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    How to grow pioppino mushrooms

    Cyclocybe aegerita (formerly Agrocybe aegerita)

    Pioppino fruits on hardwood sawdust, straw or logs at 55–65°F (13–18°C), and bags go from spawn to first harvest in about 4–6 weeks. It needs steady high humidity while it pins.

    By Derick · October 24, 2026

    Fruiting temperature
    55–65°F (13–18°C)
    Humidity
    95–100% RH to pin, then 85–95%
    Spawn to first harvest
    About 4–6 weeks in bags, about 7 in bottles
    Grows on
    Hardwood sawdust, straw or hardwood logs

    Difficulty: Moderate. Pioppino is more sensitive to temperature and humidity than oysters, especially while it pins (GroCycle); North Spore rates it advanced (North Spore booklet).

    Pioppino growing conditions at a glance

    StageTemperatureHumidityFresh air / CO2LightDays
    Bulk colonization72–77°F (22–25°C)Sealed bagNone; bag stays closedNot stated9–14 days (1 kg straw or wood-chip bags); about 38 days (sawdust bottles)
    Pinning55–65°F (13–18°C)95–100%Small cut at the top; pins form in the bagIndirect light, or 12 hours a dayPins 2–5 days into fruiting conditions (kits); about 7 days (bottles at 64–68°F)
    Fruiting55–65°F (13–18°C)85–95%Bag cut back to 4 in sidewalls; under 2,000 ppmIndirect light, or 12 hours a dayHarvest 6–10 days after pins form (kits); about 5 days (bottles)
    Where these numbers come from
    • Colonization: In an Iranian trial, 1 kg bags of straw or wood-chip mixes were incubated for 9–14 days at 23–25°C (73–77°F) before fruiting (Rezaeian et al., Asian Journal of Mycology). Korea's Gyeonggi Province research station runs 850 ml sawdust bottles for about 38 days at 22–23°C (72–73°F) (Jeon et al., Korea Journal of Breeding Science).
    • Temperature: GroCycle and North Spore both give 55–65°F for fruiting (GroCycle, North Spore booklet). The research trials fruited warmer: 16–20°C (61–68°F) in Iran (Rezaeian et al.) and 18–20°C (64–68°F) in Korea (Jeon et al.).
    • Humidity and fresh air: North Spore gives 95–100% for pins, 85–95% for growing mushrooms and under 2,000 ppm CO2, and cuts the bag back once pins form (North Spore booklet).
    • Light: North Spore suggests indirect light, or artificial light 12 hours a day, for all its species (North Spore booklet).
    • Timing: A kit pins 2–5 days after it goes into fruiting conditions and is ready 6–10 days after that (GroCycle). GroCycle puts pioppino at 4–6 weeks in bags from inoculation (GroCycle). The Korean bottles pinned in 7 days and were picked 5 days later, about 50 days in all (Jeon et al.).
    • The fruiting-room figures rest on GroCycle and North Spore, companies that sell kits, spawn and courses; the colonization and bottle figures come from research trials.

    What does pioppino grow on?

    • Hardwood sawdust

      The usual indoor substrate, supplemented and sterilized (GroCycle, Mushroom Mountain). Korean researchers grow it in bottles of sawdust mixed 70:30 by volume with wheat bran, rice bran and dried soybean curd residue (Jeon et al.).

    • Chopped straw

      Works indoors in bags (GroCycle). In one trial, straw with 20% wheat bran gave the highest biological efficiency of five substrates (Rezaeian et al.).

    • Hardwood logs or wood chip beds, outdoors

      Logs go half-buried on their side in a shady spot. They take longer to colonize but fruit for several years (GroCycle).

    How to grow pioppino, step by step

    1. Prepare and sterilize the substrate

      Fill bags with supplemented hardwood sawdust or chopped straw. The Iranian trial autoclaved its bags at 15 psi (121°C) for 120 minutes (Rezaeian et al.). See sterilization vs pasteurization.

    2. Spawn and incubate

      Mix in grain spawn once the bags have cooled; the Iranian trial used 5% of the dry substrate weight. Keep the bags closed at 72–77°F (22–25°C) (Rezaeian et al., Jeon et al.). Colonization is done when the block is white throughout.

    3. Cut the top and let it pin in the bag

      Make a small cut at the top of the bag, under the seam, and stand it upright in your fruiting chamber at 55–65°F and 95–100% RH (North Spore booklet). Done when pins appear, 2–5 days in for a kit (GroCycle).

    4. Open up the bag and fruit

      Once pins form, cut off the top of the bag, leaving sidewalls about 4 in tall. Hold 85–95% and keep CO2 under 2,000 ppm (North Spore booklet). Done when the first veils break, 6–10 days after pinning (GroCycle).

    What's different about growing pioppino?

    Pioppino has a new name

    Pioppino is the same mushroom as Agrocybe aegerita. DNA work moved it to the genus Cyclocybe in 2014, so its current name is Cyclocybe aegerita (Frings et al., via PMC). It's also called the black poplar mushroom after its favorite host, though it grows on willow, elm, maple and other broadleaf trees (GroCycle).

    It grows outdoors on logs

    Pioppino suits a shady garden: hardwood logs half-buried on their side can fruit for several years (GroCycle). Mushroom Mountain lists fruiting temperatures of 45–60°F (7–16°C) and says it typically fruits outdoors in spring (Mushroom Mountain); GroCycle finds it in the wild in late summer and fall (GroCycle).

    Yields vary a lot by substrate

    Researchers report low biological efficiency for pioppino on most substrates tested, under 100% in most studies. One 2022 trial reached about 194% on 78% wheat straw with 20% wheat bran, and 123% on a supplemented wood-chip mix (Rezaeian et al.).

    When and how do you harvest pioppino?

    Pick pioppino when the first veils break, while the caps are still rounded. Pick earlier, before the veil breaks, for a longer shelf life (North Spore booklet). GroCycle picks when caps are 0.5–1.5 in (1–4 cm) across, before they flatten (GroCycle). Twist the whole cluster off at the base, then trim away the substrate.

    North Spore expects two flushes from a block (North Spore booklet). Our second-flush guide covers resting and soaking between them.

    Common pioppino problems

    Pins dry out or never form

    Humidity during pinning is the hardest part of growing pioppino indoors. In a dry room, use a humidity tent or a fruiting chamber (GroCycle). Our pinning guide works through the other causes.

    Colonized but won't pin

    Check the block is fully colonized, the chamber is cooler than the spawn run, and humidity holds at 95–100% while it pins (North Spore booklet). None of the guides or trials we checked uses a cold shock: Korean bottles moved from 22–23°C to 18–20°C (64–68°F) and pinned in about 7 days (Jeon et al.).

    Mushrooms growing inside the bag

    Squeeze the air out of the bag after you cut it and fold the flap under, so pins form at the opening (North Spore help center). Pioppino already fruiting inside can be ignored, or broken off and composted (North Spore help center).

    Long, thin stems with tiny caps

    Pioppino has long, thin stems anyway (GroCycle), but stems that stretch while the caps stay small point to too much CO2 (Cornell Small Farms and Fungi Ally). Add fresh air to get under North Spore's 2,000 ppm (North Spore booklet).

    Green patches on the block

    Green mold is usually Trichoderma. Korean breeders found the pioppino cultivars they tested resisted Trichoderma poorly (Jeon et al.). Check it against our contamination guide.

    Tracking a pioppino grow in Hypha

    Hypha tracks each pioppino block from inoculation to harvest and logs every flush. Its reminders come from typical timings, and you can change them for each block. The photo journal keeps pictures by grow, so you can compare pin sets side by side. Strain performance shows each strain's success and contamination rates.

    Get Hypha free

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    Pioppino growing FAQ

    How long does pioppino take to grow?

    Pioppino takes about 4–6 weeks from spawning a bag to the first harvest (GroCycle), and about 50 days in Korean sawdust bottles (Jeon et al.). A ready-to-fruit kit pins in 2–5 days and is ready 6–10 days later (GroCycle).

    Can you grow pioppino indoors?

    Yes, pioppino grows indoors in bags, jars or monotubs on chopped straw or hardwood sawdust (GroCycle). The hard part is holding 95–100% humidity while it pins, so use a fruiting chamber or a humidity tent.

    What temperature does pioppino need?

    Pioppino fruits at 55–65°F (13–18°C) (GroCycle, North Spore booklet). It colonizes warmer, at 22–25°C (72–77°F) in research trials (Rezaeian et al., Jeon et al.).

    Is pioppino hard to grow?

    Pioppino is moderately hard: harder than oyster because it's more sensitive to temperature and humidity. GroCycle says it shouldn't be a problem once you've grown oysters (GroCycle), and North Spore's booklet lists it as an advanced species (North Spore booklet).

    Is pioppino the same as Agrocybe aegerita?

    Yes. Agrocybe aegerita is pioppino's older name. It was moved to Cyclocybe in 2014, and Cyclocybe aegerita is the current name (Frings et al., via PMC).

    Sources

    1. GroCycle (grocycle.com/pioppino-mushrooms)
    2. North Spore booklet (cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/2418/8179/files/FruitingBlockBooklet…)
    3. Rezaeian et al., Asian Journal of Mycology (asianjournalofmycology.org/pdf/AJOM_5_1_3.pdf)
    4. Jeon et al., Korea Journal of Breeding Science (db.koreascholar.com/Article/Detail/34657)
    5. GroCycle (grocycle.com/how-long-does-it-take-to-grow-mushrooms)
    6. Mushroom Mountain (mushroommountain.com/black-poplar-piopinno-agrocybe-aegerita)
    7. Jeon et al. (db.koreascholar.com/Article/Detail/34598)
    8. Frings et al., via PMC (pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7541202)
    9. North Spore help center (north-spore.reamaze.io/kb/troubleshooting-your-spray-and-grow-kit/sho…)
    10. North Spore help center (north-spore.reamaze.io/kb/troubleshooting-your-spray-and-grow-kit/whe…)
    11. Cornell Small Farms and Fungi Ally (projects.sare.org/media/pdf/S/p/e/Specialty_Mushroom_Farm_Book__…)

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