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High humidity is required, but only during the 5 days that the mushrooms are actually growing. The rest of the time they will have access to plenty of moisture from within the bag.
During this stage optimally humidity will be about 80-90%
Our rule of thumb: if you think the mushroom growing location would be a good place to dry damp clothing. That would be a bad spot!
Growing Oyster mushrooms is best done indoors. Here's a rundown of the best locations in your house.
See our more in-depth article about the best locations to grow mushrooms
Inside the shower stall will be the most humid area in your house, and a good spot to put it while you are learning the ropes. Just put it on a plastic stool after you have had a shower. Bathrooms are also good, especially in winter. Close the door if you are operating heatpumps.
Many people have done well, growing mushrooms in the kitchen. Keep a close eye on them, if it's struggling then move them to the shower/bathroom. Garage, sheds and greenhouses are generally okay, as long as they are a little damp and not too hot over summer. Also, keep an eye out for pests.
If you have one of these, you can check the natural humidity in different areas of the house to identify a good location. You will have a couple of weeks before the mushrooms start growing to work out where to put them.
These are the best solution for raising humidity but requires preparation to use them properly. Generally, you will need to do this in a container to trap the humidity or it will quickly dissipate.
An alternative to this could be to use misters used for aroma therapy or room humidifiers.
This can work well, particularly during warmer months as it required natural evaporation of water to raise humidity. It will also need to be done in a container like a large plastic tub. The tub will need to have air holes created and possibly a small USB fan (on a timer) to create airflow.
Pour it into the bottom of the container till about 7cm covers the bottom. Then pour in a litre or two of water. The idea is that it’s not fully submerged. The perlite is porus and has the effect of massively increasing the surface area of the water, aiding in rapid evaporation.
If you have it located in an enclosed space, a cheap USB fan should move enough air to keep it fresh (as long as its pulling ‘in’ fresh air. We recommend having this on a timer set to 15min every hour. Again this is only required for the 5 days that the mushrooms are growing.
The growing mushrooms will need plenty of fresh air. If they are in an enclosed location they will quickly build up carbon dioxide, through their respiration, much like we would. This will cause the mushrooms to deform, often growing long stems and small caps.
This is the simplest method as it does not require any additional equipment or building a container. However, it works best only in situations where you already have a fairly high level of natural humidity. So, it should work if you have it in a bathroom, or possibly a kitchen. The frequency of misting will depend on the location, so may require some trial and error to get right. If it is in a bad location the misting method will not be enough.
If you have green thumbs and enjoy growing indoor plants, you can arrange them in a way that they will add to the humidity and oxygen available to the mushrooms.
Although technical here’s some information about how Spider and Jade Plants can Improve relative humidity inside the home. https://krex.k-state.edu/dspace/bitstream/handle/2097/35195/803.full.pdf
For the same reason, an active glasshouse can also work well. However, see our tips on mushroom pests.
Plants from Bunnings garden centre.
Large plastic containers are great at raising humidity and keeping it in, but they will need to be ventilated as they will not allow enough air exchange. This will lead to deformed mushrooms. When using a container you will need to balance the humidity, with fresh air without drying the mushrooms. For instance, a fan blowing directly onto the mushroom will dry it quickly.
See our article about building a humidi-crib
An alternative would be to use a small photographic ‘light’ tent or soft box . This has the added benefit of making it easier to photograph while it is growing.
Levels of humidity, within your home, will fluctuate depending on the time of year.
Good, especially if there has been raining or you live next to the ocean or have plenty of bush/forest nearby.
Perfect. Early autumn is the best time for mushroom growth as the weather is generally warm with high rainfall.
Care required: Winter can be difficult. This is because we often have heating and ventilation systems within the home to keep it dry, and to stop other pesky fungi like moulds from growing. Much of the humidity in the air will also condense on windows. Extra care needs to be taken. Note: Throughout most of NZ lack of humidity is the problem, not the temperature.
See our article about growing mushrooms in winter
Good: Like autumn this can be a good time of year as natural humidity will be raising and with windows open, some of the humidity outside is allowed in. However, depending on where you live.
