There are a few different ways of getting a good amount of Hardwood in Stardew Valley. Firstly, you can cut down stumps you find on your farm and also in the ‘secret forest’ area, which can be found to the north of the wizards tower, you can gather 12 pieces of Hardwood a day, providing you have a steel axe. You can also obtain wood frequently by selecting the lumberjack profession once you hit level 10 in the gathering skill. The mines can also be a source of Hardwood. Destroying the barrels you find there can net you a good amount. As of update 1.5 which is now available on PC, there is a tree that can be planted called the Mahogany tree which you can cut down to obtain Hardwood.
Getting hardwood from tree stumps
The best way to get Hardwood is by chopping up large tree stumps such as the one shown in the image above. You will see these tree stumps randomly on your farm from time to time. You will need at least a copper axe to be able to chop up the stumps. For each stump that you chop up, you will get 2 pieces of Hardwood. A great area in the game that respawns 6 stumps every single day is the ‘Secret Forest area, located to the north of the Wizards tower.
To unlock this area, you will have to have at least a steel quality axe. If you walk to along the north side of the lake in the map below your farm you will come to a large fallen tree. Use the steel axe on this tree until it breaks and you can access the secret forest. In the secret forest, as aforementioned, there are 6 stumps that respawn every day. This means that if you go to the secret forest every day and chop down stumps you have a guaranteed way of finding 12 Hardwood a day.
Get Hardwood from a perk in the lumberjack profession
This one will only be for those of you that have gotten pretty far in the game. Once you hit level 10 in foraging you have the option to choose a profession. One of these is the lumberjack perk. What this does is give you a chance, every time you cut down a tree, to obtain hardwood. If you are cutting down trees there is a good chance you can acquire a lot of hardwood using this perk but be aware. If you choose this profession you won’t be able to pick the one that lets you get 2 forage items when you pick up one. So choose wisely.
Get Hardwood from the mines
Another great way to get Hardwood is by going to the mines and looking out for barrels. Barrels, when destroyed, have a chance of dropping Hardwood. The only problem here is, there are no guarantees that a barrel will spawn on any given level. This method is solely based on chance. See the picture below to see what a barrel looks like in Stardew Valley.
Plants and cut down Mahogany Tree
The mahogany tree is a new item that was introduced in the 1.5 update of Stardew Valley. Unfortunately that means it is only available to PC players at the moment but don’t worry console players, the update is going to come soon to consoles. You can grow the mahogany tree and chop it down with any type of axe to net yourself a nice bundle of hardwoood.
Why do I need to get Hardwood in Stardew Valley?
There are a few different reasons that you need Hardwood in Stardew Valley. For example there are a few different Craftable items that require hardwood. Items such as the Cheese Press and Worm Bin require you to have a small amount of Hardwood.
Also, if you plan on building new buildings on your farm, a few of them will also require hardwood, such as the Horse Stable. Hardwood is also used for upgrading your cottage.
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