v0.31:Farming

Farming is the action of growing crops for food, cloth or other uses. It is one of the main sources of food, especially in the late game, and it is critical to the clothing industry.

Underground Farming

Underground farms are required to grow many plants, including the Template:L. The only seeds available at embark are for underground crops.

In order to create a Template:L underground you must first muddy the ground by temporarily covering it with water (or find a muddied area in a Template:L) (each tile underneath the farm plot must be muddied). Most caverns have entire open areas which will be permanently covered in mud, though beware the underground inhabitants, when farming. Any underground surface can be used to create a farm plot provided you muddy it first. Due to a bug, this currently includes soil layers, which would normally not require muddying.^v0.31.02. See Template:L for more.

Above Ground Farming

Above ground farming is essentially the same as underground farming, once it gets going. The complications are that, first, seeds cannot be chosen at embark. They can either be bought from caravans (Template:L or Template:L) or simply gathered using the Template:L designation. The second complication is that it, ostensibly, must be done above ground, which is dangerous (particularly during a siege). However, any land which has ever been exposed to sunlight becomes permanently marked as "above ground", so if you channel some above ground land, flatten it for farming, then construct a floor where the land once was, the (now dark and protected) land will be suitable for farming Template:L, Template:L, Template:L, and anything else you may find.