Learn to cultivate Oyster and Shiitake Mushrooms in Nepal

LEARN how to inoculate, manage, harvest and cook some of the worlds most popular mushrooms

let’s Grow Mushrooms 2023 + 2024!

We have two upcoming programs for Mushroom Cultivation Trainings, and we invite you to join! The 6-day program is designed to give you hands-on experience in sustainable mushroom cultivation while you support local farmers to grow hundreds of pounds of mushrooms in the Himalaya!

No mushroom cultivation or agriculture experience is required. All ages welcome!

6-Day sample Itinerary

Day 0, November 26th (or earlier): Arrive in Kathmandu, Nepal. Spend one night (or more) in Kathmandu. Explore local cultural and historical sites.

Day 1, November 27th: Meet the Conscious Impact team and other program participants in Kathmandu at 8am to travel to the project site (4-6 hours). Once you arrive, you will receive lunch, a tour of our camp, orientation, a sunset walk and dinner by 7pm.

Day 2, November 28th: Enjoy a morning “Community and Projects Tour” during which you will explore Takure, be introduced to the Conscious Impact projects, visit the nearby town of Nawalpur and meet local community members. After lunch, you will visit our mushroom house to begin learning the process of mushroom cultivation.

Day 3, November 29th: Let’s cultivate some shiitake mushrooms! From morning (8am) until the afternoon (4:30pm) you will work alongside our Nepali Agriculture Team, as well as local farmers, to begin the process of cultivation. We will start with shiitake mushroom cultivation, beginning by harvesting Nepali alder trees to be inoculated with shiitake spores. This includes helping to cut, carry or drill the Alder, plus clean and organize the space where we will inoculate the Alder in the afternoon. All ages and abilities welcome!

Day 4, November 30th: Community training day for shiitake and oyster mushroom cultivation. Community members from around the region will be invited to join you as our team leads a workshop on how to prepare logs for inoculation, how to acquire and manage spores, how to inoculate the logs using wax to seal and how to water and manage the logs. By the end of the day, you will have the skills you need to grow your own shiitake!

Day 5, December 1st: Oyster mushroom cultivation practice. Another full day of mushroom training, but today we focus on inoculating rice straw with oyster mushroom spores, filling bags and discussing the process of growing your own oyster mushrooms. Any final questions that you have will be answered, and you will write your name on your bag so that we can follow up with you to let you know how many of your mushrooms grow!

Day 6, December 2nd: After a delicious breakfast, you will pack your bags and depart back to Kathmandu at 9am, arriving in the city by 2-3pm. You can spend a few nights in the city, visit other places in Nepal or return back home. There are many great hikes and tourist activities in the region if you are interested.

NOTE: The exact itinerary is always subject to change as the needs and schedules of the local farmers change. We thank you in advance for your understanding and flexibility.

CONSCIOUS Impact has been cultivating and teaching others to cultivate mushrooms since 2018 using locally available materials

Every year, from November - February, we grow hundreds of kilos of shiitake and oyster mushrooms around the region, in collaboration with local farmers.

Farmers want to find alternative ways to generate money on their farms using locally available and affordable resources. Over the years, growing mushrooms has proven to be one of the best ways to make money, while also providing a delicious food source to the region. To support this process, Conscious Impact helps to build mushroom houses out of bamboo on partner farmers’ lands and trains hundreds of farmers and students in communities around Takure. During this 6-day program, you will learn how to grow mushrooms from the spores to the harvest, and we will cook delicious meals with them as well!

Photos from our previous Mushroom cultivation training programs…