Farms

Farms are the player-built agricultural plots managed by Farmhouses that produce the game's crops used for food and other needs. A farm consists of marked blocks within a farmhouse's working range; the farmhouse assigns farmers to plant, tend, and harvest those marked blocks according to its work mode and any set crop priority. Farms are the primary way to provide diverse crops to maximize Settler Well-Being and satisfy food demand.

To create and manage a farm, use the Plant crops tool group to mark suitable ground inside a farmhouse’s working range; the range is outlined when the farmhouse is selected. Each marked block becomes a farm plot and will be assigned to the nearest available farmer. Farmhouses operate in one of two work modes: planting or harvesting. In planting mode, a block is replanted immediately after it is harvested, producing a steady cycle; planting is now the default farmhouse action. In harvesting mode, the farmhouse instructs farmers to harvest as much as possible without replanting until harvesting is complete. A specific crop can be set as a priority; priority affects task order but is subordinate to the chosen work mode. For example, if the mode is harvest with potatoes set as the priority, farmers prefer to harvest potatoes first, then other crops, then plant potatoes, and finally plant any other crop.

Practical usage and strategy:

• Keep farmhouses set to planting for a constant, efficient cycle once fields have initial growth established. Planting mode requires no return trip for each block and therefore processes blocks faster under single-house setups.
• When multiple farmhouses overlap the same fields, setting one farmhouse to planting and the others to harvesting can improve throughput because harvest-only houses reduce redundant planting trips.
• Farmers are assigned by proximity, and farms naturally organize into waves of harvesting and replanting that radiate outward from the farmhouse. This creates offset growth cycles across the field.
• Effective range is limited by farmer availability and travel: distant plots may be neglected if nearer plots cycle faster. Compact fields yield the best per-farmer throughput; expect about 6–7 harvests per farmer per day on compact farms.
• If many plots go unserviced and crop demand exists, build additional farmhouses to expand active coverage.

Development history and variants:

• Farmhouse behavior and variants have evolved over updates. In Update 2 the default action changed from harvesting to planting. Update 4 added the Efficient Farmhouse (Logs x25, Folktails-exclusive) with three workers and introduced a smaller 2x2 Farmhouse (Logs x20; Iron Teeth, 2 workers). Earlier additions included the Aquatic Farmhouse (150 SP; 30 logs, 10 planks; 2 workers). Farmhouses will display a “Nothing to do in range” status when no marked field lies inside their working area.

Farms are essential infrastructure for sustaining a settlement through diversified crop production. Proper placement, compact field layouts, and sensible use of planting vs. harvesting modes keep farmers productive and stabilize food supplies.