Indie darling Stardew Valley took the gaming world by storm when it was launched in 2016. At face value, it's a simple farming game where you have inherited your grandfather's farm and must work to restore it to its original glory, with typical RPG elements like finding a romantic partner.

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The gameplay is deeper than just planting seeds and waiting for them to grow; there is more than meets the eye, and it's easy to completely miss some content or tricks to help you progress. Here, we are going to look at things that you may not know to do when first starting the game.

Updated September 12, 2023 by Jacqueline Zalace: Stardew Valley is packed with content, which can be overwhelming if you are new to the farming sim genre. We've added even more things to look out for and cleaned up existing entries to be as helpful as possible.

14 Check The Traveling Cart

Every Friday and Sunday, a Traveling Merchant and her pig will appear in the Cindersap Forest west of the entrance to your farm. This Merchant sells a random assortment of items from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Here, you'll find stuff you need for the Community Center that's hard to come by.

Most of the items carried in the Traveling Cart are things you can earn yourself eventually, but here are some things to definitely be on the lookout for.

It's a great idea to check the Traveling Cart every Friday and Sunday — you never know what you'll find.

13 Plant Your Crops In 3x3 Squares

Stardew Valley allows you to have near-complete control over the layout of your farm, so you can do whatever your heart desires. However, there are some advantages to planting your crops in certain formations.

When Cauliflower, Melon, and Pumpkin are planted in a 3x3 formation and allowed to reach a full-grown state, there's a chance that the middle crop will combine with the eight adjacent ones to form a giant crop instead. Giant crops are harvested with an axe and provide double crops, so you'll get a total of 18 pieces of produce!

Planting things this way looks neat and organized, plus it makes using proximity-based items (like Sprinklers, Scarecrows, and Bee Houses) a lot easier. It's especially helpful for the first two levels of sprinklers. The basic Sprinkler waters four adjacent squares, while the Quality Sprinkler waters the eight adjacent squares, meaning both operate within a 3x3 tile grid.

12 Grow As Much Cauliflower As Possible

Cauliflower is a slow-growing crop that takes a total of 12 days to become full-grown, and its seeds are 80g each at Pierre's, which is pretty pricey in comparison to other Spring crops. It is, however, worth it, because the payout is more than double most other crops.

Even without the Tiller profession (which makes crops worth ten percent more Gold), a single Cauliflower at normal quality is worth 175g, while silver ones are 218g and gold ones are 262g. It can be even more profitable if you save some for when you're able to get your hands on a Preserves Jar to make Pickled Cauliflower.

Money-wise, it's a good idea to grow Cauliflower in addition to other crops, particularly Kale and Strawberries, but focusing on acquiring as much as possible as early as possible is definitely recommended! If you manage to plant them within the first four days of Spring, you can have two separate harvests by the end of the season and rake in a considerable amount of gold.

11 Buy Strawberry Seeds At The Egg Festival

On the 13th day of each Spring season, the Egg Festival takes place. The town is decorated with cutesy pastels and there's an egg hunt where you can compete with your friends and villagers for an exclusive hat.

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However, what's truly important is the fact that the Egg Festival is the only place where you can purchase Strawberry Seeds. Strawberries are a remarkably profitable crop that need eight days to mature and has a chance of giving multiple Strawberries each time it's harvested. After the first harvest, a plant will continue to produce Strawberries every four days.

With no boosts, planting the seeds the day of or after the Egg Festival will allow for two harvests, while planting them the next year will allow for five. It's up to you, just remember that with a Seed Maker, you can always turn Strawberries into Strawberry Seeds to use next spring.

Don't forget you can use Deluxe Speed-Gro to make the plants grow faster, giving you a higher number of harvests per season. This fertilizer isn't unlocked until you reach Level Eight of the farming skill. When planted the day after the Egg Festival with Deluxe Speed-Gro, you can squeeze in three Strawberry harvests.

10 Get Your Hands On Some Machines ASAP

There are many different types of machines in the game. Seed Makers can turn produce into seeds, making it easier to access rarer crops, and Kegs can turn fruits and vegetables into Wine and Juice in seven days, making them worth three times their base value.

A Preserves Jar is unlocked at Farming Level Four, and it turns fruits and vegetables into jelly or pickles. It only needs between two and three days to do it, and it makes any crop worth two times its base price plus 50g. The quality of the crop doesn't make a difference, so it's a good way to squeeze some extra gold out of basic produce.

Preserves Jars are unlocked earlier than Kegs (which you can craft after reaching Farming Level Eight), so it's a great way to make money during the early days. However, both tools are great; generally speaking, lower-value crops are better in Preserves Jars, and higher-value crops will net you more profit when placed in Kegs.

9 Repair The Beach Bridge Before Summer

At the beach, there's a broken bridge that can be repaired using 300 pieces of wood. Across it, there are several tidal pools that contain an exclusive forageable: Sea Urchins. A normal quality Sea Urchin is worth 160g, and one can be used for the Dye Bundle at the Community Center.

Summer is also a great time to get extra forageables. After the Luau on Summer 11, the TV Channel Livin' Off the Land will tell you that Crab Mating season has made the ocean green. During this time, more forageables will wash up on the beaches than usual. So, even if you don't have the bridge by Summer 1, make sure you at least have it finished before the Luau.

8 Farming First, Foraging Second

Running out of energy leaves you unable to do anything and staggering along at a snail's pace. Cutting down trees, smashing rocks, and cutting grass might seem tempting, especially when in the beginning stages of setting up, but it's important to focus on what actually matters: farming.

Planting, watering, and harvesting crops should be the first thing you do with your energy in the mornings. Once you've done your watering, planting, and whatever else you need to do for your crops, it's then worthwhile to go foraging or socializing with the townspeople. Neither of these activities requires any energy.

7 Learn Villager's Preferred Gifts

Going around passing out gifts indiscriminately will make winning the villagers' friendship harder. Each villager has things that they love and things that they hate, and they have a significant impact on your relationships.

For example, Haley dislikes all fruit except for Coconuts, which are one of her favorite things. Taking the time to look into their gift preferences will make playing the social side of the game a lot easier.

It's important to be careful about what you're holding in your hand when you talk to a villager since it will automatically be given to them as a gift!

Once you've given someone something as a gift, it'll show up in the social tab with their preference for it. Use this to keep track of what people — and just as importantly, what they don't. In the early game, though, it's easier to experiment with gift-giving since you don't actually have any hearts to lose.

6 Wait For A Greenhouse Before You Buy Fruit Trees

Fruit trees are incredibly expensive, so it's not likely that you'll be in any rush to sink thousands of gold into one, but even if you are, try to resist that urge! After either completing all of the Pantry bundles in the Community Center or purchasing it from the Joja Community Development Projects, you'll have access to a Greenhouse.

Related: Stardew Valley: A Complete Guide To The Greenhouse

Inside the Greenhouse, you can grow crops regardless of their season. That's why it's the best possible place to plant your fruit trees, but since it's currently not possible to relocate trees without a mod, it's a good idea to just wait it out.

Fruit trees will grow in the Greenhouse if you plant them on the tiles around the plot of land where you can grow crops, even though it doesn't really look like it. They'll grow and produce fruit regardless of season, so it's the best place to get your money's worth from them.

5 Build A Coop & Adopt Chickens

In addition to growing and harvesting crops, you can raise animals such as chickens, goats, and cows. Chickens are a great way to earn some money early in the game. Every morning, chickens will lay eggs worth 50g each. Once they like you, they'll lay large eggs worth 95g. A Mayonnaise Machine can make eggs worth 190g and large eggs worth 285g.

Building a Coop costs 4,000 gold, plus 300 wood and 100 stone. Each chicken will cost 800g and they need to be fed hay, which can be 50g a piece unless you've built a Silo. Simply put, it's a huge investment, but it will be worth it in the long run.

4 Plant Grass For Your Animals

Speaking of hay, we suggest buying some grass starters from Pierre, which can be placed around your farm. Over time, the grass will grow and you can harvest it with a scythe. If you have a silo, the grass will turn into hay and be stored here.

This is a great way to build up your hay collection without spending money on it. Just be sure to do a big harvest before the first day of Winter, as the grass will die.

3 Save Items For The Community Center

After the fifth day of your first Spring, the Community Center will be unlocked by entering town from the Bus Stop, on any Sunny day between 8 a.m. and 1 p.m. When the Community Center is unlocked, so are the first few bundles. Assuming that you choose this path instead of selling out to Joja, those bundles are going to be an important part of your gameplay.

It's a good idea to immediately start saving up at least one of each type of Spring forageable, so you can complete the Spring Foraging bundle as quickly as possible, which will get you a collection of 30 Spring Seeds as a reward and bring you one step closer to one of the powerful rewards.

Make sure to hold onto at least one Parsnip for the Spring Crops Bundle and look into planting cauliflower, potatoes, and green beans. One of the bundles requires five gold-quality Parsnips, so make sure you hang on to those to donate.

2 Invest In A Better Fishing Rod

Fishing is a divisive topic in the Stardew Valley community. Some gamers loathe the task, while others find it quite relaxing. Whatever your stance is, fishing can prove to be quite useful. You can fish a few treasure items, as well as fish needed to complete Community Center bundles.

Related: Stardew Valley: Essential Tips For Fishing

Willy will give you your first rod, but we suggest investing in a better one at his shop. A better rod will allow you to catch more 'difficult' fish, as well as use tackle. These are essentially attachments that provide some fishing benefits, such as a bigger fishing bar.

1 Watch The Queen Of Sauce On Television

The Queen of Sauce is a television show that airs every Sunday for the first two years you are on the farm. Each time you tune in, you can learn a new recipe; many recipes are exclusive to the show, making it quite essential to watch TV, especially if you are aiming for 100 percent completion.

Your house will come with a television set, so you can get started right away. If you happen to miss an episode, don't worry! On Wednesdays, The Queen of Sauce has a re-run, so you can watch to see if you have missed any recipes given.

Next: Stardew Valley: Guide To Bee Houses