Crossbreeding – what is it and how to start?
Basics
Crossbreeding involves breeding two distinct seed types to produce a third type of seed. By planting alternating seeds adjacent to each other, you have a chance of obtaining a new seed when harvesting the plants after they have grown.
The fundamental technique for crossbreeding is to plant two distinct seed types in an alternating pattern. You will need for it 1 Potting Soil and 8 Grade 3 Thanalan Topsoil. The second one will be utilized as fertilizer to increase the likelihood of crossbreeding. First, plant Seed 1 in first patch with Potting Soil, then plant remaining seeds as presented on the picture using Grade 3 Thanalan Topsoil. At the end remove Seed 1 from first patch and replant it with Grade 3 Thanalan Topsoil. The last step is important because the crossbreeding happens in the moment when seed is planted next to another seed.
Grade 3 Thanalan Topsoil
Grade 3 Thanalan Topsoil can be obtained in few ways. First, the easiest one, but not the cheapest, is to buy it on the Market Board. Second, gathering it in Hammerlea (Western Thanalan). It is quiet hard as, this soil can be obtained only from Unspoiled Rocky Outcropping. The next method is 50 level Venture. It takes long time (40-60 minutes) and gives in return only 1 soil. The last method is to buy it from Betrana in Idyllshire. She sells it for 1 Unidentifiable Ore. This item can be obtained from Hismena (NPC next to Betrana in Rowena’s House of Splendors). It cost 150 Tomestones of Poetics and can be found in category Special Arms. The other way is the easiest and the cheapest.
Replanting
By taking into account the varying growing times of different plants, you can utilize this information to your benefit. For instance, Broombush require two extra days to reach full growth compared to Mandrake. Once the Mandrakes have matured and are ready for harvest, remove them and replace them with additional Mandrake Seeds.
Replanting your plants as they reach maturity and are ready for harvesting can elevate your seeds productivity levels. When all the plants are prepared for harvesting simultaneously, it is possible to harvest the four plants of a similar kind and then plant them next to the other matured plants. This method enables the newly planted seeds to crossbreed with the harvestable plants. After this, the remaining four plants can be harvested, and the seeds can be replanted to continue the cycle.
