How to Farm Food in Kenshi — Crops by Climate
Pick the crop for the climate first: 6 crops, and each grows at full yield in only one or two climates. Wheatstraw suits green land, Cactus arid land, Riceweed swamp. The farm you can build from the start, the Vegetable Farm, grows greenfruit in green climate only. Then dig a well beside the farm and put workers on it.
- Crops6one climate each, mostly
- Rich zones10fertility and water 100 or more
- Start farms3Vegetable Farm S, M, L, no research
- Workers per farm4operator slots in the file
Seven steps, from the crop to the kitchen. For where to put the whole base, the base locations page rates every zone's water, fertility and ore.
On this page
The 7 steps at a glance
Steps 1 and 2 are choices; the rest is building.
- Pick a crop for the climate. Six crops, one table.
- Pick a zone. Ten with rich soil and water.
- Unlock the farm. Some farms need no research.
- Build and staff it. Sizes from S to XL.
- Dig a well. Three tiers, plus a rain collector.
- Store and cook. A stove, an oven, a silo.
- Go hydroponic. The endgame upgrade.
Step 1: Pick a crop for the climate
Every zone has an arid, green and swamp rating, and every crop has a multiplier for each. The numbers below are percent of full yield in a zone whose climate is that type. Pick the column of your zone's climate and read down for 100.
| Crop | Arid | Green | Swamp | Best in |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cactus | 100 | 0 | 0 | arid |
| Cotton | 0 | 100 | 0 | green |
| Greenfruit | 0 | 100 | 0 | green |
| Hemp | 40 | 100 | 100 | green and swamp |
| Riceweed | 0 | 0 | 100 | swamp |
| Wheatstraw | 50 | 100 | 0 | green |
Mixed climates
Zones often mix climates, for example Fishman Island is green 100 and swamp 50. The wiki says climate effects stack, so a mixed zone suits the crops that grow in more than one of its climates: Hemp grows in all three (40 arid, 100 green, 100 swamp).
Step 2: Pick a zone
A farm wants good soil and good water. Of 69 zones, 19 have a fertility of 100 or more, and 10 of those also have water of 100 or more. The ten below are the ones to look at first. Click a zone for its full row on the base locations page, with its iron, stone and copper.
| Zone | Fertility | Water | Climate | Crops that grow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fishman Island | 120 | 120 | green 100, swamp 50 | Cotton, Greenfruit, Hemp, Riceweed, Wheatstraw |
| Burning Forest | 100 | 200 | swamp 100 | Hemp, Riceweed |
| South Wetlands | 100 | 200 | swamp 100 | Hemp, Riceweed |
| The Swamp | 100 | 200 | swamp 100 | Hemp, Riceweed |
| Arm of Okran | 100 | 150 | green 100 | Cotton, Greenfruit, Hemp, Wheatstraw |
| Hidden Forest | 100 | 150 | green 100 | Cotton, Greenfruit, Hemp, Wheatstraw |
| Okran's Pride | 100 | 150 | green 100 | Cotton, Greenfruit, Hemp, Wheatstraw |
| The Shrieking Forest | 100 | 150 | green 100 | Cotton, Greenfruit, Hemp, Wheatstraw |
| Darkfinger | 100 | 100 | arid 100, green 50 | Cactus, Cotton, Greenfruit, Hemp, Wheatstraw |
| Fog Islands | 100 | 100 | arid 75, green 70 | Cactus, Cotton, Greenfruit, Hemp, Wheatstraw |
Rich is not the same as safe
The ratings say what the land gives, not who holds it. The Swamp, for one, has water 200 and 7 settlements of our map inside it; see who owns them on the map before you build.
Step 3: Unlock the farm
Some farms need no research. A normal start gives you Vegetable Farm L, Vegetable Farm M and Vegetable Farm S, and the Freedom Seekers start adds Wheat Farm S. Even the free farms cost seeds to build (10 Greenfruit for the small one). Every other crop is a one-time research that costs two of the crop plus two Books, and the research tree has five of them. Start from the tech tree if you plan the whole chain.
| Research | Tech level | Cost | Time | Unlocks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wheatstraw Farming | 1 | 2 Wheatstraw, 2 Book | 2 h | Wheat Farm S, M, L, XL |
| Cactus Farming | 1 | 2 Cactus, 2 Book | 2 h | Cactus Farm S, M, L, XL |
| Cotton Farming | 1 | 2 Cotton, 2 Book | 2 h | Cotton Farm S, M, L, and XL |
| Riceweed Farming | 1 | 2 Riceweed, 2 Book | 2 h | Riceweed Farm S, M, L |
| Hemp Farming | 2 | 2 Hemp, 2 Book | 2 h | Hemp Farm S, M, L |
- Cactus needs Wheatstraw first. Cactus Farming lists Wheatstraw Farming as its prerequisite.
- You need a sample of the crop. The research costs two of the crop itself, so carry seeds from a shop or a wild plant before you start. The shop finder shows who sells what.
- Do not research the desert crop in a green zone (0 percent green): match the research to your zone.
Step 4: Build and staff the farm
Farms come in sizes S, M, L and XL (XL only for Wheatstraw, Cactus and Cotton). The cost to build is paid in the crop itself, so a bigger farm needs more of the crop in stock. Every farm, big or small, has 4 worker slots in the files.
| Crop | S | M | L | XL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cactus | 10 | 20 | 30 | 40 |
| Cotton | 10 | 25 | 40 | 60 |
| Greenfruit | 10 | 25 | 40 | — |
| Hemp | 10 | 20 | 30 | — |
| Riceweed | 10 | 30 | 50 | — |
| Wheatstraw | 10 | 25 | 40 | 60 |
- Start with a Small or Medium. A big farm is more seeds up front, and the worker slots do not grow with it.
- Put workers on it. Up to 4; assign them from the farm's own panel in game.
- Stock first. Build the storage for the crop (Storage: Wheatstraw and the like) so harvests have somewhere to go.
Step 5: Dig a well
Farms need water, and the well is the water. Our files list three wells and a rain collector. The speed is the building's output rate; the Well II and III draw power (see how to power your base).
| Building | Speed | Power draw | Parts | Research |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Well | x0.75 | 0 | none listed | from the start |
| Well II | x1 | 8 | 6 Building Material, 4 Iron Plates | Wells II (2 Book) |
| Well III | x1.25 | 10 | 9 Building Material, 6 Iron Plates | Wells III (1 Ancient Science Book) |
| Rain Collector | — | 0 | 4 Iron Plates | Rain Collector (3 Book) |
Water and the zone
The zone's water rating (the Water column in step 2) is the number to look at for a well: choose a high one, such as The Swamp at 200. How the rating converts to output is not in our files.
Step 6: Store and cook
Raw crops feed nobody until someone eats them. A Cooking Stove (Cooking research, 1 Book) makes cooked vegetables and rice bowl; a Bread Oven (Baking, 2 Book) comes with a Grain Silo and Flour Storage. The stove draws 2 power.
- Advanced Cooking (2 Book) adds Foodcube, Gohan and Meatwrap; Desert Cooking (3 Book) adds Chewsticks and Dustwich.
- Who eats how much. Shek 1.25, Greenlander 1, Scorchlander 0.9, Hive Soldier Drone 0.6, Hive Prince 0.5, Hive Worker Drone 0.5; Skeleton, P4 Unit and Soldierbot need no food at all. The number is the race's hunger rate in the files.
- Automatic Grain Silo (Automatic Flour Grinding, 4 Ancient Science Book) is an endgame convenience that draws 20 power.
Step 7: Go hydroponic
Hydroponics grows crops without soil. It starts with the Hydroponics research, which costs 1 AI Core, and each crop is its own research (Wheatstraw 2 Ancient Science Book, Vegetables 4 Ancient Science Book). The buildings draw 10 power each and are built from the crop, Iron Plates and Electrical Components (for Wheatstraw: 10 Wheatstraw, 4 Iron Plates, 2 Electrical Components). It is the answer for a base in poor land, once you have the power; see where the AI Core comes from on the AI Core locations page.
Common mistakes
- Building the start farm in a desert. Greenfruit grows 0 percent in arid climate.
- Researching a crop you cannot sample. The research costs two of the crop; buy or find seeds first.
- Forgetting the well. A farm with no water does not feed anyone.
- Going big before you have workers. Every farm has 4 slots, so a second small farm beats an unstaffed large one.
FAQ
How do you farm in Kenshi?
Pick a crop that grows in your zone's climate, research it if it is not a start farm, build a farm, put a well beside it and assign up to 4 workers.
What is the best crop to farm in Kenshi?
The one that matches the climate: Wheatstraw for green land (100 green, 50 arid), Cactus for arid (100), Riceweed for swamp.
Which area is best for farming?
Fishman Island, Burning Forest and South Wetlands lead our list: fertility and water at 100 or more. 10 zones qualify; see step 2.
Why is my farm not producing?
The usual causes are a crop that does not grow in the zone's climate, no well, or no worker. Our files do not give a growth time, so check those three first.
Do all races need food?
No: Skeleton, P4 Unit and Soldierbot do not eat.
Can you farm without soil?
Yes, with hydroponics, but it needs the Hydroponics research (1 AI Core) and power.
Pages to keep open
Related pages
Sources
- Kenshi game files 1.0.68: buildings and zone data (via the Kenshi Interactive Map extract)
- Kenshi Wiki, Farming (CC BY-SA 4.0), dump of 2026-10-13
- Kenshi Wiki, Environment (the farming climate table)
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