Gardening Compilation - Basics, Combinations, and Loops

Since the other thread is huge, I thought extracting all the useful bits we've discovered and condensing them into one post would make it easy to find what you want without sifting through pages of test posts. Also doubles as a guide to a new gardener, I guess.

If I have missed anything, if more combinations have been confirmed, or if I have made any mistakes (typos), please post here. Otherwise, let's continue using the other thread for discussing and sharing.

Credits go to:

YuniaAura, for all of her testing and detailed data charts.
Percyphanie, for her guide on how to grow glazenuts.
GarionVale, for his discovery of when crossing takes place.

and all other contributors to this thread (there are too many people to list individually, sorry).


Supplies
Planting Basics
Confirmed Combinations

The Basics
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Supplies
Thanalan Soil is the most important (and likely most expensive) item you'll need to gather or buy as it is the catalyst for intercrossing and producing the seeds you will need. La Noscean and Shroud Soil have more situational uses - ultimately, it is up to the gardener to decide if they have enough seeds to invest in getting HQ materials (for example, Star Anise or Dalamud Popotos) or increased yield.

Soil is gathered by MIN. Everything else is gathered by BTN.

1 star items will be marked with a *. For these, having full HQ i55 BTN/MIN gear will be sufficient.
2 star items will be marked with **. For these, you will need a minimum of 370 gathering. Please refer to this resource for how to achieve that stat.

Almond Seeds
Location: Eastern La Noscea (near 19,25)
http://i.imgur.com/RkSHHcr.png

Minimum Level: 36
Notes: Also gatherable via Retainer Ventures (level 40 Botanist)

Chamomile Seeds
Location: Upper La Noscea (near 14,24)
http://i.imgur.com/bAWBSH1.png

Minimum Level: 21
Notes: Also gatherable via Retainer Ventures (level 24 Botanist)

Dzemael Tomato Seeds*
Location: Eastern La Noscea (near 17,27)
http://i.imgur.com/1j0AYxQ.png

Time: 1 PM
Slot: 1
Notes: Teleport to Wineport and travel southwest.

Fishmeal
Purchased from Housing Merchant for 21 gil each, or crafted by Culinarian (level 5 recipe).
http://i.imgur.com/5gZTJjF.png

See: Lominsan Anchovy

Grade 2 La Noscean Topsoil
Location:

Grade 2 Shroud Topsoil
Location: East Shroud (around 18,24)
http://i.imgur.com/pL2p9Ew.png

Notes: Teleport to Hawthorne Hut and travel north.

Grade 2 Thanalan Topsoil
Location: Western Thanalan (near 22,23)
http://i.imgur.com/60sotrF.png

Notes: The nodes are in the valley. Teleport to Horizon and travel south, or teleport to Ul'dah and go to Gate of the Sultana and travel west.

Grade 3 La Noscean Topsoil**
Location: Middle La Noscea (around 24,27)
http://i.imgur.com/QUYwkPg.png

Time: 7 PM
Slot: 8
Notes: Teleport to Limsa Lominsa, go to Zephyr Gate from the aetheryte, and travel southeast.

Grade 3 Shroud Topsoil**
Location: South Shroud (around Camp Tranquil)
http://i.imgur.com/5OwZVez.png

Time: 6 AM
Slot: 8
Notes: Teleport to Camp Tranquil and travel south.

Grade 3 Thanalan Topsoil**
Location: Western Thanalan (around 19,28)
http://i.imgur.com/1TVdDZB.png

Time: 5 AM
Slot: 8
Notes: The unspoiled nodes spawn near the Silver Bazaar, so teleport either to Horizon or to Ul'dah and go to Gate of the Sultana from the aetheryte.

Honey Lemon Seeds*
Location: Eastern La Noscea (near 27,31)
http://i.imgur.com/RfdbUtY.png

Time: 5 AM
Slot: 1
Notes: Teleport to Costa del Sol and travel west.

Krakka Root Seeds
Location: Goblet, Lavender Beds, or Mist
Notes: Purchased for 3480 gil each from Material Supplier at each housing district's respective market area.

Linseed
Location: South Shroud (near 17,28)
http://i.imgur.com/Rqp6NK3.png

Minimum Level: 31
Notes: Also gatherable via Retainer Ventures (level 31 Botanist)

Lominsan Anchovy
Purchased at Limsa Lominsa from Fishmonger, southwest of Aftcastle aetheryte, for 7 gil each or
Location: Western Thanalan (15,27)
http://i.imgur.com/FVw3CKK.png

Bait: Lugworm (bought from Fieldcraft Merchant in Limsa Lominsa, Hawkers' Alley)
Notes: Crescent Cove has a 100% catch rate on anchovies. You can get there by using the ferry from Limsa (west of Arcanist's Guild) to get to Vesper Bay, then travel east, or you can teleport to Horizon and travel west.

Mandrake Seeds
Location: Eastern La Noscea (near 26,30)
http://i.imgur.com/DNx0lyF.png

Minimum Level: 31
Notes: Also gatherable via Retainer Ventures (level 33 Botanist)

Midland Cabbage Seeds
Location: North Shroud (near 23,25)
http://i.imgur.com/k25MWcS.png

Minimum Level: 26
Notes: Also gatherable via Retainer Ventures (level 28 Botanist)

Prickly Pineapple Seeds*
Location: Eastern La Noscea (near 31,26)
http://i.imgur.com/B7lPIUn.png

Time: 9 AM
Slot: 1
Notes: Teleport to Costa del Sol and travel north.

Rolanberry Seeds
Location: Upper La Noscea (near 34,24)
http://i.imgur.com/nzevTiH.png

Minimum Level: 41
Notes: Also gatherable via Retainer Ventures (level 43 Botanist)

Sun Lemon Seeds
Location: Lower La Noscea (near 34, 17)
http://i.imgur.com/s5QUOFA.png

Minimum Level: 16
Notes: Also gatherable via Retainer Ventures (level 17 Botanist)

Planting
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Now that you've gotten soil and seeds (hopefully), you'll want to plant them. Simply click on an empty plot, place the desired soil on the left side of the menu that pops up and place the desired seed on the right side.

http://i.imgur.com/utoRbHu.png

As a recap of what each of the soils do,

Thanalan Soil: Significantly increases the chances of intercrossing taking place. Grade 3 is reported to have around a 90% success rate.*

La Noscean Soil: Increases the chances of harvesting HQ crops. This does not work for "deluxe" seeds (e.g. Dalamud Popoto, Star Anise, Glazenut, Chocobo Feed, etc.) because HQ versions of these items do not exist.**

Shroud Soil: Increases the chances of higher yield. Shroud soil doubles normal yield, so you will get 24 for normal crops, 10 for deluxe cooking materials (e.g. Dalamud Popoto, Star Anise), and 18 for chocobo feed (e.g. Krakka Root). It also increases seed yield in the off-chance that it successfully intercrosses without Thanalan Soil. However, this does not work for seeds that yield 1, so you will still receive 1 glazenut, 1 jute, etc.

* Not thoroughly tested, just rough estimates based on a limited number of observations.
** You may verify the non-existence of HQ versions of these items in the official item database.


It is important that you plant them in an alternating and circular fashion (example shown in the image below). There is strong evidence that intercrossing is determined upon planting the seed so you do not want to plant a seed next to nothing if you can avoid it.

http://i.imgur.com/8jP4T43.png

So for example, let's say you want to cross honey lemon and prickly pineapple. This is the order in which you should plant them:

1 - Honey Lemon
2 - Prickly Pineapple
3 - Honey Lemon
4 - Prickly Pineapple
5 - Honey Lemon
6 - Prickly Pineapple
7 - Honey Lemon
8 - Prickly Pineapple


* An optional technique you can use is to plant the cheaper of the two seeds you want to cross (also with cheap soil), plant your next seed normally, remove the cheap seed, and then finish the rest normally. This makes it possible to have up to 8 seeds per bed but it comes at the sacrifice of one seed + soil.

Fertilising and Tending

Plants can be fertilised once every earth hour using Fishmeal to speed up growth by one hour. You'll want to do this as frequently as humanly possible.

Tending keeps the plants from dying. You can tend as many times as you want at any time without negative consequences, but you'll want to do this at least once every 24 hours.

Harvesting
When plants are ready to be harvested, they will grow to max size and sparkle.

http://i.imgur.com/40MSdjI.png

Once plants are fully grown, you will no longer be able to fertilise or tend them. This means that the plants will die if left unharvested for 24 hours. Harvest them as soon as possible!

Combinations and Loops

These have all been confirmed to be 100% pure crosses (i.e. you will get only the seeds advertised). With Grade 3 Thanalan soil, you can expect to get a yield of 5-7 seeds per harvest.

Self-loops are colour coded as green.
Reverse crosses (i.e. using a higher tier seed to produce a lower one) are colour coded as red.

Once thorough testing has been done on all possible combinations here, I'll attempt to make a flow chart/tree diagram as a visual aid.

MSPaints because I'm terrible at drawing. If someone can make something prettier, please do. @.@

http://i.imgur.com/MWXGlmb.png

Apricot
Honey Lemon + Prickly Pineapple
Prickly Pineapple + Rolanberry
Glazenut + Sun Lemon

Azeyma Rose
Linseed + Mandrake

Broombush
Halone Gerbera + Almond
Nymeia Lily + Almond
Any Minion + Any Minion*
Broombush + Almond

Dalamud Popoto
Dzemael Tomato + Midland Cabbage
Dalamud Popoto + Star Anise

Glazenut
Royal Kukuru Bean + Apricot
Glazenut + Apricot

Halone Gerbera
Azeyma Rose + Chamomile

Jute
Star Anise + Almond
Star Anise + Shroud Tea
King Tomato + Almond
Mandragora Queen + Almond
Jute + Mandrake
Broombush + Azeyma Rose

Nymeia Lily
Almond + Mandrake
Jute + Linseed

Pearl Roselle
King Tomato + Mandrake

Royal Kukuru Bean
Apricot + Honey Lemon
Royal Kukuru + Honey Lemon
Glazenut + Honey Lemon
Glazenut + Rolanberry

Star Anise
Azeyma Rose + Mandrake
Onion Prince + Linseed
Glazenut + Garlic Jester
Star Anise + Linseed

* Any Minion = Eggplant Knight, Garlic Jester, King Tomato, Mandragora Queen, Onion Prince

Chocobo Feed (WIP, not 100% guaranteed)

Curiel Root
Krakka Root + Chamomile (Not a pure cross, can also produce Pearl Ginger seeds)

Gysahl Green
Krakka Root + Coerthas Carrot
Gysahl Green + Krakka Root
Thavnairian Onion + Krakka Root

Mimett Gourd
Krakka Root + Midland Cabbage
Krakka Root + Prickly Pineapple

Sylkis Bud
Krakka Root + Almond (Not a pure cross, can also produce Mandrake seeds)

Tantalplant
Krakka Root + Wizard Eggplant
Krakka Root + Honey Lemon

Thavnairian Onion
Curiel Root + Broombush
Mimett Gourd + Glazenut
Mimett Gourd + Nymeia Lily
Sylkis Bud + Jute
Sylkis Bud + Nymeia Lily
Sylkis Bud + Royal Kukuru Bean (Not a pure cross, can also produce Apricot seeds)

Minions

Eggplant Knight
Mandrake + Wizard Eggplant
Krakka Root + Star Anise
Krakka Root + Garlic Jester
Krakka Root + Onion Prince
Onion Prince + Wild Onion

Garlic Jester
Garlic Clove + Mandrake

King Tomato
Sylkis Bud + Almond

Mandragora Queen
Nymeia Lily + Mandrake

Onion Prince
Krakka Root + Mandrake

Based on the theory that cross breeding happens at planting time - You might add a little description during planting to try planning to plant nine spaces. Start with slot 8 and put an cheaper seed there that you cross with slot 1. This will let the plant at slot 1 crossbreed with slot 8. After planting slot 1, then pull up/remove slot 8 - and plant from 2 through 8 - just like you suggest.

Using your example - to try to get all slots to try to cross breed - I'd plant slot 8 as honey lemon (the cheaper seed), then slot 1 as pineapple, pull up slot 8, then continue planting from slot 2 through 8 (honey lemon, pineapple, etc).

I'm experimenting with starting in slot 8 with the cheaper seed (Chamomile) - to get slot 1(Azeyma Rose) to crossbreed. I'm hoping for eight cross breedings with a result of Halone Gerbera. I'll post the results once I see how this idea works out.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Fleur-C

Based on the theory that cross breeding happens at planting time - You might add a little description during planting to try planning to plant nine spaces. Start with slot 8 and put an cheaper seed there that you cross with slot 1. This will let the plant at slot 1 crossbreed with slot 8. After planting slot 1, then pull up/remove slot 8 - and plant from 2 through 8 - just like you suggest.

Using your example - to try to get all slots to try to cross breed - I'd plant slot 8 as honey lemon (the cheaper seed), then slot 1 as pineapple, pull up slot 8, then continue planting from slot 2 through 8 (honey lemon, pineapple, etc).

I'm experimenting with starting in slot 8 with the cheaper seed (Chamomile) - to get slot 1(Azeyma Rose) to crossbreed. I'm hoping for eight cross breedings with a result of Halone Gerbera. I'll post the results once I see how this idea works out.

---

Personally, I'm not a fan of doing that because you still sacrifice 1 seed + 1 soil for 1 seed - i.e. you're planting 9 times for 8 seeds vs. 8 times for 7 seeds. It can work if the seed is cheap or easy to come by and you have extra Grade 1 soil lying around. I'll edit my post to mention it though.

Edit: Didn't consider that you save time too. Time vs. cost, I guess.

I do do same - plant 1 to 8, then remove 1 (cheapest seed) and re-plant it. It's slightly better than what Fleur is using as the re-plant happens at the end of the planting loop rather than at the start so the plant is surrounded by two already planted seeds rather than by one. And indeed time is of the essence here, seeds and soil are easilly obtainable (most of them in max 1 hour either by yourself or via retainers) so this this definitelly preferable way of planting as long as there is affordable / "disposable" seed in the loop. This is anyway only valid for planting into completely empty patches as once the loops are running there are usually discrepancies in harverst times so as long as you're keeping the same loop running you'd usually have some plants still in while (re-)planting new seeds in between.

forgive me for thread necro, but can anyone help me with this, I can't seem to find this info anywhere

Quote:

---

so you will get 24 for normal crops, 10 for deluxe cooking materials (e.g. Dalamud Popoto, Star Anise), and 18 for chocobo feed (e.g. Krakka Root). It also increases seed yield in the off-chance that it successfully intercrosses without Thanalan Soil. However, this does not work for seeds that yield 1, so you will still receive 1 glazenut, 1 jute, etc.

---

Is there an online listing of what seed types yield which amount of crop when harvested? Including a list of all the seeds that yield just 1 item? It'd be really useful when trying to decide which items are profitable to grow when not just going for intercrossing

thanks ^^