The pioppino mushroom (Agrocybe aegerita) is an interesting mushroom that is unknown to many.

Buy Pioppino Mushroom Cultivation Kit Online. The flavor is mild, earthy, and nutty, and the mushroom gains a slight crispiness when cooked. In Asia, this mushroom is used frequently in soups, stews, and hot pot. It is possible to cultivate this mushroom at home, but it is a more advanced growing kit option. 

Each pioppino mushroom cultivation kit is 10 lbs of fully-colonized substrate and certified organic. This pioppino mushroom cultivation kit can produce 3-5 lbs of mushrooms throughout its lifetime of multiple months. Buy Pioppino Mushroom Cultivation Kit Online.

The pioppino mushroom is also known as the black poplar mushroom or the velvet pioppino, and it grows with a long stem and a small, brown cap. It is often referred to as the black poplar mushroom because it is frequently found growing on this type of tree. The cap of the mushroom does have a velvety feel. The cap can also feel slimy when it gets wet. Buy Pioppino Mushroom Cultivation Kit Online.

Ideal growing conditions for the black pearl oyster mushroom kit:

The ideal range for fruiting this kit is 50-60 degrees Fahrenheit with a relative humidity of 90-100%. This is a high level of humidity with lower temperatures, making this kit a more advanced option. Buy Pioppino Mushroom Cultivation Kit Online. For beginners, we often recommend a different kit, like the blue oyster mushroom kit or the yellow oyster kit, unless you have an environment where you can consistently get the temperatures listed above. 

To provide some perspective, the blue oyster mushroom’s temperature range for fruiting is in the 45-85 degrees Fahrenheit range, yet it can produce as low as 40 degrees F and as high as 95 degrees F. This wide range in temperature and a lower humidity for blue oyster fruiting (85%) makes the blue oyster kit a great kit for beginners. Buy Pioppino Mushroom Cultivation Kit Online.

Light: Pioppino mushrooms need some light to grow, but it does not need to be a significant amount of light and it should not be direct sunlight and it. You can determine if there is enough light for your pioppino mushroom cultivation kit to grow by whether or not you can comfortably read a book in the area. If you can, then the kit has enough light to produce fresh pioppinos.

Humidity: You should mist your kit a few times each day so it keeps the humidity level high enough for the kit to fruit. As mentioned above, a relative humidity in the 90-100% range is ideal. Buy Pioppino Mushroom Cultivation Kit Online. You will see little baby mushrooms forming after about a week or so, and that is what we call the pinning stage. These baby mushrooms will continue to grow until they are full-sized and ready to harvest, which should be within two weeks of starting the kit. 

If you have a difficult time keeping the humidity level as high as it needs to be, you can try using a plastic tote or bin. Begin by placing your pioppino mushroom cultivation kit in the plastic tote with the top off. Mist the sides of the tote to keep them wet. Buy Pioppino Mushroom Cultivation Kit Online.

Using a tote with the pioppino mushroom kit inside and a small fan blowing over the top of the tote has been a method many people have used to increase humidity levels indoors while using their pioppino mushroom cultivation kit. 

CO2 and Airflow: You need to have fresh air flow for the mushrooms or they may end up growing poorly. If you notice the fruited bodies looking abnormal, then you probably need more fresh air exchange where the kit is located. This is common in situations where people use humidity tents. Adjusting the amount of airflow will help the mushrooms normalize during the fruiting stage. Buy Pioppino Mushroom Cultivation Kit Online.

Cutting holes in your kit: You will need to cut holes in the plastic that your pioppino mushroom cultivation kit comes in before you begin misting it. Buy Pioppino Mushroom Cultivation Kit Online. You can mist the substrate directly through the hole you make. We recommend using the broadside of the kit or the top and bottom to cut the bags. The fresh mushrooms will grow towards these holes, seeking the environment of greater oxygen content. 

Why grow the pioppino mushroom?

The pioppino mushroom is one of the new specialty mushrooms making waves in the United States. It has been a popular mushroom in Asia for many years. Buy Pioppino Mushroom Cultivation Kit Online.

If you are a commercial mushroom farmer with the ability to get the humidity and temperature appropriate for pioppino growing, then this is a new option you can offer your customers. It is a good option for farmers who have restaurant customers, especially if they make soups, stews, and stir fries, as this mushroom goes great in these dishes. You can try one of our pioppino mushroom cultivation kits to see if it is a good mushroom for you before committing to larger grows of pioppino. Give it a try today! Buy Pioppino Mushroom Cultivation Kit Online.