Have you been looking to complete the different achievements in Stardew Valley? If so, today’s brief Stardew Valley trophy guide is taking a deep dive into the Polyculture achievement to help you learn more about what this is, how to accomplish it, and what you’ll be rewarded with once you’ve managed to complete the requirements for the achievement.
What is Polyculture in Stardew Valley?
Before we go any further, we should first start by considering what Polyculture in Stardew Valley is. Polyculture in Stardew Valley is an achievement that is available for growing a wide variety of different crops on your farm. It is one of only two crop-growing achievements (plus a third achievement that requires you to ship every item in the game).
The Real World Parallels with Polyculture in Stardew Valley
Polyculture isn’t just a Stardew Valley term. In fact, this is also a concept in real life, where polyculture refers to systems that grow numerous different species of crops, thereby supporting a more diverse environment accordingly. The contrast to this is Monoculture, where just a single species of crop is grown.
Polyculture vs Monoculture in Stardew Valley
In the Stardew Valley context, Polyculture and Monoculture achievements draw on inspirations from the real world. The Polyculture achievement requires you to have shipped a large number of different crops, indicating a more diverse farm environment. Meanwhile, the Monoculture achievement focuses on shipping hundreds of a single crop type, which is a reference to the real-world concept of growing just a single species of crop.
How to Achieve the Polyculture Achievement in Stardew Valley
In order to achieve the Polyculture achievement in Stardew Valley, you’ll need to have shipped fifteen of each crop. However, it’s technically worth noting that you don’t need to grow ancient fruit or Qi fruit or other Ginger Island crops, nor do you need to have grown tulips, summer spangles, fairy roses, or blue jazz flowers. In line with this thought, the crops you will need to ship include:
In total, there are 28 different types of crops that you will need to ship as part of your work towards achieving the Polyculture achievement. Given that each crop needs to be shipped fifteen times or more, this equates to a minimum number of 420 items - significantly more than the 300 items required to achieve the Monoculture achievement. This does indicate that the Polyculture achievement is substantially more challenging to unlock than Monoculture, especially when considering that Monoculture accepts any crop type - even fast-growing crops liek wheat.
While reaching the Polyculture achievement can seem difficult, it’s worth keeping in mind here that not everything in Stardew Valley needs to be demanding or hard work. Just one such example is setting up your very own Stardew Valley private server, which can be done in a matter of minutes with our team here at ScalaCube with instant access and 24/7 uptime, going forward.
What is the Reward for Polyculture in Stardew Valley?
Once you have achieved the Polyculture trophy, you’ll also unlock the Cowpoke hat. The Cowpoke Hat can be purchased from the Hat Mouse for 5,000g.
Tips for Achieving Polyculture in Stardew Valley
Given that the Polyculture achievement requires you to ship a large number of items, there are several simple tips that might help in getting this achievement:
Frequently Asked Questions
Final Thoughts
Polyculture in Stardew Valley is just one of many different achievements you can unlock in the game, and just one of three crop-growing and shipping achievements in the game (the other two being Monoculture and Full Shipment). As part of this, ensuring you have considered how to achieve Polyculture may be important, and we’ve summarized several key things you should know to help.
What is Polyculture in Stardew Valley?
Before we go any further, we should first start by considering what Polyculture in Stardew Valley is. Polyculture in Stardew Valley is an achievement that is available for growing a wide variety of different crops on your farm. It is one of only two crop-growing achievements (plus a third achievement that requires you to ship every item in the game).
The Real World Parallels with Polyculture in Stardew Valley
Polyculture isn’t just a Stardew Valley term. In fact, this is also a concept in real life, where polyculture refers to systems that grow numerous different species of crops, thereby supporting a more diverse environment accordingly. The contrast to this is Monoculture, where just a single species of crop is grown.Polyculture vs Monoculture in Stardew Valley
In the Stardew Valley context, Polyculture and Monoculture achievements draw on inspirations from the real world. The Polyculture achievement requires you to have shipped a large number of different crops, indicating a more diverse farm environment. Meanwhile, the Monoculture achievement focuses on shipping hundreds of a single crop type, which is a reference to the real-world concept of growing just a single species of crop.How to Achieve the Polyculture Achievement in Stardew Valley
In order to achieve the Polyculture achievement in Stardew Valley, you’ll need to have shipped fifteen of each crop. However, it’s technically worth noting that you don’t need to grow ancient fruit or Qi fruit or other Ginger Island crops, nor do you need to have grown tulips, summer spangles, fairy roses, or blue jazz flowers. In line with this thought, the crops you will need to ship include:- Amaranth (fall)
- Artichokes (fall)
- Beets (fall)
- Blueberries (summer)
- Bok choy (fall)
- Cauliflowers (spring)
- Coffee beans (spring and summer)
- Corn (summer and fall)
- Cranberries (fall)
- Eggplants (fall)
- Garlic (spring)
- Grapes (fall)
- Green beans (spring)
- Hops (summer)
- Hot pepper (summer)
- Kale (spring)
- Melons (summer)
- Parsnips (spring)
- Potatoes (spring)
- Pumpkins (fall)
- Radishes (summer)
- Red cabbages (summer)
- Rhubarb (spring)
- Starfruits (summer)
- Strawberries (spring)
- Tomatoes (summer)
- Yams (fall)
- Wheat (summer and fall)
In total, there are 28 different types of crops that you will need to ship as part of your work towards achieving the Polyculture achievement. Given that each crop needs to be shipped fifteen times or more, this equates to a minimum number of 420 items - significantly more than the 300 items required to achieve the Monoculture achievement. This does indicate that the Polyculture achievement is substantially more challenging to unlock than Monoculture, especially when considering that Monoculture accepts any crop type - even fast-growing crops liek wheat.
While reaching the Polyculture achievement can seem difficult, it’s worth keeping in mind here that not everything in Stardew Valley needs to be demanding or hard work. Just one such example is setting up your very own Stardew Valley private server, which can be done in a matter of minutes with our team here at ScalaCube with instant access and 24/7 uptime, going forward.
What is the Reward for Polyculture in Stardew Valley?
Once you have achieved the Polyculture trophy, you’ll also unlock the Cowpoke hat. The Cowpoke Hat can be purchased from the Hat Mouse for 5,000g.
Tips for Achieving Polyculture in Stardew Valley
Given that the Polyculture achievement requires you to ship a large number of items, there are several simple tips that might help in getting this achievement:- Plan your growing systems: Always make sure that, when growing crops, you plan out the timings carefully to ensure as many crops will grow in their respective season(s).
- Making new seeds: For crops with limited availability, creating new seeds can offer a quicker way potentially to grow more plants than if you wait to purchase more seeds.
- Use speed gro: Since it doesn’t matter what quality your crops are, using speed gro could help increase the speed by which plants mature, thus allowing you to grow as many plants as possible in a single growing season. This may be especially useful for crops that take a long time to grow, such as melons.
- Use plenty of sprinklers or an upgraded watering can: Investing in sprinklers or upgrading your watering can will allow you
to grow far more crops at once - enabling you to achieve the Polyculture achievement sooner.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is It possible to complete Polyculture in Year 1 in Stardew Valley?
Technically speaking, it is possible to complete the Polyculture achievement in Year 1 of Stardew Valley. However, many of the crop types that you will need to ship will be in limited supply or hard to get hold of in your first year, so whether or not you’re able to complete Polyculture in your first year may depend on whether you’ve unlocked the greenhouse and how many seeds you’re able to get hold of.
Can I complete both the Monoculture and Polyculture achievements in Stardew Valley?
Yes! There’s no reason that you cannot complete both the Monoculture and Polyculture achievements in Stardew Valley.
Does quality matter for Polyculture?
The quality of crop shipped does not matter for the Polyculture achievement. As such, it may be more productive to use speed gro than fertilizer if you are solely aiming to unlock Perfection, as this will allow you to grow crops - especially rarer ones like red cabbage - more quickly, contributing to your completion goals in turn.