
Originally Posted by
Kirika-
Generally, the "special features" of a gathering node will be visible on the node's loot window, at the bottom edge of it. There may be some math involved in some cases, like if your GP max is below a certain number, the feature wont be active or such, but that has the info about extra attempts or extra items per-hit. Basically, the higher level your gathering skill and the better gears and gathering stats you have, the potential for more of and higher quality items per-hit you get.
The HQ percentage bonus is generally shown in the upper left of the nodes window.
Also, sometimes when you target the node, but do not have it open, some feature info may be present on the target info line next to your target.
So, the text is always somewhere on the node.
Activate Perception skill to see additional info on the node's loot window as to percentage chances for HQ per-item.
As for if a node has special features, it is all RNG, however normally at least one node in a node cluster (4 for ARR, 6 for HW/SB/ShB) will always have an increased item count of at least 2 per-hit.
There are also special nodes, Ephemeral, Legendary, and Unspoiled, that can appear at certain times and for a certain duration, of which the latter two require skills to even detect.
Lastly, most nodes also have "hidden" items and "rare" items that are not always visible, but can sometimes be reveled through RNG or skills.