To get hay in Stardew Valley you have tow options. You can grow grass using grass seeds and then cut them with your scythe. You can also get hay just by going to Marnie’s Ranch and purchasing some directly from her for money.
Getting hay is fairly straightforward although you aren’t really told how you can do it in the game. It can be confusing looking through all the different item descriptions just to figure out how to do everything. Read on to find out how to get hay easily in Stardew Valley.
Why do I want hay?
Hay is a useful resource in Stardew Valley as it is how you will feed your chickens and other farm animals. Although your farm animals can simply go outside and graze to get their food, during the winter months or rainy days they will not want to leave their warm coops or barns and you will have to feed them hay.
You can hold hay in stacks of 99 within your backpack in the game. This works but as space is limited it isn’t the most efficient way of storing hay. The best way to store kay on your farm is to build a silo. The silo can store up to 240 units of hay and once you have one built on your farm you can automatically take the hay from within your animal buildings. To build a silo you will have to take 100 stone, 10 clay, 5 copper bars and 100g to Robins shop. For a guide on how to get clay click here.
You can store hay in the silo by holding the hay in your hands and then clicking on the silo. As aforementioned the silo has a limit of 240 units of hay and once that limit is reached you will have to store the excess in a chest of keep it in your backpack.
Growing grass to get hay
One of the ways you can get yourself a good stock of hay is by planting grass seeds and waiting for them to grow out. Grass plants grow very different to other crops as they are not just a single crop on one tile, but grow in a bunch. Grass will not grow bigger, but if left to its own devices will spread out in all directions and provide you with more hay to harvest. You do not need to water hay and it grows in all seasons apart from winter. You can also grow hay all year long in the greenhouse once you have unlocked it.
To start your grass plantation you will have to travel to Pierre’s General Store during opening hours. Then you will approach Pierre and purchase some ‘Grass Starter’ from him. Pierre’s store is located in the central town of Stardew Valley, next to the doctor’s office. Once you have bought some grass starters head back to your farm and you can throw them down. That is all you have to do to start growing grass on your farm.
Once you have let your grass grow out for a few days it is time to harvest! Your grass will immediately turn into hay when you hit it with the scythe. Any quality of Scythe is able to harvest grass into hay. If you have one or more silos on the farm the hay will immediately be stored within them, and if you wish to get it into your inventory you will have to walk to the silo and select it.
Purchase hay directly from Marnie
If the grass growing trade seems a bit too difficult for you or if you need hay in a pinch then you can buy some hay directly from Marnie. Head over to Marnie’s Ranch which is located just out of your farm to the south. Her ranch is the first building after you leave your farm.
Marnie is notorious for pretty much never being at her farm though, however. But if you do get lucky and pick a date and time where she is there, you can talk to her and buy hay. Hay is available to purchase from Marnie for the price of 50g per piece. This can really start to add up if you have a lot of animals on your farm. Once you purchase the hay from Marnie, you can go back to your farm and store it in your silo by holding it in your hands and right-clicking the silo. (Or using the action button on your console controller)
So now you know how to get hay in Stardew Valley! I hope your animals can stay well fed during the Winter month now! If you have any more questions or problems to solve in Stardew Valley, write a comment below the post and I’ll get back to you when I can take myself away from the farm!
Related: Move a chest in Stardew Valley | How to attach bait – Stardew Valley