Wild harvests can provide useful crops or materials without the fertilizer and irrigation costs of domestic farming.
PC / Global, base game; Spaced Out and planet packs are DLC
WHERE & HOW TO FARM
Where to farm
Use naturally growing plants in explored biomes. Reach them safely and confirm that duplicants can access the harvest site before setting work priorities.
Wild plants are existing resources in explored biomes. They can be harvested for their species-specific output without building a domestic farm, but they grow more slowly than plants cultivated in Basic Farming buildings. This makes wild growth useful as a low-input source or a reserve, not a guaranteed high-throughput supply. Identify the plant and its output before issuing harvest orders, and preserve patches that you expect to revisit.
A plant with a useful harvest output that can be identified in its info panel.
Duplicant availability for harvesting errands.
Storage or a clear destination for the harvested material.
Explore a biome and inspect each plant’s species and harvest product before deciding whether to gather it.
Compare the output with current needs, such as food, fiber, or another material, rather than marking every visible plant.
Mark only the plants you intend to harvest and maintain a safe route for duplicants to reach them.
If a patch is useful for future harvesting, avoid disrupting its growing area while completing nearby work.
Collect the output and store or process it according to the resource’s intended use.
Revisit the patch later and check whether it has grown or whether the remaining plants are exhausted.
Farming tips
Wild growth avoids the recurring fertilizer and irrigation inputs of a domestic farm, but its slower growth may not meet urgent demand.
Use the plant panel to verify the output; appearance alone is not a reliable guide to material use.
Repeat, collect and use
Wild patches are a limited local resource unless the plants regrow under their conditions. Repeat by returning to suitable patches and harvesting only mature plants; domestic planting is the repeatable alternative when seeds and inputs are available.
Common mistakes
Expecting wild plants to match domestic farm throughput; keep a separate backup supply for urgent needs.
Harvesting before identifying the product; inspect the plant first and mark only useful crops.
Removing a patch needed for later use; preserve the growing area when you plan to rely on future wild harvests.
When to stop or switch
Stop harvesting when the patch is depleted, the trip is unsafe, or the stored output meets current needs. Establish a domestic farm if the resource must be supplied on a dependable schedule.
Use naturally growing plants in explored biomes. Reach them safely and confirm that duplicants can access the harvest site before setting work priorities.
Safe, reachable access to the biome.
A plant with a useful harvest output that can be identified in its info panel.
Duplicant availability for harvesting errands.
Storage or a clear destination for the harvested material.
Rate not listed
Related guides
More guides for gathering materials and making progress.
