Farming in Stardew Valley is a skill related to planting, growing, and harvesting crops on a farm; it also can be developed by taking care of the farm animals. It is one of the primary sources of income for the game and provides most of the ingredients for cooking.
The farming skill level can be checked in the skill tab of the pause menu. Each level provides a +1 skill for the Hoe and Watering can, which reduces the energy cost of using tools. A higher farming skill level also increases the chance of a quality crop.
Higher farming skill levels require experience points, which are gained by harvesting crops, petting farm animals, milking cows or goats, shearing sheep, and collecting animal products in the coop.
At level 5, you will need to choose one of the professions that will grant bonuses for either farming or livestock products.
- Rancher — animal products worth 20% more.
- Tiller — crops worth 10% more.
Choosing a profession may seem simple enough: animal products are usually more expensive than simple vegetables. Also, if you prefer farming or raising animals, you may initially find it more profitable to choose a profession based on your preferences. However, there is a pitfall in this decision.
Rancher Skill in Stardew Valley
If you choose the Rancher, you will only get bonuses for friendship with animals or speed to get resources. However, if you decide to develop Tiller, you get a choice of Agriculturist, which allows you to grow plants 10 percent faster, and Artisan makes all Artisan goods worth 40 percent more.
With the Rancher skill, animal products are worth 20% more. If you choose the Rancher path, you will have to handle many animals. In Stardew Valley, dozens of different animals can live on your farm, and they all have particular requirements to grow & produce resources. To start breeding them, you must first construct one of the buildings available in Robin’s Carpenter’s Shop: upgradable Coop and Barn where you can keep the animals.
The animals prefer to eat fresh grass instead of hay, and you have the option of letting them outside in good weather. Don’t close the Barn and Barn overnight until the animals’ return (5:00-6:00 p.m.), and remember to open it on sunny days. If an animal has slept outside overnight, it will be unhappy the following day; also, it may be attacked by wild animals. If one of your pets were attacked by a wild animal, the other animals’ mood would be noticeably worse.
These tips will help you achieve high productivity more quickly and increase the animals’ spirits. Good care also improves the production quality: remember to pet your animals and feed them on time. Also try to close the gate at night, because some animals don’t like to sleep with the gate open.
Barn Animals & Rancher Skill in Stardew Valley
The Barn is a farm building in Stardew Valley that can be purchased and improved from Robin at the Carpentry Shop. The Barn can hold cows, goats, sheep, pigs, and ostriches.
- Cow is an animal in Stardew Valley which can be purchased from Marnie for 1500 gold after you build a Barn. Cows come in two colors, white and brown, and a random probability determines their color. Cows produce milk, which costs 125 to 380 gold; with Rancher, it would be 150 to 456.
- Goat is an animal which can be purchased from Marnie for 4,000 gold after you have built the Big Barn. Goats produce milk, which costs 225 to 690 gold; with the Rancher, it will be 270 to 828.
- Ostrich is an animal in the Stardew Valley game that is available in the Big stable. You can breed an ostrich in an ostrich hatchery from an ostrich egg. Unlike other birds, these animals live in a stable, not a chicken coop. An adult ostrich lays eggs once a week. Ostrich eggs cost 600-1200 gold; with Rancher Profession, you get 780-1440 for them.
- Sheep is an animal in Stardew Valley that can be purchased from Marnie for 8000 gold after building an Elite Barn. A happy and nourished sheep can be sheared once every three days using special shears, which you can also buy from Marnie. If you choose Coopmaster at farm level 10 you will be able to shear sheep every day. The basic wool price is 340-680; with the Rancher skill, it is 408-816.
- Pig is an animal in Stardew Valley, sold at Marnie’s for 16,000 gold if you have an Elite Barn. The Rancher skill affects the quick domestication of pigs, but you will not get the bonus for truffles from these animals because truffles are not an animal product.
Coop Animals & Rancher Skill in Stardew Valley
The Coop is a farm building in Stardew Valley where you can keep chickens, ducks, rabbits and dinosaurs.
- Chicken in Stardew Valley can be purchased for 800 gold after you build the Coop. You can also get this animal for free: if you place a chicken egg in an incubator, a chicken will hatch from it. You can get a white or brown chicken from Marnie or a blue one if you’re dating Shein. Small eggs cost 50-100 gold or 60-120 with Rancher profession; large eggs are 95-190 or 114-228 gold. There are also special types of chickens which produce unique resources: Void Eggs cost 65-130 and 78-156 with Rancher skill; Golden Eggs cost from 500-1000 to 600-1200.
- Duck is an animal in Stardew Valley that lives in the Large Coop. Ducks can be bought for 1200 gold. If you have reached a friendship level of 1.5 hearts with a duck, it will sometimes give duck feathers. The base price of duck eggs is 95-190, and feathers are 250-500 gold. With the Rancher profession, you will be able to sell them for 114-228 and 300-600 gold.
- Rabbit is an animal that can be purchased at Stardew Valley for 8000 after you build the Elite Coop. These are the only animals in the game that cannot breed. Rabbits leave wool (340-680) and rabbit feet (565-1130). With the Rancher skill, you get 408-816 and 678-1356 gold.
- Dinosaur is an animal in Stardew Valley that you can get only by finding the artifact Dinosaur Egg and placing it in the incubator. Dinosaurs are cared for in the same way as other animals, despite their unusual way of appearance. The Dinosaur Egg costs 350-700 gold.