Tricks of Composting : Compost Moisture

COMPOST MOISTURE

The moisture content of compost at spawning should be at 65 to 72 percent for compost. These ranges are generally accurate for optimum spawn growth and assume a resilient compost structure. However, exceptions do occur where spawn growth, and eventual yield, will be optimum outside the ranges given.

Too much water or too little water, depending on the texture of the compost, may cause difficulty in properly "cooking" the compost. This effect of compost moisture outside the desired range on spawn growth is generally not a direct effect, but an indirect one.

Example: Too wet = anaerobic compost;

Too dry = too little moisture for thermophiles.

One direct effect that is generally accepted is that moisture can influence size of mushrooms, i.e., dry compost = small mushrooms. Also, "weepers" - mushrooms from which water exudes - occur with very dry compost.