Stardew Valley's gameplay is measured in years, which are each, in turn, divided into the four seasons, each a month long. The season of Summer holds a variety of useful events, forageable items, and crops, both for the game's story, or personal, fun gameplay.
Summer, in all its sunny wonder, is a pretty great season for growing crops. There are quite a few available, and some of them can really pull in a nice chunk of change. However, there are also some crops that aren't anything to write home about in the profit department. With so many choices, figuring out which crops to grow can be stressful. Luckily, we have some recommendations for crops you should grow, as well as some that should maybe reconsider.
Updated on November 25, 2021 by Michael Christopher: We've given this list a rejig to make it more readable and helpful. You'll now find info on each crop at a glance, with some supplementary info under each.
Summer Crops To Avoid
While Summer crops are, overall, pretty decent, some of them might not be worth the space on your farm.
Corn
Seed Cost |
|
---|---|
Location |
Price |
Pierre's |
150g |
JojaMart (no membership) |
187g |
Produce Sell Price |
|
Quality |
Price |
Normal |
50g |
Silver |
62g |
Gold |
75g |
Iridium |
100g |
Growing Cycle |
|
14 days |
Continuous harvest (every 4 days) |
Not all mutli-harvest or multi-season crops are equal, as corn clearly shows. It's a rather expensive seed that turns over very little profit, whether grown for one or two seasons. It is, however, necessary to complete two Community Center bundles, and can appear as the desired item in a miscellaneous "Help Wanted" quest.
But the crop itself is a weaker gift, being disliked by several villagers and even hated by one. It can, however, be made into a tortilla or cooking oil for several recipes, all of which make better gifts or better profits than a plain old cob of corn. You should try to use the crop to complete the Community Center bundles, but otherwise, it's probably a plant to be avoided in Summer.
Poppy
Seed Cost |
|
---|---|
Location |
Price |
Pierre's |
100g |
JojaMart (no membership) |
125g |
Produce Sell Price |
|
Quality |
Price |
Normal |
140g |
Silver |
175g |
Gold |
210g |
Iridium |
280g |
Growing Cycle |
|
7 days |
Single harvest |
Flowers in Stardew Valley are typically the weakest crops, and the Poppy is no different. It does make a small profit compared to its price, but certainly not enough to make up for its detractions. While used in a Community Center bundle, it does not appear in any other quests, and is almost a universally terrible gift, hated by all but one villager (Penny, who loves it).
It's also used in only one cooking recipe, Poppyseed Muffin, which has no good buffs (though it's a slightly better gift), and like many other flowers, its color variants means it takes up way too much inventory space. Grow it for the Community Center if necessary, but otherwise, Poppies are a flower to be avoided.
Sunflower
Seed Cost |
|
---|---|
Location |
Price |
Pierre's |
200g |
JojaMart (no membership) |
125g |
Produce Sell Price |
|
Quality |
Price |
Normal |
80g |
Silver |
100g |
Gold |
120g |
Iridium |
160g |
Growing Cycle |
|
8 days |
Single harvest; has a chance to drop more seeds |
Perhaps among the worst crops in Stardew Valley, the sunflower is, yet again, more reason to not cultivate flowers. Even as a multi-season crop, it's only single harvest, and sells for so little compared to its purchase price that you will almost always be at a net loss in profit. This little flower is necessary to complete a bundle in the Community Center, but it's not used in any other quest, nor is it used in any cooking recipes.
Although sunflowers can be processed into cooking oil like Corn, the latter is far cheaper in price and ultimately the better buy. At best, it makes for a somewhat decent gift, enjoyed by all but three villagers (Clint, George, and Sebastian all dislike it), but that's such a small benefit compared to the net loss from the plant. Without a doubt, Sunflowers should definitely not be a part of any sunny Summer fields.
Summer Spangle
Seed Cost |
|
---|---|
Location |
Price |
Pierre's |
50g |
JojaMart (no membership) |
62g |
Produce Sell Price |
|
Quality |
Price |
Normal |
90g |
Silver |
112g |
Gold |
135g |
Iridium |
180g |
Growing Cycle |
|
8 days |
Single harvest |
Flowers are such a debatable item in Stardew Valley. One one hand, they're aesthetically pleasing and almost always generate a decent profit, compared to price. On the other hand, they usually have no use in bundles or recipes, and whether they're appreciated as a gift is always a tossup.
All of this applies to the Summer Spangle. It does generate a small profit and makes an okay gift — liked by most and even loved by one villager (Caroline), but also hated by a few — but outside from these few things, it has little usage. It's not the worst crop by far, but it has such little value in the end, that you should probably avoid cultivating this bloom.
Summer Crops To Grow
You're spoiled by choice in the Summer, which has more crops than any other season. However, these crops will serve you best.
Starfruit
Seed Cost |
|
---|---|
Location |
Price |
Desert Oasis |
400g |
Pierre's |
Not available |
JojaMart (no membership) |
Not available |
Produce Sell Price |
|
Quality |
Price |
Normal |
750g |
Silver |
937g |
Gold |
1,125g |
Iridium |
1,500g |
Growing Cycle |
|
13 days |
Single harvest |
Starfruit is often considered one of the single best crops in the entire game. Though it can take a little while to get your hands on the seeds, it's worth the wait for the massive profits you can earn from growing it. To buy the seeds, you'll need to repair the bus by completing the Vault bundles at the Community Center or purchase the repairs from Joja. Either way, you'll gain access to the Calico Desert and the Oasis shop located there. This is one of the only places that sells Starfruit seeds, the other being the Traveling Cart, which has rotating and random stock and is mostly unreliable in this context.
After planting the Starfruit seeds, they'll take almost two weeks to grow under normal circumstances, but they'll sell for a huge profit — the second highest of any crop. Many people build huge empires on producing Starfruit Wine, which is one of the highest-profit items in the entire game.
Pineapple
Seed Cost |
|
---|---|
Location |
Price |
Island Trader |
1x Magma Cap |
Pierre's |
Not available |
JojaMart (no membership) |
Not available |
Produce Sell Price |
|
Quality |
Price |
Normal |
300g |
Silver |
375g |
Gold |
450g |
Iridium |
600g |
Growing Cycle |
|
14 days |
Continuous harvest (every 7 days) |
One of the most recent crops introduced to the game, Pineapple seeds are initially found on Ginger Island, available from a few different sources but most reliably the Island Trader. You'll need to unlock the Island Trader (check out our guide here), and they'll trade you packets of Pineapple seeds for Magma Caps.
Pineapples are a fantastic crop choice, as they are multi-harvest and sell for a nice chunk of change. Unfortunately, their long growth time and full week between harvests make them a little less profitable on your own farm. Luckily, you get your own farm on Ginger Island, where Pineapples will grow happily year-round, producing over and over again.
Melon
Seed Cost |
|
---|---|
Location |
Price |
Pierre's |
80g |
JojaMart (no membership) |
100g |
Produce Sell Price |
|
Quality |
Price |
Normal |
250g |
Silver |
312g |
Gold |
375g |
Iridium |
500g |
Growing Cycle |
|
12 days |
Single harvest |
Two things detract from the Melon: its lengthy growth time, and the fact that it's not a multi-harvest crop. Otherwise, this fruit makes a phenomenal impact on farms! It generates an amazing profit compared to price, and is among the better giftable items/crops in all the game.
It's also used in two bundles (Summer Crops and Quality Crops), as well as two cooking recipes (Fruit Salad and Pink Cake). Melons are also one of only three crops that can become a Giant Crop. This sweet and juicy treat is undoubtedly a plant worth sowing in Stardew Valley's summer season.
Blueberry
Seed Cost |
|
---|---|
Location |
Price |
Pierre's |
80g |
JojaMart (no membership) |
Not available |
Produce Sell Price |
|
Quality |
Price |
Normal |
50g |
Silver |
62g |
Gold |
75g |
Iridium |
100g |
Growing Cycle |
|
13 days |
Continuous harvest (every 4 days); drops 3+ blueberries with each harvest |
Though a single season crop, this multi-harvest fruit definitely makes a bang for its buck, generating one of the highest profits of all crops in all seasons compared to its initial purchase price. But, Blueberries are great for another reason: they drop multiple berries with each harvest. That means one plant can lead to three bottles of Wine (or whatever other artisan good) instead of one, like most other crops.
Blueberries are also necessary to complete a standard Community Center bundle (Summer Crops) and can potentially be used in two remixed bundles, though they're not used in any other quest. It's a relatively decent gift, enjoyed by all but four of the Valley's villagers. Even then, it's also used in two cooking recipes (Blueberry Tart and Fruit Salad), both of which are better gifts and profit-makers on average. This little berry holds many perks, and should definitely be blooming in farmers' fields during the summer. Additionally, they're liked by almost every villager and can be used in three different recipes (Coleslaw, Fish Taco, Red Plate).
Red Cabbage
Seed Cost |
|
---|---|
Location |
Price |
Pierre's |
100g |
JojaMart (no membership) |
Not available |
Produce Sell Price |
|
Quality |
Price |
Normal |
260g |
Silver |
325g |
Gold |
390g |
Iridium |
520g |
Growing Cycle |
|
9 days |
Single harvest |
Red Cabbages are the bane of many speedruns, since, under normal circumstances, they can only be acquired from Year 2 onward. Many people attempt to complete the Community Center in one year, meaning the elusive Red Cabbage seeds at the Traveling Cart (they'll appear randomly, but very rarely, in Year 1), can make or break the playthrough.
Aside from their attempts to ruin speedruns time after time, Red Cabbages are a great Summer crop to grow on your farm. The seed price is pretty steep at 100g, but the sell price of each cabbage more than makes up for that.
Hops
Seed Cost |
|
---|---|
Location |
Price |
Pierre's |
60g |
JojaMart (no membership) |
75g |
Produce Sell Price |
|
Quality |
Price |
Normal |
25g |
Silver |
31g |
Gold |
37g |
Iridium |
50g |
Growing Cycle |
|
11 days |
Continuous harvest (every day) |
While Hops don't look profitable on paper, in practice, they're some of the most profitable crops to grow and an extremely popular choice among the fanbase.
This is because Hops are used to make Pale Ale, which has an amazing return on investment. The base sell price for Pale Ale, without the Artisan Profession or upgraded quality from being in a Cask, is a cool 300g. That only goes up as the quality increases and if you choose the Artisan Profession. Given that the seeds cost around 60g, that's a beautiful profit.
In addition to how great Hops are when processed, they produce every single day after reaching maturity. This means that, once your plants have grown, you will have an entire new batch of Hops to turn into Pale Ale every day.