
Elizabeth - Victoria, BC, Canada
“Very good quality. I’d been wanting to learn more about mushrooms—I use them medicinally in animal patients in my vet practice. I liked all of it; the course notes are great as well. It was wonderful—so glad I signed up!”
Ashley Bernauer - Qualicum Beach, BC, Canada
“Excellent. I am a novice mushroom forager and I’ve been wanting to learn more about medicinal properties from an expert. So informative. I wish there was a part 2!”
Holly A. - New Brunswick, Canada
“Mr. Rogers is a good teacher. I like him! Really interesting course, it made me want to know even more and try them all.”
Marie-Josée - Québec, Canada
“Love, love, loved it—wonderful lessons! I thought everything was superb. I loved the discussion about essences. I am a crafter of flower essences and always feel so validated when I hear others speak of them! I promptly ordered the Fungal Essences book! Cannot wait to read it – EUREKA – mushroom flower essences!”
Kimberly Millar - Golden, BC, Canada
“Awesome. I wish it could have been longer! I enjoyed it very much, especially learning detailed descriptions about the identification and uses and benefits of each mushroom.”
Chelsey Faire - Canada
“Wonderful. I really enjoyed it—I thought the mushroom walk was really great. I loved the course and would definitely recommend for anyone that is curious to know more about mushrooms.”
Leanna Stevenot - Osoyoos, BC, Canada
“I enjoyed this course a lot for both its medical and practical/daily components. It opened up a new window for me, that’s what I am grateful for.”
Myra C Yaman - Victoria, BC
“Truly loved this course—one of my favorites! The mushroom varieties and medicinal uses were most useful. I learned so much!”
Melinda Budvarson
“Great course with a tremendous amount of information on many types of mushrooms. Highly recommend for those interested in the fungal world.”
Lisa - Edmonton, AB
“The course was excellent. Full of knowledge and little-known facts, Robert Rogers is a treasure trove of information and true mushroom knowledge and is excellent at conveying knowledge to the beginner as well as the advanced. You can always learn more from him.“
Leanne McKinnon - Edmonton, AB
“The healing properties, stories and experiences with plants, and the description and safety procedures were very informative—someone who takes this course could feel confident enough to start using these plants“
Kieran Pye - Victoria, BC
“PRCO and Robert Rogers have created a masterpiece with the Medicinal Mushroom course! The amount of information was like mycelium with wonderful fruiting bodies. The quality was outstanding and enjoyable!”
Tammy Courtney - Kitwanga, BC
“I’ve been learning a lot about mushrooms and foraging lately so this course was recommended. Very informative, especially the tincture part and when he would explain about the difference between poisonous and non-poisonous ones.”
Brett Tutt - Tofino, BC, Canada
“Robert Rogers is an excellent teacher and had a wealth of knowledge and personal stories to share. I think the balance of scientific information and folkloric/cultural information was also excellent. It is a great beginner and intermediate course on medicinal mushrooms—I had taken a few other courses from other people and I did learn new things about old favourite fungi.”
Melissa Bettcher - Edmonton, AB, Canada