DF2014:What is the best crop

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There is no "best" crop, but some are clearly superior to others, depending on your needs and available resources.

All-Purpose

Many dwarves prefer the humble plump helmet, which can be grown year-round, eaten raw, cooked, or brewed into wine, and many early fortresses rely on the plump helmet crop as a main component of their diet. All above-ground crops are all-seasons as well, the best of which are probably strawberries, longland grass, and whip vines. For a table summarizing the crop products, limitations, and values, refer to the main Crop article.

Booze

Four principal seeds available at the beginning of an expedition (cave wheat, pig tail, plump helmet, sweet pod) all produce underground crops that can be made into booze worth 10☼. Above ground crops will require you to trade or gather for seeds, but the best of them that can be farmed are sun berries, which produce sunshine worth 25☼.

Keep in mind that dwarves care more about the diversity of available booze than its value.

For quantity, cave wheat and sweet pod mature in 42 days, vice 25 for the other crops, so they may yield less alcohol per farm plot. Initially, plump helmet matures in 25 days and grows year round, which may be a good starting point for your alcohol industry, but exclusive dependence on it will generate an unhappy thought.

Dye

There are four dye crops. Three 20☼ dye crops: blade weed and sliver barb (above ground) and dimple cups (underground). Hide root (above ground) is a 10☼ dye.

Food

In terms of sheer dwarfbucks, sweet pods produce the most valuable foodstuff: Dwarven syrup (100☼). In terms of quantity and value, other good crops are quarry bushes (which yield 5 quarry bush leaves when processed) and whip vines (which can be milled into whip vine flour). Diversity in meals is also important to dwarves.

Thread

All plant thread is equally valuable (at 2☼ per unit), so the main decision is between an underground crop (pig tail) or an above-ground crop (rope reed).

Farming FAQ
How do I build a farm?
How large a farm do I need?
What is the best crop?
How do I manage my seeds and crops?
What does "Reserved Barrels" and "Reserved Bins" mean?
Why are crops sometimes displayed with red writing?
What do I do with these inedible crops?
What does the option "Fallow" mean?
My dwarves will only farm on a small part of the fields, why is this?
How do I make absolutely sure my farm plot is all set to produce crops?
If I don't see any dwarves working my farm plot, does that mean there's something wrong?
Can you grow surface crops on multiple z levels in a tower if the floors are glass even though there's soil on the glass?
What is the "seas fert" option for?
How do you create a custom stockpile that accepts only prepared foods?
How do you successfully breed and utilize animals(grazing, non-grazing and poultry)?
How often do you need to irrigate your farm fields?
Having banned seeds from the kitchen, how to prevent dwarves from eating them raw?
Why do my planters keep complaining they have no seeds?
Why won't my animals breed?
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