Springtime is the first season of the year in Stardew Valley. For all players, it is the first season to experience. Typically, players use their first spring to get their farm in order. This means clearing land, starting crops, and collecting many resources to expand and build.
There is much more to the Spring season than just starting out though. There are certain things that can only be fished, foraged, and grown in Spring. There are also certain events to prepare for and of course, there is preparing for the upcoming season of Summer in Stardew Valley.
Updated on September 26, 2021, by Anastasia Maillot: Seasons bring a lot of variety into Stardew Valley's gameplay, and throughout the years since the game was released, players have been figuring out how to get the most out of this season. Spring is special since this is when the game initially starts off in the first year, but after that, it's more of a season dedication for preparing for summer.
Despite spring feeling a bit redundant after the first year, there are still a number of important activities players should focus on to get the most out of their farm. Not only are there birthdays to think of, but special events as well that players should look forward to.
8 Complete Spring-Based Bundles
For players who are trying to complete the Community Center, paying attention to certain bundles in Spring is important. Spring bundles include the Spring Foraging Bundle in the Crafts Room, the Spring Crop and Quality Crop bundles in the Pantry, and some of the Artisan Bundle as well. These bundles require items that only are available in Spring.
So save a foraged dandelion, leek, horseradish, and daffodil for the Spring Forage Bundle. Grow at least one potato, cauliflower, parsnip, and green bean for the Spring Crop bundle. Find and save five golden parsnips for the Quality Crops bundle.
Pro Tip: Use Sap To Make Basic Fertilizer
The Quality Crops bundle requires five golden parsnips, which can be a pain to try and get. At Farming level 1, players have access to Basic Fertilizer, which only requires a bit of sap from chopping down trees to make. Apply the fertilizer before planting any parsnips to increase the chances of quality crops.
7 Catch The Legend Fish
There are a number of legendary tier fish in Stardew Valley. One that can only be caught in Spring though it literally named Legend. The window to catch it is especially small because it is not only locked in only appearing in Spring, but it also only will appear during rainy weather. On top of that, it can only be caught at the Mountain Lake and only if the player has fishing at level 10.
While it is not a part of any bundles or quests, the fish can sell for between 5,000 to 15,000 gold depending on its quality and the fisher and angler buffs a player can get.
Pro Tip: Eat Foods That Give Fishing Skill Buffs
The Legend is pretty hard to catch due to its tough movement. However, there are a few great recipes players can make and eat before trying to catch him. Fish Tacos, Dish 'O The Sea, Seafoam Pudding, Fish Stew, Escargot, and Lobster Bisque provide the highest fishing buffs.
6 Plant A Variety Of Spring Crops
Players have somewhat varied opinions on the best Spring crops. Strawberries are quite popular, but their seeds are not sold anywhere except at the Egg Festival in the middle of Spring. So before strawberries, other great crops include potatoes, cauliflower, and rhubarbs.
Potato and cauliflower seeds are sold at Pierre's Shop. Rhubarb seeds are only sold at the Desert Oasis. So unless you saved a ton of strawberry seeds from last year, it is recommended to plant a variety.
5 Get Strawberry Seeds At The Egg Festival
Eggs hunts are great but do not forget to buy as many strawberry seeds as possible. Every seed costs 100 gold and every crop it produces sells for 120 gold. They take eight days to mature but regrow every four days so that you get more than just one harvest.
Since the Egg Festival is not until the 13th of Spring, a lot of players buy seeds and save them for next year so that they can plant strawberries early on next Spring for the maximum amount of regrows and profit.
Pro Tip: Don't Sell Strawberries On Their Own
Strawberries make really good wine, which can fetch a pretty nice price. If the player already has a bunch of Kegs available, they should definitely prioritize turning the strawberries into strawberry wine before selling them. Otherwise, making strawberry jelly is a good option as well to bump up their selling price.
4 Prepare For Eight Birthdays
Giving villagers loved gifts on their birthdays gives a decent boost of friendship points. There are eight birthdays in Spring including Emily, Kent, Lewis, Haley, Pam, Pierre, Shane, and Vincent. Save up gifts for their special day.
For gifts, Emily loves wool and amethysts, Pierre loves fried calamari, Kent loves roasted hazelnuts, Pam loves beer and parsnips, Lewis loves hot peppers, Vincent loves snails and grapes, Haley loves sunflowers and coconuts, and Shane loves beer and hot peppers.
Pro Tip: Daffodils Are By Far The Best Gift
There's one thing in common among spring birthdays, and it's the fact that most of the villagers like daffodils, a common spring foraged item. The exception to this rule is Lewis who feels neutral about it and Shane who hates daffodils. However, Shane can be bought a beer or pizza from the Stardrop Saloon on his birthday, and since Lewis feels neutral, he will still accept the gift.
3 Get Someone To Four Hearts Before The Flower Dance Festival
This event is on the 24th of Spring and it gives the player the chance to dance with a bachelor or bachelorette to raise their affection. Talk to one twice to invite them to dance. However, they will refuse the dance if they are lower than at least four hearts.
It is possible to get someone to four hearts in the first year, but it will take dedication. Remember that the bachelorettes include Abigail, Emily, Haley, Leah, Maru, and Penny. The bachelors include Alex, Elliot, Shane, Sebastian, Sam, and Harvey.
2 Forage For Spring-Only Items
Spring-only foragable items include wild horseradishes, daffodils, leeks, dandelions, spring onions, morels, and salmonberries. These are all useful in various ways. Some are required for Spring bundles while others are the most loved items of certain villagers. Krobus loves wild horseradish. George loves leeks.
These easy-to-get Spring items can also be turned into more valuable things like wines or jellies. Salmonberries are cheap on their own but increase slightly in value when turned into jelly or wine. Do be aware that salmonberries are limited to only appear from the 15th to the 18th of Spring. So make sure to grab them in that short window.
1 Prepare For Summer
Part of every season is the preparation for the next. When Summer hits, all Spring crops will die. The only overlap in terms of crops is coffee beans. There will be new items to forage for, but that means Spring foraging will end (though common mushrooms will return in the Fall).
Make sure you have enough gold to buy a bunch of seeds on the first of Spring so that they are planted early for the most harvest. The end of the season is also a great time to expand the farm in terms of places to grow crops.
Pro Tip: Make Sure To Have Kegs For Summer
Since Kegs continue to make the best artisan goods in the game and summer crops are some of the most profitable ones, spring should be dedicated to crafting as many Kegs as possible. Kegs require Oak Resin, Wood, Copper Bars, and Iron Bars. A great way to prepare is to tap a bunch of oak trees during spring and visit the mines on lucky days.
Stardew Valley was released on February 26, 2016, and is available on PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, iOS, Android, PlayStation Vita, and Nintendo Switch.