Orchids

Overview

Orchids are a Senior Farmer-tier flower crop in Starsand Island, grown exclusively during Spring. They are one of the four plantable flower types alongside Roses, Tulips, and Moonrises. Orchids come in three base colors (Red, Yellow, and Blue) that can be purchased directly from the Happiness Seed Shop, and six additional hybrid colors (Pink, Orange, Green, Purple, Brown, and Black) that must be produced through flower cross-breeding. That brings the total to nine distinct Orchid colors.

All Orchid variants share the same growth time of 4 days and 18 hours (approximately 4.75 days). Each seed produces 4 Orchids across the full growth cycle. Orchids are planted on regular farmland or in Planting Boxes; they do not require Trellises or Paddy Fields. Like all flowers, Orchids serve as popular gifts for NPCs, decorative items for aquascaping, and a steady source of income when sold. Hybrid colors sell for significantly more than the base colors, with Black Orchids topping the chart at 418 Gold per flower.

Orchid Seeds become available at the Happiness Seed Shop once you earn the Senior Farmer certification through Graminova's profession quests. The Senior Farmer trial itself involves cross-breeding flowers and presenting specific hybrid colors, so you will already be familiar with the breeding mechanic by the time you unlock Orchid seeds.

Quick Stats

Color Variants

There are nine Orchid colors in total. The three base colors can be purchased as seeds from the Happiness Seed Shop. The six hybrid colors must be created through cross-breeding and cannot be bought directly. Rarer colors sell for higher prices, with Black Orchids being the most valuable.

Seed costs for hybrid colors are relevant when using the Grinder to create hybrid seeds from harvested Orchids. You cannot purchase hybrid seeds directly from the shop; however, the Grinder recipe and the seed cost values listed above reflect the in-game item value assigned to each hybrid's seeds.

Cross-Breeding

Cross-breeding is the only way to obtain the six hybrid Orchid colors. The basic mechanic works as follows: plant two Orchids of the same flower type but different colors on tilled farmland, leaving one empty tilled plot between them. Water all three tiles daily. Once both parent flowers mature, there is a chance that a new hybrid-colored Orchid will sprout in the empty middle plot. For a full explanation of the mechanics and layout tips, see the Cross-Breeding Flowers page.

Cross-breeding only works between flowers of the same species. You cannot cross-breed an Orchid with a Rose or Tulip. Both parents must be Orchids.

Breeding Combinations

The table below lists the parent color combinations that can produce each hybrid Orchid color. Success is not guaranteed on every attempt; the mechanic is probability-based, so you may need to try multiple times before a hybrid appears.

A practical approach to breeding all six hybrids in order:

• Step 1: Start with Red + Red to produce Pink (the simplest hybrid to obtain).

• Step 2: Use Yellow + Red to produce Orange, and Blue + Yellow to produce Green.

• Step 3: Use Blue + Red to produce Purple.

• Step 4: Combine secondary hybrids (e.g., Green + Red or Orange + Blue) to produce Brown.

• Step 5: Finally, use Brown + any other color to produce Black, the rarest and most valuable Orchid.

Since the breeding process is random, plant multiple pairs of each combination to improve your odds. Having a row of alternating parent colors with empty plots between each pair gives you several chances per growth cycle.

Growing

Orchids grow on regular tilled farmland or inside Planting Boxes. Till the soil with your hoe, plant the Orchid Seed, and water it daily. If using a Planting Box, you can grow Orchids indoors or anywhere else you can place the box, which is convenient for organizing a dedicated flower farm.

The growth time for all Orchid colors is 4 days and 18 hours. Crop growth runs in real time, measured from the exact moment you plant the seed. If you plant at noon, the Orchid will be ready to harvest 4 days and 18 hours later. Skipping a day of watering will stall growth until the next watering. Using sprinklers automates the daily watering and ensures consistent growth without manual effort.

Each Orchid seed produces 4 flowers in a single harvest. Orchids are not a multi-harvest crop; once you pick the flowers, the plant is spent and the plot must be replanted. With a roughly 5-day growth cycle and a 28-day Spring season, you can fit about 5 full planting cycles into one season if you replant immediately after each harvest.

Cross-Breeding Layout

When growing Orchids specifically for cross-breeding, till three plots in a row. Plant one parent color on each end and leave the middle plot empty but tilled and watered. Both parents must fully mature before there is a chance for a hybrid to appear in the center. Water all three plots every day (or set up sprinklers to cover the row). If the middle plot remains empty after the parents mature, harvest the parents, replant, and try again.

Gifting

Orchids are among the best gift items in the game. All nine colors share the same NPC preferences, making them a reliable go-to gift once you start producing them. Hybrid colors do not change which NPCs like or dislike them; even a common Red Orchid and a rare Black Orchid trigger the same reaction from each character. For a complete NPC preference list, see the Gift Guide.

Seven NPCs love Orchids, which makes them one of the most broadly appreciated gift categories. Because all Orchid colors trigger the same "loved" reaction, you can gift the cheapest base colors (Red Orchid, 194 Gold sell value) to NPCs you want to befriend without wasting your expensive Black or Brown Orchids. Save the rare hybrids for selling or aquascaping instead.

Uses

Orchids have four primary uses in Starsand Island:

• Selling: Orchids can be sold directly to vendors or through the Merchant Ship for higher prices. Black Orchids at 418 Gold per flower are the most profitable, while base-color Red Orchids sell for 194 Gold each.

• Gifting: All Orchid colors are loved by seven NPCs and liked by most others. They are a reliable and easy-to-produce gift for raising friendship levels.

• Aquascaping: Orchids can be used as decorative items in aquascaping setups. Different colors let you customize the visual style of your aquarium arrangements.

• Grinder Processing: Placing Orchids into the Grinder converts them back into Orchid Seeds. For base colors (Red, Yellow, Blue), you can grind the flowers directly. For hybrid colors, the Grinder recipe requires 2 Orchids of that color plus 2 Moo Balls to produce the corresponding hybrid seeds.

No cooking recipes currently use Orchids as an ingredient. Orchids also cannot be processed at the Separator or the Jam Maker. Their value lies entirely in direct selling, gifting, decoration, and seed recovery through the Grinder.

Everlasting Orchid Seeds

Like all crops in Starsand Island, Orchids have an Everlasting variant. An Everlasting Orchid Seed produces a plant that does not become spent after harvest. Instead, the crop continues regrowing and producing Orchids indefinitely, removing the need to buy new seeds and replant after every cycle. Everlasting crops also ignore season restrictions, meaning an Everlasting Orchid will grow year-round, including during Summer, Autumn, and Winter when normal Orchids cannot be planted.

There are several ways to obtain Everlasting Orchid Seeds:

• Eternal Blessings Skill: The Senior Farmer tier unlocks the Eternal Blessings skill, which gives a chance of receiving an Everlasting Seed when harvesting any regular crop. Higher farming proficiency improves the odds.

• Creamy Seeds Buff: Eating Mirthshroom Soup (recipe found in a Moonlit Forest chest) grants a temporary buff that increases the chance of dropping Everlasting Seeds when harvesting. Combine this with the Eternal Blessings skill for the best results.

• Islandpedia Rewards: Completing certain entries in the Plants section of the Islandpedia may reward you with Everlasting Seeds for specific crops.

• Random Harvest Drops: Occasionally, harvesting a normal Orchid plant will yield an Everlasting Orchid Seed alongside the regular flowers.

Everlasting Seeds are safe to relocate. If you remove an Everlasting Orchid from its plot, the seed returns to your inventory so you can replant it elsewhere. Building up a collection of Everlasting Orchid Seeds is especially valuable because it removes the Spring-only restriction, letting you produce Orchids for gifting and selling throughout the entire year.

Tips

• Plant early in Spring to maximize harvests: With a 4-day-18-hour growth cycle and a 28-day Spring season, you can complete about 5 full cycles if you plant on day 1 and replant immediately after each harvest.

• Grow base colors for gifting, hybrids for profit: Since all Orchid colors trigger the same NPC gift reactions, use cheap Red Orchids (255 Gold seed cost) for gifts and reserve expensive hybrids like Black Orchids (418 Gold sell price) for selling.

• Set up sprinklers early: A flower farm with multiple cross-breeding rows demands a lot of daily watering. Sprinklers automate this entirely, freeing your time and stamina for other activities.

• Breed systematically from simple to rare: Start by breeding Pink (Red + Red), then work through Orange, Green, and Purple before tackling Brown and finally Black. Each tier of hybrid uses the previous tier's colors as parents.

• Save Moo Balls for hybrid seed grinding: Hybrid Orchid Seeds require 2 Moo Balls per Grinder recipe. If you plan to mass-produce hybrid seeds, stockpile Moo Balls from your ranch animals in advance.

• Use Planting Boxes for organized breeding: Planting Boxes let you arrange flowers in controlled layouts indoors. This can help keep your cross-breeding rows organized and separate from your main crop fields.

• Sell to the Merchant Ship for double value: The Merchant Ship pays roughly double the standard sell price. Timing your Black Orchid harvests to coincide with the ship's visits can push earnings to over 800 Gold per flower.

• Work toward Everlasting Seeds: Once you have the Eternal Blessings skill from the Senior Farmer tier, every Orchid harvest has a chance of dropping an Everlasting Seed. Everlasting Orchids remove the Spring-only restriction and eliminate ongoing seed costs, making them a permanent source of income and gifts all year round.

• Place Bumblebee hives near your flower farm: Bumblebees in beehives near your plots boost crop growth speed. This shortens the 4-day-18-hour cycle, letting you squeeze more harvests into each Spring season.