Dry Agrocybe aegerita - Pioppino Mushroom

Scientific Name: Agrocybe aegerita

Common Names: Black Poplar Mushroom, Swordbelt Agrocybe, Yanage Matsutake

Description: A delicious gilled mushroom with a medium-large tan colored cap. Has a crunchy texture and mild almond flavor. Pioppino fruits well on a range of deciduous wood and is an excellent species for outdoor cultivation on logs, stumps, and wood chip beds.

Growth Conditions

Petri Dish, Slant, or Liquid Culture
Growth Medium: Malt extract or potato water agar
Temperature: 21 deg C

Spawn Run
Growth Medium: supplemented hardwood sawdust
Temperature: 21 deg C
Bag Filter Type: "A"

Primordia Formation
Temperature: 10-16 deg C
Humidity: 95-100 %
Time (days): 1-2 weeks
Light (Lux): 500-1000 lux

Fruit-body Growth
Temperature: 13-18 deg C
Humidity: 90-95 %
Time: 4-6 days
Light: 500-1000 lux

Harvest Hint: Leave the bag closed until primordia begin to form, unless you can provide a foggy 100 % humidity environment. At this point open the bag from the top and leave 3-4 inches of bag wall height to allow humidity and CO2 to pool in the bag and encourage stem elongation. A casing layer (link to recipe) can also help primordia formation in this species. The ideal time to harvest is right before the partial veil opens exposing the gills.