Top 10 Stardew Valley Best Summer Crops
One of the main components of Stardew Valley is farming which consists of taking care of Farm animals and planting, growing, and harvesting crops. This article focuses on crops, which are plants that are grown from seeds to be harvested for the purpose of profit, food, or gifting. Nearly every crop is seasonal, and can only be planted during its designated season. The exception is with multi-season crops, such as Ancient Fruit, Coffee Bean, Corn, Sunflower, and Wheat, which will continue to grow during all specified seasons. This article will concentrate on the finest crops to grow to obtain the most value for your money because summer is a season with a wide variety of crops to pick from.
10-Corn
Corn is a vegetable crop that grows from Corn Seeds. It is a multi-harvest and multi-season crop that may be planted in both Summer and Fall, making it of the best crops to grow on your farm.
Since it continues to grow into the Fall season, it doesn’t have to be replanted, and any fertilizer that was placed in the ground at that time of planting remains. Any excess corn can be turned into seeds with a Seed Maker, and become another source of income as two packets of Corn Seeds sell for a total of 150g.
Why Corn is Great For Summer:
- It is Liked by all the villagers except Abigail, Haley, Jas, Sam, and Vincent. It’s hated by Pierre, which can be a good thing for players who dislike Pierre and want to keep his friendship heart levels down.
- Recipes it’s used in: Tortilla-Source recipe from: The Queen of Sauce cooking channel during 7 Fall, Year 1. Or get the recipe from Gus at the Stardrop Saloon for 100g. It sells for 50g.
- Products it creates: Oil, which is an all-purpose cooking oil. Since the game doesn't consider this an Artisan Good, it won't get any benefit from the Artisan profession. It sells for 100g.
- It’s used in the Fall Crops Bundle in the Pantry and is one of the options for the Quality Crops Bundle in the Pantry. Because it can grow in the Summer, those bundles can be completed quickly.
- Corn is used in the spool of the Sewing Machine with Cloth in the feed to create a dyeable Striped Shirt. It is considered a yellow dye.
Corn details:
- Seed Cost: 150g from Pierre’s General Store and 187g from JojaMart
- Growth Time: 14 days and regrows after 4 days
- Base Selling Price: 50g
- XP: 10 Farming XP
- Provides: +25 Energy and +11 Health
9- Sunflower
The Sunflower is a flower crop that grows from Sunflower Seed. Sunflowers are another multi-season crop, as they may be planted in both Summer and Fall.
Why Sunflower is Great For Summer:
- It is Loved by Haley and Liked by all villagers except for Clint, George, and Sebastian.
- Products it creates: Honey sells at a price of 260g, and Oil sells at a price of 100g.
- Harvesting Sunflowers drops 1 flower and 0–2 seeds, thereby giving you free seeds to plant more flowers! Most of the time, the overall seed drop ranges from 75% to 90% of the harvested sunflowers.
Sunflower details:
- Seed Cost: 200g from Pierre’s General Store and 125g from JojaMart (100g with Joja membership)
- Growth Time: 8 days
- Base Selling Price: 80g
- XP: 14 Farming XP
- Provides: +45 Energy and +20 Health
8-Summer Spangle
A tropical bloom that thrives in the humid summer air, Summer Spangle is a flower with a sweet, tangy aroma that grows from Spangle Seeds. It’s a great flower to gift to villagers and to make flavored honey. To make Spangle Honey, simply plant the flower within the proper range of a Bee House. There is an equal chance of the flowers being one of six different colors. Summer Spangles of different colors will occupy different slots in inventory or chests.
Why Summer Spangle is Great For Summer:
- It is a Loved item by Caroline and Liked by everyone else but Clint, George, and Sebastian.
- Products it creates: Honey has a sell price of 280g and 392g with the Artisan profession
- Summer Spangle is one of the options for the Garden Bundle in the Pantry (Remixed).
- Summer Spangle can be used in the spool of the Sewing Machine to create the dyeable Pleated Skirt. It can be used in dyeing, serving as a yellow dye at the dye pots.
Summer Spangle details:
- Seed Cost: 50g from Pierre’s General Store and 62g from JojaMart
- Growth Time: 8 days
- Base Selling Price: 90g
- XP: 15 Farming XP
- Provides: +45 Energy +20 Health
7-Tomato
Rich and slightly tangy, the Tomato has a wide variety of culinary uses. As a multi-harvest crop, it continues to produce after maturity. Each harvest produces 1 tomato, with a small random chance for more tomatoes.
Why Tomato is Great For Summer:
- Liked by all villagers except for Abigale, Haley, Jas, Vincent, and Sam.
- Products it creates: Juice has a sell price of 135g and Pickles have a sell price of 170g
- Recipes it’s used in: Bruschetta, Eggplant Parmesan, Fish Stew, Pizza, Spaghetti, Vegetable Medley
- Tomato is used in the spool of the Sewing Machine to create the Tomato Shirt. It can also be used as a red dye in the dye pots.
Tomato details:
- Seed Cost: 50g from Pierre’s General Store and 62g from JojaMart
- Growth Time: 11 days and regrows after 4 days
- Base Selling Price: 60g
- XP: 12 Farming XP
- Provides: +20 Energy and +9 Health
- Tomato is used in the Summer Crops Bundle in the Pantry.
6-Hops
Described as a bitter, tangy flower used to flavor beer, Hops is actually a vegetable crop that grows on a trellis from Hops Starter. It is a multi-harvest crop and continues to produce after maturity.
Since it is a trellis crop, it can’t be walked through at any stage of growth. It’s best to plant this crop in an accessible way for it to be watered and harvested, such as around the perimeter of a sprinkler. You can, however, walk through dead Hops plants.
Why Hops is Great For Summer:
- Hops may be placed in a Keg to produce Pale Ale. Pale Ale may be aged in Casks to increase its quality, and it has one of the highest investment returns in the game.
- Products it creates: Pale Ale, sells at a base price of 300g and Pickles, sells at a base price of 100g.
- Hops give the second-best XP for leveling up your Farming skill in a single season, between 102 and 126. A large amount of Hops Starters can be a great way to quickly level up your Farming skills your first summer.
- Selling Hops Starter made from the Seed Maker can be more profitable than selling the Hops directly, and can also potentially generate Ancient Seeds.
- Hops are used in the spool of the Sewing Machine with Cloth in the feed to create a dyeable Shirt and Belt. It is used as a green dye when used with a dyeable clothing item.
Hops details:
- Seed Cost: 60g from Pierre’s and 75g from JojaMart
- Growth Time: 11 days and regrows each day
- Base Selling Price: 25g
- XP: 6 Farming XP
- Provides: +45 Energy and +20 Health
- Hops are used in Wild Medicine Bundle in the Crafts Room (Remixed)
5-Melon
A cool, sweet summer treat, Melon is a fruit crop that grows from Melon Seeds. It is one of only three crops that can grow into a giant crop, aside from Pumpkin and Cauliflower.
Why Melon is Great For Summer:
- It’s Loved by Penny and Liked by Demetrius, Elliott, Harvey, Jodi, Kent, Leah, Linus, Pam, Robin, Sandy, and Shane.
- Products it creates: Wine sells at a base price of 750g and Jelly sells at a base price of 550g.
- Recipes it’s used in: Fruit Salad and Pink Cake.
- Melon is used in the spool of the Sewing Machine with Cloth in the feed to create dyeable Shorts. It is a pink dye when used with a dyeable clothing item in the feed. It can be placed in the red dye pot for use in dyeing.
Melon details:
- Seed Cost: 80g from Pierre’s General Store and 100g from JojaMart
- Growth Time: 12 days
- Base Selling price: 250g
- XP: 27 Farming XP
- Provides: +113 Energy and +50 Health
- Melon is used in the Summer Crops Bundle in the Pantry, and it is one of the options for the Quality Crops Bundle in the Pantry.
4-Blueberry
A popular berry reported having many health benefits, with blue skin having the highest nutrient concentration. The Blueberry is a fruit crop that grows from Blueberry Seeds. It is a multi-harvest crop, as it continues to produce after maturity. Each harvest yields 3 Blueberries, with a 2% chance of more blueberries. It’s best to plant and water the crop on days 1–3 of Summer in order to get at least four harvests.
Why Blueberry is Great For Summer:
Liked by: Demetrius, Elliott, Harvey, Jodi, Kent, Leah, Lewis, Linus, Pam, Robin, Sandy, and Shane
Products it creates: Wine sells at a base price of 150g, and Jelly, sells at a base price of 150g.
Recipes it’s used in: Blueberry Tart—Source recipe from Pierre through the mail after 3+ hearts Sells for 150g. Fruit Salad—Source recipe from The Queen of Sauce cooking channel in 7 Fall, Year 2.
Blueberry can be used in the spool of the Sewing Machine to create the dyeable Shorts.
Blueberry details:
Seed Cost: 80g from Pierre’s General Store
Growth Time: 13 days and regrows after 4 days
Base Selling Price: 50g
XP: 10 Farming XP per harvest
Provides: +25 Energy and +11 Health
3-Pineapple
The Pineapple is a fruit grown by planting a Pineapple Seed and is only acquired after reaching Ginger Island. This is a multi-harvest crop, and in a normal planting season, it can produce two harvests.
Why Pineapple is Great For Summer:
- It is Liked by most villagers, making for a great gift.
- Products it creates: Winesells at a base price of 900g, and Jellysells at a base price of 650g.
- Recipes it’s used in: Tropical Curry: An exotic, fragrant curry served in a pineapple bowl. Buff: Foraging (+4) Time: 5m 1s. Buy it from Gus at the Ginger Island Resort. Sells for 500g and is loved by Gus and Caroline.
- Caroline requests 100 pineapples in the "Island Ingredients" Special Order. The reward is gold equivalent to half of the base crop price and the Solar Panel recipe.
Pineapple details:
- Seed Cost: Purchase with 1 Magma Cap per seed from the Island Trader
- Growth Time: 14 days and regrows after 7 days
- Base Selling Price: 300g
- Grows all year long on Ginger Island, and grows in the summer in the Valley
- XP: 30 Farming XP
- Provides: +138 Energy and +62 Health
2-Red Cabbage
Red Cabbage is a vegetable crop that grows from Red Cabbage Seeds. The seeds are available to purchase in bulk starting in Year 2. There is a small chance of buying Red Cabbage or Red Cabbage Seeds from the Traveling Cart, and if the "Guarantee Year 1 Completable" option is chosen from Advanced Options when starting a new game, the Traveling Cart will sell a Red Cabbage Seed sometime during year 1. This is very useful because it’s needed for the Dye Bundle and can allow players to complete the Community Center in Year 1.
Why Red Cabbage is Great For Summer:
- It is Liked by all villagers except Abigail, Haley, Jas, Sam, and Vincent.
- Products it creates: Juice sells at a base price of 585g, and Pickles sells at a base price of 570g.
- Recipes it’s used in: Coleslaw, Fish Taco, and Red Plate.
- It can be used in the spool of the Sewing Machine to create the dyeable Tank Top.
- It is used in the Dye Bundle on the Bulletin Board.
Red Cabbage details:
- Seed Cost: 100g from Pierre’s General Store
- Growth Time: 9 days
- Base Selling Price: 260g
- XP: 28 Farming XP
- Provides: +75 Energy and +33 Health
1-Starfruit
An extremely juicy fruit that grows in hot, humid weather, Starfruit is considered to be lightly sweet with a sour undertone. It is a fruit crop that grows from Starfruit Seeds and is only available for purchase after unlocking the Bus to reach the Desert. It has the second-highest sell price of any crop in the game, with only the Sweet Gem Berry selling for more.
Why Starfruit is Great For Summer:
- It's a Liked and neutrally Liked item for most villagers except Haley, Jas, Vincent, and Abigail.
- Kent requests a Starfruit by mail on the 15th of Summer of ear 2 in the "A Soldier's Star" Quest.
- Products it creates: Wine sells at a base price of 2,250g, and Jam sells at a base price of 1,550g.
- It can be used in the spool of the Sewing Machine to create the dyeable Genie Pants.
- Starfruit is required to build a Junimo Hut, purchased from the Wizard's Tower.
Starfruit details:
- Seed Cost: 400g from Sandy’s Oasis store
- Growth Time: 13 days
- Base Selling Price: 750g
- XP: 43 Farming XP
- Provides: +125 Energy and +56 Health
- It is one of the options in the remixed Dye Bundle on the Bulletin Board.
