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Temperature and Humidity Management for Hericium erinaceus Fruiting Bodies

Fruiting stage starts after unbagging/arranging *Hericium erinaceus* cultivation bags; managing temperature, humidity, light, and air is critical for high yield/quality of bag-grown mushrooms.     - Shelf/bed cultivation enables manual control of these factors; open-field cultivation relies on natural regulation (except specific measures below).   Temperature Management   - *Key Traits & Optimal Range*: Mesophilic fungus; fruiting requires 16–20°C (ambient) and ~25°C (bag internal). Under optimal temp, buds mature to harvestable mushrooms in 15–20 days.     - *Risks of Temp Extremes*:       - >23°C: Slow growth, deformed (cauliflower-like/bare) mushrooms; >25°C: Mushroom shrinkage.       - <12°C: Orange-red mushrooms, slow growth; <6°C: Growth stops.       - *Critical*: 16–20°C is mandatory for primordium formation (no primordia if violated).     - *Regulation Methods*:       - High temp (>20°C): Thicken shading (or add straw for open-field), spray roof water (9 AM–3 PM, cools 3–5°C), mist air, irrigate furrows, stagger ventilation (morning/evening).       - Low temp (<16°C): Reduce shading ("7 shades 3 suns"), seal film morning/evening for insulation (ventilate midday).   Humidity Management    - *Optimal RH & Risks*: Maintain 85%–90% RH (≈90% for young mushrooms).       - <70% RH: Growth stops, permanent mushroom scars; >95% RH + poor ventilation: Bacterial contamination.     - *Humidity Judgment & Watering Rules*:       - Judge by spines: Bright white/elastic = good; yellow/underdeveloped spines = low humidity (needs water).       - Watering frequency: 3x/day (primordium) → 2x/day (bud stage) → 1x/day/none (spines >0.3 cm). Stop 5 days pre-harvest (no spray 1 day pre-harvest/harvest day).       - *Key*: Avoid over-watering/direct spray on mushrooms; ventilate ≥24 hours post-spray.     - *Regulation Methods*:       - Low RH (<85%): Seal bed with film, irrigate furrows, mist/humidify, cover young buds with non-woven fabric/gauze.       - High RH (>90%): Remove bed plastic film to boost ventilation (all cultivation methods).