I'm one day away from my second spring..what should i know/do this year?

[Genius Destroyer]

ok..so im on my last day of winter..spring is round the corner..THIS TIME i want to get my farm looking good with crops and the like

spring-summer i spent doing fishing mining and foraging and a BIT of farming

fall- i spent fixing my farm up with fences and clearing space out while mining to make gold

winter- talking to locals mining for money and upgrading my tools as well as clearing my farm out

that was what i did last year

also..why does winter farming (with the seeds) give no farming EXP?..Hmmm

and the iriduim sprinkler i can buy for 10k gold..is it worth getting one?

my stats are

Farming 1
Mining 9
Forgaing 7
Fishing 8
Combat 9

i've reached the final floor of the mines
i have access to the sewer

steel pickaxe
gold axe
silver hoe
steel watering can
iridium rod
kitchen
17k gold

so what seeds and such should i go for?..cos if making seeds gives no farming EXP..i'm not going to do that

what about pricey fruit trees? are they worth it (i kinda want a peach tree)

oh ya i also have a ancient seed!

any help for a clueless farming would be helpful thank you!

[Desperado]

which quest line are you gonna follow? If you're gonna head for Community Center, I'd suggest you find out which season-specific crops you need for the bundles (especially the gold star ones are a pain in the *** due to lack of farming experience in the first years).

Don't buy fruit trees too hastily. 17k of gold is close to nothing ;) you're gonna need the greater part of it for seeds and fertilizer (be sure to buy - or better: craft - those fertilizers that guarantee higher quality crops or increased growth rate). and don't buy the iridium sprinkler! Just use your watering can.

when I was new to my farm I'd make money from selling fish and gems. I'd only do the farming for experience and bundles.

[Woudo]

Originally posted by Vicardium Synvos:

also..why does winter farming (with the seeds) give no farming EXP?..Hmmm

Because they count as foraged items and give forage experience instead. Forage skills like Botanist and Gatherer will also apply to farmed forage.

[Nakos]

Uh ... I'm not sure why you avoided farming during your first year.

Fishing, mining, those are great and some people love them, but ... farming has the largest money making potential.

You don't need the entire farm clear, just enough to start planting what you have the time and energy to water.

The best crops for the early game (and given a farming level of 1, that's still pretty much where you are) are the berries: Strawberries, Blueberries, and Cranberries.

Spring time is Strawberry time, the problem here is that you can't buy them at the store. You can only buy Strawberry seeds at the Egg Festival, which takes place part way through the season. If you have Seeds at the start, you can get 5 harvests, however, if you plant after the festival, you'll only have time for two harvests, so ... I recommend buying some Strawberry seeds when you can, but don't plant them until the start of year 3.


Do NOT buy an Iridium Sprinkler. Yes, they're powerful, yes, you need them. But with only $17k, you can't afford one. Krobus sells one (1) every Friday, you'll have more chances later and it's more important to put your existing money into seeds.

What you should do ... (ugh ... you don't have sufficient farming skill yet) ... what you should do, is build the type 2 sprinklers (which take Iron, Gold and Refined Quartz to make), stockpile those materials for when your farming skill is high enough to learn the recipe.


Buy some of every kind of seed.

Plant what you have the time and energy to water.

In absence of Strawberries, the humble Parsnip actually has one of the highest ROI's, however, it requires a lot of work. Still, plant some of everything. In your case, I'd say plant a LOT of Parsnips, because you need to put in the labor to gain some skill.

Some crops are one time crops (Potatos, Cauliflower, Garlic, Kale), and some last the entire season and have multiple crops (Strawberries, Beans).

Potatos are probably your best compromise between return on investment, and time spent, plant a lot of potatos. Don't get too invested in Kale, it gives you a big payoff, but the ROI is low.

You'll have to learn what you can manage, and without sprinklers, you'll need to water by hand, so ... don't over plant or you'll be spending half your day tending crops.

I'd probably tell you to plan for 40 to 50 plants at a time, at least at first until you get a feel for what you can handle.

When your one time crops are ripe, harvest and then replant. Be sure you calculate whether or not you have enough time though, it's painful to invest in a lot of Cauliflower and not have it ripen in time (and lose your investment).

When Summer comes, again, plant some of everything. Hopefully by then you'll be able to make some sprinklers, but if not, focus on Blueberries. Wheat is very labor intensive, but has a high ROI (and can be converted into Beer if you have Kegs). Also, grow Hops.

More crops are better, but they take time, even when you do have Sprinklers. Plant what you have the time/energy/patience to water and tend to.

[ms99v3]

Ditto suggestions from stewartgilligangriffin & nakos. I used other strategy and am level 10 for farming & foraging.
I did plant crops like kale, green bean, and a few garlic since I want to complete the achievements - polyculture, mono culture etc.
Also, if you have not unlocked the bus to the desert....do it! Buy rhubard seeds at the Oasis, Rhubarb is the BEST in Spring!!
Good luck :)

[Genius Destroyer]

to those wondering why i have 1 farming..i planted and farmed those seeds you can make from crafting foraged fruit/veg/plants and planted them...NOW i know that they give no EXP...

[NotThatHarkness]

Currently using the scythe to harvest also does not give EXP. If you want to level up farming choose other crops.

[ms99v3]

Originally posted by Vicardium Synvos:

to those wondering why i have 1 farming..i planted and farmed those seeds you can make from crafting foraged fruit/veg/plants and planted them...NOW i know that they give no EXP...

Ya, that's a bummer. I actually lucked out in early game since I was so poor & could only afford basic sprinklers & watering can. Plus I was handpicking some crops...Yet my farming experience kept rising! I was working hard at farming so it helped with experience.

[ms99v3]

One more important point, I've never planted more than 80 crops to tend during each season. Spring = strawberries (used parsnips before planting strawberry seeds) then parsnips or potato after harvesting strawberries.
Then Summer = blueberries (make some preserve jars for jam) then grow hops (make kegs to brew hops in between & make wine).
Sell the Gold quality items (save 5 melons, corn, pumpkins for CCtr)
Again, once u save up some $$$ be sure to complete Vault in CCtr to repair bus. Then u can buy Rhubarb seeds for Spring.

[No Such User]

When you can make preserves jars and kegs don't sell anything without processing it first -- it is just giving money away.

Also if you plants beans, grapes or hops be careful how you arrange them because you can't walk through them.

~NSU~

[HamsterRetired]

just stop wasting Your life playing a game that actually never ends because it's only destroying real life

[Mountain King]

Originally posted by SirBroccoli:

just stop wasting Your life playing a game that actually never ends because it's only destroying real life

Only a true badass talks crap about other people's game choices from behind a private profile.

Queue "hurr durr i liek mah privazee" response.

[kevinshow]

Year 2 is when I actually could make kegs, preserve jars, bee hives, etc. In other words, instead of just barely scraping by with selling basic produce, I now turned them into artisan products and the money came rolling in. Suddenly I had enough for coops and barns and because of needing to take care of those things, I didn't have time to run the mines as much, so I began using money for buying copper, iron, gold, and coal, and the money still kept rolling in.

So I think that's what you can prepare for, if you have the crafting recipes. Based on what you said, it sounds like you barely did any farming, so I'm not sure what recipes needed farming level-ups, but if you don't have them yet, there you go. That's something to work towards.