Hey folks, this post will serve as a sort of tutorial/mini explanation as to what each of the machines do and how the Hydroponics systems actually work. Possibly some other important messages at the bottom.
So, from the top. The mod introduces the following machines: -Two growing machines in the Hydroponics Bed and the Stacked Hydroponics Beds. -The Aquaponics Aquarium. -The Rock Smasher. -The Mixer. -The Fish Hatchery. -The Compost Bin. -As well as several loose items used in their crafting and as consumables.
Getting Started
To get started and build your first Hydroponics system you'll need to visit Robin and Pierre and acquire the blueprints for the mod's machines. As a bare minimum you should get the Rock Smasher, Sandy Loam (from Pierre) and Hydroponics Bed blueprints. Before you can make your first Hydroponics Bed you'll need to create a growing medium for your plants to sit in. Conventional farming uses soil as a growing medium to support and deliver nutrients to your crops, since our Hydroponics Bed is an artificial environment we'll need to create a growing medium. This is where the Sandy Loam comes in. Sandy Loam is a granular, easy to drain, growing medium that works well with a wide range of plants. To craft Sandy Loam, you'll need Clay, Silt and Sand, the latter two of which you can create with the Rock Smasher. -Silt is made by smashing Stones. -Sand is made by crushing silt into even finer particles. Once you have your growing medium you can make your first Hydroponics Bed. Hydroponics Beds, and by proxy the Stacked Hydroponics Beds, are an entirely artificial growing environment which means the plants inside of them need to be given both nutrients, in traditional farming derived from the soil, and water. Since the beds water supply is handled by whatever magical water supply runs our Sprinkler systems, we'll only need to worry about the Seeds and Nutrients. Nutrients in this case means Fertilizer. Hydroponics Beds require 4 vanilla seeds and one box of Quality Fertilizer to be used when planting your crops. The fertilizer dissolves in the water and feeds your crops over their growth cycle. Outside of these variables the growing time for crops should be the same as if grown outdoors, with the benefit of being able to grow them at any time and having an extremely consistent harvest. Since the Hydroponics Bed is a controlled environment all your lovely crops will be on an even playing field and all grow to the same quality. Stacked Hydroponics Beds are more of the same. They're essentially two beds stacked on top of each other. Double the input of seeds and fertilizer, double the output of crops, all in the same footprint. Now that we've established how the Hydroponics Beds work, let's look at some of that fertilizer we'll be needing to run them.
Advanced Fertilizers
Basic fertilizer lacks the necessary nutrients to fully sustain your crops and in this case would best be preserved for your main crop fields outdoors. Adding Quality Fertilizer straight to your Hydroponics Bed is an alright solution, but many of the nutrients present in the fertilizer don't have time to properly dissolve and go to waste. This is where the Mixer comes into play. Using the Mixer, you can turn Quality Fertilizer into Liquid Fertilizer, a properly dissolved and PH balanced substance which is specifically designed for use in Hydroponics Systems. The processed Liquid Fertilizer can then be used instead of Quality fertilizer when planting in Beds and will help your plants take in more nutrients and in turn improve your harvest quality! Fertilizer itself can be made in two main ways: Through Composting and through the use of Aquaponics Aquariums.
Composting
Composting, an entirely natural process, is done via the Compost Bin, Stone Smasher and Mixer where needed. To begin composting, simply take some excess harvest, plant matter or forage, throw them in the Rock Smasher and crush it into Biomass. Biomass in of itself is a raw lump of plant matter, not quite Fertilizer yet and in some cases fairy smelly. Taking our Biomass, we can throw it in our Compost Bin and let natural processes and bacteria break it down over time into the base nutrients that comprise Fertilizer, it's all part of the circle of life. This process will create Basic Fertilizer. But we're not here for Basic Fertilizer, as mentioned above it's fairly useless to us in our Hydroponics Systems. It's there as an option for those looking for an alternative path to make Fertilizer. To make something of higher quality we'll need to supplement our Biomass, as the composting process of pure Biomass doesn't create all the necessary nutrients needed for Quality Fertilizer. For that we'll need a source of Calcium. Combine Biomass with Sea Shells, Eggs, Milk or Nautilus Shells in a mixer and you'll get a Potent Biomass. This blob of improved Biomass has the tertiary nutrient groups needed to make Quality Fertilizer, which we can get by composting the Potent Biomass in our Compost Bin. Science!
Aquaponics
Aquaponics Aquariums are the lazy man's fertilizer creation system. They're intended to be a closed loop system, feeding directly into Hydroponics Beds using the excrement of Fish as a natural fertilizer. To build your Aquaponics Aquarium you'll need 5 of any fish as part of the crafting requirements. Once placed, it will have a daily chance of creating Liquid Fertilizer for you to use. Of course since there are live fish inside of it, it can also produce Roe, and you'll need to clean the tank rocky floor which can yield you some residue covered rocks, or as I like to call it Basic Fertilizer. One last Item on the docket is the Fish Hatchery, providing a use for the roe you can get from your Aquaponics Aquarium. The Fish Hatchery is intended to work in tandem with the Aquaponics Systems and any Fish Ponds you may have. As the name suggests, the Fish Hatchery is a contained environment to grow Fish from Roe. Depending on what fish the inserted roe was sourced from you'll get different kinds of Fish.
That's all as of Update 1.2.3; Some important things to note include: Hydroponics beds currently don't support multi-harvest crops, as such the harvests of these crops have been boosted. We're investigating ways to make these work. Much of this mod is still a work in progress and things will change as we learn more about how the game and Frameworks themselves work. More things may be added, others things re-balanced and some streamlined. We're happy to read all of your feedback and suggestions, thanks for taking the time to read this. Have a good one!
Hi! Sadly, CCS currently isn't compatible with Android. Cherry (the author) stated that Android support is already on her list, she's just working stuff out in her end. Soon enough AF will be available for Android, stay tuned for more updates! Thank you!
Advanced Farming Workbench - Demetrius 2 Hearts/ Fall/Year 1 Seedling Tray - Demetrius 2 Hearts /Fall/ Year 1 Raised Bed - Demetrius 2 Hearts /Fall/ Year 1 Crusher - Demetrius 2 Hearts / Fall / Year 1 Composting Bin - Demetrius 4 Hearts / Spring / Year 2 Mixer - Demetrius 4 Hearts / Spring / Year 2 Hydroponics - Demetrius 6 Hearts / Fall / Year 2 Aeroponics Towers - Demetrius 8 Hearts / Spring/ Year 3 Aquaponics Aquarium - Demetrius 8 Hearts / Spring/ Year 3 Aquarium Breeding Tank - Demetrius 8 Hearts / Spring/ Year 3 Aquarium Filter - Demetrius 8 Hearts / Spring/ Year 3 Fish Hatchery - Demetrius 8 Hearts / Spring/ Year 3
Objects:
Frame Components - Demetrius 2 Hearts/Fall/ Year 1 Hydroponics Tray - Demetrius 6 Hearts / Fall / Year 2 Pipes - Demetrius 6 Hearts / Fall / Year 2 Water Pump - Demetrius 6 Hearts / Fall / Year 2 Water Tank - Demetrius 6 Hearts / Fall / Year 2 Aeroponics Tower Base - Demetrius 8 Hearts / Spring/ Year 3 Aeroponics Tower Frame - Demetrius 8 Hearts / Spring/ Year 3 Biomass Coconut Biomass Glycerol Liquid Fertilizer Polluted Aquarium Water Potent Biomass Raw Bio Plastic Sand Sandy Loam Silt Seedling Bag Spouts - All
Heya! not sure if ya still check this but I'm covering my bases, I'm new to modding Stardew so sorry if this is a general knowledge question but I missed the heart requirement for the year 1 unlocks, its winter now and I have the heat requirement but I am not receiving any mail regarding the unlocks nor are any of the recipes appearing in any of the stores. do I have to wait for that fall year 2 to unlock the farming bench and the rock breaker or is my game bugged?
Anyone know how to get the sandy loam and the rock smasher from Pierre? Im like at max hearts with the guy and also, I can buy the bed and the Hydoponic aquarium from Robin along with the recipes, yet when I want to make the aquarium myself, It says it needs 10 "Stones" that aren't the standard stones you get ingame and it looks like a iron stone you find in the mines on the map
Anyone knows why Pierre isn't selling the recipe for the sandy loam/rock smasher along with where to find the "stone" for the aquaponics aquarium?
Nevrmind, me idiot of a friend didnt update the mod. Only thing so far that is confusing me is where can I put the raised beds? Since it keeps saying It work work when i place it outside, in shed, or even the greenhouse?
I seem to be having trouble with actually planting anything in a hydroponic bed. I don't understand what the recipe is?
I've tried seedlings from the seedling tray + fertilizer without much effect. I used Lookup Anything to check the recipe and it said to use fertilizer + seedling bags but I don't understand how I attain seedling bags? I seem to be very lost, I cannot find a mention of a Seedling Bag on a crafting screen or any recipe list that Lookup Anything pulls up? Additionally I tried just using an item spawner to get a "Seedling Bag" and I got an error trying to use it as well?
The aeroponic towers on the other hand, seem to have no issues.
that mod sounds fun and now I have a reason to get involved with Demetrius too. Is it possible to add UV-lights to the mod? Ideally, it shortens the grow time, but purely cosmetical would be great too. Also, I think Ca is a bit hard to get from the pinned post (no play experiences). Would fossils and skeleton parts make sense as additions too?
I was working on adding the fossils and skeleton parts last update but I got too busy with my life that I totally forgot, I'm not quite sure whether I'll be able to continue this mod but if I ever get the spare time and energy I'll do so!
98 comments
So, from the top.
The mod introduces the following machines:
-Two growing machines in the Hydroponics Bed and the Stacked Hydroponics Beds.
-The Aquaponics Aquarium.
-The Rock Smasher.
-The Mixer.
-The Fish Hatchery.
-The Compost Bin.
-As well as several loose items used in their crafting and as consumables.
Getting Started
To get started and build your first Hydroponics system you'll need to visit Robin and Pierre and acquire the blueprints for the mod's machines. As a bare minimum you should get the Rock Smasher, Sandy Loam (from Pierre) and Hydroponics Bed blueprints.
Before you can make your first Hydroponics Bed you'll need to create a growing medium for your plants to sit in. Conventional farming uses soil as a growing medium to support and deliver nutrients to your crops, since our Hydroponics Bed is an artificial environment we'll need to create a growing medium. This is where the Sandy Loam comes in. Sandy Loam is a granular, easy to drain, growing medium that works well with a wide range of plants. To craft Sandy Loam, you'll need Clay, Silt and Sand, the latter two of which you can create with the Rock Smasher.
-Silt is made by smashing Stones.
-Sand is made by crushing silt into even finer particles.
Once you have your growing medium you can make your first Hydroponics Bed.
Hydroponics Beds, and by proxy the Stacked Hydroponics Beds, are an entirely artificial growing environment which means the plants inside of them need to be given both nutrients, in traditional farming derived from the soil, and water. Since the beds water supply is handled by whatever magical water supply runs our Sprinkler systems, we'll only need to worry about the Seeds and Nutrients. Nutrients in this case means Fertilizer. Hydroponics Beds require 4 vanilla seeds and one box of Quality Fertilizer to be used when planting your crops. The fertilizer dissolves in the water and feeds your crops over their growth cycle. Outside of these variables the growing time for crops should be the same as if grown outdoors, with the benefit of being able to grow them at any time and having an extremely consistent harvest. Since the Hydroponics Bed is a controlled environment all your lovely crops will be on an even playing field and all grow to the same quality.
Stacked Hydroponics Beds are more of the same. They're essentially two beds stacked on top of each other. Double the input of seeds and fertilizer, double the output of crops, all in the same footprint.
Now that we've established how the Hydroponics Beds work, let's look at some of that fertilizer we'll be needing to run them.
Advanced Fertilizers
Basic fertilizer lacks the necessary nutrients to fully sustain your crops and in this case would best be preserved for your main crop fields outdoors. Adding Quality Fertilizer straight to your Hydroponics Bed is an alright solution, but many of the nutrients present in the fertilizer don't have time to properly dissolve and go to waste. This is where the Mixer comes into play.
Using the Mixer, you can turn Quality Fertilizer into Liquid Fertilizer, a properly dissolved and PH balanced substance which is specifically designed for use in Hydroponics Systems. The processed Liquid Fertilizer can then be used instead of Quality fertilizer when planting in Beds and will help your plants take in more nutrients and in turn improve your harvest quality!
Fertilizer itself can be made in two main ways: Through Composting and through the use of Aquaponics Aquariums.
Composting
Composting, an entirely natural process, is done via the Compost Bin, Stone Smasher and Mixer where needed. To begin composting, simply take some excess harvest, plant matter or forage, throw them in the Rock Smasher and crush it into Biomass.
Biomass in of itself is a raw lump of plant matter, not quite Fertilizer yet and in some cases fairy smelly. Taking our Biomass, we can throw it in our Compost Bin and let natural processes and bacteria break it down over time into the base nutrients that comprise Fertilizer, it's all part of the circle of life. This process will create Basic Fertilizer. But we're not here for Basic Fertilizer, as mentioned above it's fairly useless to us in our Hydroponics Systems. It's there as an option for those looking for an alternative path to make Fertilizer. To make something of higher quality we'll need to supplement our Biomass, as the composting process of pure Biomass doesn't create all the necessary nutrients needed for Quality Fertilizer. For that we'll need a source of Calcium. Combine Biomass with Sea Shells, Eggs, Milk or Nautilus Shells in a mixer and you'll get a Potent Biomass. This blob of improved Biomass has the tertiary nutrient groups needed to make Quality Fertilizer, which we can get by composting the Potent Biomass in our Compost Bin. Science!
Aquaponics
Aquaponics Aquariums are the lazy man's fertilizer creation system. They're intended to be a closed loop system, feeding directly into Hydroponics Beds using the excrement of Fish as a natural fertilizer. To build your Aquaponics Aquarium you'll need 5 of any fish as part of the crafting requirements. Once placed, it will have a daily chance of creating Liquid Fertilizer for you to use. Of course since there are live fish inside of it, it can also produce Roe, and you'll need to clean the tank rocky floor which can yield you some residue covered rocks, or as I like to call it Basic Fertilizer.
One last Item on the docket is the Fish Hatchery, providing a use for the roe you can get from your Aquaponics Aquarium.
The Fish Hatchery is intended to work in tandem with the Aquaponics Systems and any Fish Ponds you may have. As the name suggests, the Fish Hatchery is a contained environment to grow Fish from Roe. Depending on what fish the inserted roe was sourced from you'll get different kinds of Fish.
That's all as of Update 1.2.3;
Some important things to note include:
Hydroponics beds currently don't support multi-harvest crops, as such the harvests of these crops have been boosted. We're investigating ways to make these work.
Much of this mod is still a work in progress and things will change as we learn more about how the game and Frameworks themselves work. More things may be added, others things re-balanced and some streamlined. We're happy to read all of your feedback and suggestions, thanks for taking the time to read this. Have a good one!
BigCraftable:
Advanced Farming Workbench - Demetrius 2 Hearts/ Fall/Year 1
Seedling Tray - Demetrius 2 Hearts /Fall/ Year 1
Raised Bed - Demetrius 2 Hearts /Fall/ Year 1
Crusher - Demetrius 2 Hearts / Fall / Year 1
Composting Bin - Demetrius 4 Hearts / Spring / Year 2
Mixer - Demetrius 4 Hearts / Spring / Year 2
Hydroponics - Demetrius 6 Hearts / Fall / Year 2
Aeroponics Towers - Demetrius 8 Hearts / Spring/ Year 3
Aquaponics Aquarium - Demetrius 8 Hearts / Spring/ Year 3
Aquarium Breeding Tank - Demetrius 8 Hearts / Spring/ Year 3
Aquarium Filter - Demetrius 8 Hearts / Spring/ Year 3
Fish Hatchery - Demetrius 8 Hearts / Spring/ Year 3
Objects:
Frame Components - Demetrius 2 Hearts/Fall/ Year 1
Hydroponics Tray - Demetrius 6 Hearts / Fall / Year 2
Pipes - Demetrius 6 Hearts / Fall / Year 2
Water Pump - Demetrius 6 Hearts / Fall / Year 2
Water Tank - Demetrius 6 Hearts / Fall / Year 2
Aeroponics Tower Base - Demetrius 8 Hearts / Spring/ Year 3
Aeroponics Tower Frame - Demetrius 8 Hearts / Spring/ Year 3
Biomass
Coconut Biomass
Glycerol
Liquid Fertilizer
Polluted Aquarium Water
Potent Biomass
Raw Bio Plastic
Sand
Sandy Loam
Silt
Seedling Bag
Spouts - All
[Json Assets] Recipe for Water Pump already seems to exist?
Anyone knows why Pierre isn't selling the recipe for the sandy loam/rock smasher along with where to find the "stone" for the aquaponics aquarium?
I seem to be having trouble with actually planting anything in a hydroponic bed. I don't understand what the recipe is?
I've tried seedlings from the seedling tray + fertilizer without much effect. I used Lookup Anything to check the recipe and it said to use fertilizer + seedling bags but I don't understand how I attain seedling bags? I seem to be very lost, I cannot find a mention of a Seedling Bag on a crafting screen or any recipe list that Lookup Anything pulls up? Additionally I tried just using an item spawner to get a "Seedling Bag" and I got an error trying to use it as well?
The aeroponic towers on the other hand, seem to have no issues.
that mod sounds fun and now I have a reason to get involved with Demetrius too.
Is it possible to add UV-lights to the mod? Ideally, it shortens the grow time, but purely cosmetical would be great too.
Also, I think Ca is a bit hard to get from the pinned post (no play experiences). Would fossils and skeleton parts make sense as additions too?