Gathering and Using Hardwood in Stardew Valley

Hello, friends! Hardwood is a type of material in the game Stardew Valley, which is not needed much in the early game but often becomes scarce when you need it. In this tutorial, we’ll talk about the uses and sources of hardwood.

Main Sources of Hardwood

Large Stumps and Logs

The first major source of hardwood is large stumps and logs.

• Chopping large stumps on your farm with an upgraded axe will yield two hardwood pieces.
• Chopping large logs with an iron or better axe will drop eight hardwood pieces.

By collecting all the hardwood on a standard farm, you can gather 86 pieces. There is also a large log at the entrance to the Secret Woods, which allows for an early game collection of over 100 hardwood pieces. Large logs are non-renewable, and most large stumps are non-renewable as well.

However, there are some renewable stumps:

• Eight on the left side of the Forest Farm
• One at the bottom left corner of the Four-Corners Farm’s left plot
• Six in the Secret Woods

This means that you can gather 12 hardwood pieces daily on non-Forest Farms, 14 pieces on Four-Corners Farm, and 28 pieces on the Forest Farm.

Mahogany Trees

Another major source of hardwood is Mahogany Trees.

• Chopping Mahogany Trees with an axe yields an average of 8-13 hardwood pieces per tree, with an additional hardwood piece from the stump.

In the early game, you have a chance to obtain Mahogany Seeds by fighting slimes or chopping large stumps. It’s recommended to plant the seeds as soon as you get them since Mahogany Trees grow slower than regular trees, taking about two months on average. Mature Mahogany Trees will drop seeds in the surrounding area, but at a lower rate than regular trees. Use tree fertilizer to speed up the process if you urgently need hardwood.

On Ginger Island, there are three renewable Mahogany Trees in the northwest corner of the farm, one near the Island Trader, and some that spawn in the Dig Site. You can also exchange Yellow Perch for Mahogany Seeds at the Island Trader. There are some large stumps and logs on Ginger Island Farm, which can provide 42 hardwood pieces. Therefore, after unlocking Ginger Island, it’s easier to solve the hardwood shortage issue in the late game.

Additional Hardwood Sources

Other sources of hardwood include:

• Wooden crates in the early mines, which provide small amounts of hardwood.
• Choosing the Forester skill at Foraging level 5, which increases hardwood drops by 25%. This is an important mid-game skill for collecting hardwood.
• Choosing the Lumberjack skill at Foraging level 10, which gives a chance to obtain hardwood from any tree. This skill is useful in long-term saves where a lot of hardwood is needed.

Woodskip fish ponds can also produce hardwood, but the quantity is very small and not worth the effort.

Uses of Hardwood

There are many uses for hardwood in the game. A typical game progression requires over 600 hardwood pieces.

• The Construction Bundle in the Community Center requires 10 hardwood pieces, which can be easily gathered from large stumps.
• Building a stable needs 100 hardwood pieces.
• Unlocking Ginger Island requires 200 hardwood pieces.

These requirements can cause a conflict, as you need more than a week’s worth of daily visits to the Secret Woods to collect 100 hardwood pieces. However, after unlocking Ginger Island, collecting hardwood becomes more convenient.

Other uses of hardwood include:

• Upgrading your house to the second level, which requires 150 hardwood pieces. This upgrade is mainly for having children, so there is no rush to upgrade your house.
• Cheese Presses require 10 hardwood pieces each. Since they have a high work efficiency, completing in three hours, it is recommended to build only half the number of cows you have to avoid waste.
• Oil Makers require 50 Slime Balls and 20 hardwood pieces each. It is not recommended to use oil makers for pigs, as it’s more efficient to sell truffles directly.
• Bait Bins require 25 hardwood pieces. It might be more cost-effective to buy bait directly from the shop.

Additionally, unlocking various crafting recipes may require around 100 more hardwood pieces. However, collecting hardwood becomes easier in the late game, with the main challenge being the early game when unlocking Ginger Island and building a stable.