Complete Farming and Crop Guide

Farming in Rust provides sustainable food, seeds, and component production. Understanding crop genetics, growth mechanics, and watering systems allows players to establish efficient automated farms. This comprehensive guide covers planter box setup, optimal crop selection, genetic breeding for superior yields, and large-scale farm optimization.

Planter Boxes and Setup

Planter boxes are the foundation of Rust farming. Each box costs 100 wood and 50 cloth to craft. A single planter box accepts one plant per growth cycle. Larger farms use 10-20+ planter boxes, strategically placed indoors away from raiders' sight. Place planters on floors or foundations, leaving space for walking between rows. Group boxes logically: corn in one section, hemp in another, potatoes in a third.

Planter box placement should maximize light exposure if growing outdoors, or position under grow lights for indoor farming. Indoor farms require electrical infrastructure (grow lights, watering systems) but offer complete environmental control and security. Outdoor farms are more visible and vulnerable to raiding but require no power. Most established players use indoor farms with grow lights for crop security.

Crop Genetics and Selective Breeding

Every plant has four genetic characteristics rated 1-5: genes for yield, water requirement, light requirement, and growth rate. The optimal genetic combination for crops is GGYYYY (5 yield, 5 water, 1 light, 1 growth). This produces maximum yield with minimal resource requirements. Achieving perfect genes requires selective breeding over multiple growth cycles.

Breeding strategy: Start with wild seeds (rating 1-1-1-1). Cross-breed plants with highest yield genes, gradually improving quality. After 15-20 generations, you'll achieve 5-5 yield/water genes. Then focus on reducing light and growth requirements to 1-1. This process takes 2-3 weeks of consistent farming. Once achieved, GGYYYY plants propagate indefinitely, exponentially increasing yields.

Watering Systems and Moisture Management

Plants require water (moisture) to grow. Moisture ranges from 0-100%, with growth occurring only above 40% moisture. Manual watering (right-click with water container) is laborious at scale. Sprinklers provide automated watering: place a sprinkler near planter boxes and supply water. Sprinklers cost 50 metal frags and 20 electronic components.

Optimal irrigation setup: Build a water supply tank elevated above planter boxes, connected to sprinklers via pipes. Gravity feeds water downward efficiently. Alternatively, set up an electrical timer controlling sprinklers to water on schedule. High-water-requirement plants (rating 5) need water every 30 minutes. Perfect genetics (rating 1) plants need water every 2+ hours. Adjust watering frequency based on plant genetics.

Light Requirements and Grow Lights

Light exposure determines growth speed. Outdoor crops receive natural light (100% during daytime, 0% at night). Indoor crops need artificial grow lights costing 250 metal frags and 75 electronic components each. Grow lights provide constant 100% light exposure, doubling growth speed compared to natural day/night cycles. High-light-requirement plants (rating 5) grow extremely slowly without grow lights.

Light source placement: Position grow lights 2-3 foundations above planter boxes, evenly distributed. A 10x10 farm section requires 4-6 grow lights for complete coverage. Each light draws 12 power continuously. Calculate power requirements: 10 lights × 12 power = 120 energy/second. Most farms require dedicated electrical systems to sustain large lighting arrays.

Composters and Nitrogen Production

Composters convert organic waste into nitrogen, essential for plant growth. Plants consume nitrogen over time, with yield decreasing as nitrogen depletes. Nitrogen levels display when examining a plant. High-yield crops consume nitrogen faster. Maintain nitrogen levels by adding compost regularly.

Build composters adjacent to farms. Each composter converts 5 organic items into 1 nitrogen over approximately 30 minutes. Feed composters with cloth, seeds, fruit, vegetables, or animal remains. A 20-box farm typically requires 2-3 composters to maintain nitrogen. Automated systems collect crops, compost seed waste, and automatically feed composters using droppers and timers.

Best Crops and Yield Comparison

Corn yields 3-4 corn cobs per plant (perfect genetics: GGYYYY), takes 60 minutes to grow, and produces seeds. Corn cobs are used in gunpowder crafting, making corn valuable for raiders and PvPers. Ideal for large-scale production.

Potatoes yield 2-3 potatoes per plant (perfect genetics), take 60 minutes to grow. Potatoes are primary food source, stackable, and essential for healing. Every player needs consistent potato supply. Recommend dedicating 30-50% of farm space to potatoes.

Hemp yields 2-3 hemp plant samples per plant (perfect genetics), take 60 minutes to grow, and produce cloth (5 cloth per sample). Cloth is critical for sleeping bags, clothing, and component crafting. Mid-level production (20-30% farm space) is sufficient for most bases.

Pumpkins yield 1-2 pumpkins per plant (perfect genetics), take 120 minutes to grow. Pumpkins are less efficient than other crops; grow only if specifically needed. Mushrooms and other niche crops have limited utility. Focus 70%+ of farm space on corn, potatoes, and hemp.

Seed Management and Propagation

Seeds are critical for maintaining farm production. Every crop produces seeds when harvested. Store seeds in protected containers—losing all seeds forces complete farm restart. Maintain seed backup in multiple locations. Some players dedicate small isolated boxes specifically to seed production.

Optimal seed strategy: Harvest top-yield plants specifically for seed production. Dedicate boxes to seed-only crops—plant seeds from best-performing plants only. Over generations, seed quality improves, exponentially increasing farm yields. Track genetics manually or using external spreadsheets. Some players breed elite seed stock (8+ generations selected) to dramatically boost yields.

Large-Scale Farm Optimization

Industrial farms (100+ planter boxes) require significant infrastructure: grow light systems, automated watering, composter arrays, and secure storage. Design modular farm sections (10x10 grids) with independent lighting/watering systems. If one section fails, others continue operating.

Automated harvesting: Some players use droppers and conveyors to move harvested items to central storage. Hopper systems can sort items by type. This automation is complex but dramatically increases efficiency. Plan vertical farming (multiple floors of planters) to maximize space utilization. A 4-story farm in minimal footprint produces yields equivalent to much larger farms.

Seasonal Strategies and Wipe Planning

Early wipe: Focus on small potato/hemp farm (5-10 boxes) for personal consumption. Don't invest in perfect genetics yet—survival is priority. Mid-wipe: Expand to 30-50 boxes, begin selective breeding for improved genetics. Late-wipe: Establish perfect GGYYYY genetics across 100+ boxes for massive yields before server resets.

Late-wipe farming generates exponential returns—a 200-box perfect genetics farm produces 600+ crops per hour. Sell excess to teammates or market for massive profit. Dedicated farmers often become wealthy by controlling food/seed supply. However, farm raids are common—protect farms with extensive honeycombing and secure locked storage.