How to Get Hardwood in Stardew Valley: 4 Different Methods

As you progress through the seasons in Stardew Valley, it quickly becomes clear not only how important Hardwood is, but also how frustrating it is to get. Knowing how to get Hardwood in Stardew Valley is crucial for upgrading your farmhouse and crafting numerous important items and resources.

In an effort to help you out, this guide takes a closer look at the best and most reliable methods for gathering Hardwood, from the earliest sources to late-game farming techniques.

How to Get Hardwood in Stardew Valley

Learning how to get Hardwood in Stardew Valley requires several sources for you to consider. You can visit the Secret Woods, grow your own Mahogany Trees, cut down Large Stumps and Large Logs, get lucky from random drops, and utilize other less-direct methods of obtaining it.

This includes receiving it as a gift, obtaining it from a Woodskip pond, purchasing some from the Bookseller, or opening a mystery box. Keep in mind that while some methods offer a renewable source of Hardwood, others are only for one-time use.

1. Growing Mahogany Trees

Growing your own forest of Mahogany Trees is a great way to create a renewable source of Hardwood. You can grow them from Mahogany Seeds, which you can get in several different ways, including:

• Defeating slimes in the Secret Woods
• Chopping Large Stumps or Large Logs
• Purchasing them from the Island Trader for 1 Stingray
• Buying from the Raccoon Wife’s shop for 20 coal once you’ve completed four requests
• Cracking open a Golden Coconut (many items may come out of Golden Coconuts, so it’s not a guaranteed Mahogany Seed every time)
• Shaking or chopping down existing Mahogany Trees
• Digging up a Mahogany Seed from the ground that dropped from a Mahogany Tree

Once you have the Mahogany Seed, you can plant it anywhere to start growing a tree. However, keep in mind that Mahogany Trees need 1 empty tile between them and another tree to grow successfully.

Mahogany Trees grow slowly, as they only have a 15% chance of growing to the next stage of growth each night, and the trees have five stages of growth in total. As a result, it’ll take about 26 days for one to grow.

However, you can drastically speed this up by using Tree Fertilizer. This bumps up the chances of growth every night to 60%, which cuts down the total growth to about 7 days. Keep in mind that you’ll need to sprinkle this fertilizer on a tile that already has a seed planted, and not an empty tile.

Once fully-grown, Mahogany Trees provide 10 Hardwood when they’re cut down. In addition to providing valuable Hardwood, Mahogany Trees also produce Sap when tapped. If you want to get maple syrup in Stardew Valley, you’ll need to tap Maple Trees, not Mahogany Trees.

2. Secret Woods

Arguably, the best destination to get easy Hardwood is the Secret Woods. It’s located in the northwest corner of the Cindersap Forest. In the Secret Woods, 6 Large Stumps respawn daily, for a total of 12 Hardwood each day.

However, there’s a Large Log blocking the entrance, so you need to upgrade to a Steel Axe before being able to access the woods.

3. Get It From Large Stumps and Logs

Large Stumps and Large Logs are also quality sources of Hardwood. Each Large Stump gives you 2 Hardwood, and each Large Log gives you 8 Hardwood. When you start a new farm, there are some Large Stumps and Logs you can chop down eventually for some Hardwood, but these won’t regrow.

However, if you start on the Forest Farm, you get 8 respawning Large Stumps daily, which is good for 16 Hardwood every day. The Four Corners Farm also has regrowing Large Stumps, but it’s only 1 per day.

While both Large Stumps and Large Logs provide Hardwood, you only need a Copper Axe to cut down Large Stumps, but a Steel Axe for Large Logs.

4. Other Sources

In addition to these 3 main methods of gathering hardwood, Stardew Valley offers several additional sources of Hardwood that aren’t as direct as cutting down wood. Other methods to secure hardwood include:

• Lumberjack profession: If you choose the Lumberjack profession at Level 10 Foraging, all trees you cut down have a chance to drop Hardwood.
• Mines/Skull Cavern: Breaking crates and boxes gives you a chance to get Hardwood, and floors 41 to 69 of the mines (when the dangerous setting is active) have a chance to spawn Mahogany Trees, Large Stumps, and Large Logs.
• Ginger Island: Mahogany Trees spawn naturally and regrow on Ginger Island.
• Gifts: Robin may give you 25 Hardwood at the Feast of the Winter Star, and a pet dog with max friendship may also gift Hardwood.
• The Bookseller: If you’ve already received the power from the Woody’s Secret book, you can trade copies of the book to The Bookseller for 20 Hardwood.
• Leah’s shop at the Desert Festival: You can buy up to 100 Hardwood from Leah’s Shop at the Desert Festival, for 3 Calico Eggs each.
• Mystery Box: When you crack open a Mystery Box, there’s a 6.03% chance of it containing 10 Hardwood.
• Woodskip Fish Pond: When the population of a Woodskip Fish Pond reaches 6 fish, there’s a chance it may produce 5 Hardwood. If you find you’re struggling to get the 6 Woodskip you need to bite while fishing, learning how to use bait in Stardew Valley can speed up the process.

Axe Requirements for Hardwood Sources

To be able to successfully farm Hardwood in Stardew Valley, you need to ensure you have the right axe upgrade. This table highlights what type of axe you need to farm hardwood from different sources.

Source	Type of Axe Required	Notes
Large Stumps	Copper Axe	These stumps are common on the farm and in the Secret Woods.
Large Logs	Steel Axe	These may also be found on the farm and may block some important paths during the early game.
Secret Woods	Steel Axe	You need a Steel Axe before you’re able to enter the Secret Woods.
Mahogany Trees	Any axe	While any axe can cut these down, it’s much faster with an upgraded axe.

Consider upgrading your axe as early as possible, as it saves time, as trees, stumps, and logs will take fewer hits, and you won’t need to waste as much time (and energy) chopping. For example, it takes 10 hits to take down a tree with the starting axe, but only 2 with an Iridium Axe.

What Hardwood is Used For

Hardwood is a resource that’s required for a variety of different upgrades, items, and resources, so it’s necessary to gather it if you want to achieve certain things on your farm. Here’s a breakdown of the major uses for Hardwood:

• Farmhouse Upgrade 2 → 100 Hardwood→ Adds additional rooms and allows you to paint the house and make renovations
• Stable → 100 Hardwood → Lets you keep and ride a horse, and the horse is included when you build the stable
• Cheese Press → 10 Hardwood → Turn Milk into Cheese
• Oil Maker → 20 Hardwood → Turn Truffles into Truffle Oil
• Worm Bin → 15 Hardwood → Creates Bait regularly
• Cask → 1 Hardwood → Used in a cellar to age cheeses and wines
• Fish Smoker → 10 Hardwood → Smoke different types of fish, which doubles the value
• Mini-Obelisk → 30 Hardwood → If you put two of these on your farm, you’re able to warp between them
• Heavy Tapper → 30 Hardwood → Works twice as fast as a normal Tapper
• Repairing Willy’s Boat → 200 Hardwood → Gives you access to Ginger Island

In addition to these major uses for Hardwood, several other items also require it. For example, you can build a piece of Hardwood Fence with a single Hardwood. These are the most durable fences, and great for blocking off certain parts of a farm, like containing your chickens to a certain area. Of course, make sure you learn how to feed chickens in Stardew Valley, as well, to ensure you keep your flock happy.

Also, Hardwood is used to craft Warp Totems to instantly transport you to another area, to build a Tent Kit that provides a one-time-use tent to sleep outdoors, and to create a Cork Bobber to increase the size of your fishing bar.

Best Strategies to Farm Hardwood Fast

Here are a couple of the best tips and techniques for farming Hardwood as quickly as possible:

• Use Tree Fertilizer to dramatically speed up the growth of Mahogany Trees.
• Consider planting a Mahogany Tree farm on your farm, so you never need to go far to gather Hardwood.
• Ensure you level up your axe as quickly as possible.
• Choose the Lumberjack profession to give you a chance to get Hardwood from any tree.
• Create a daily routine so you never forget to farm your Hardwood. For example, you could combine gathering Hardwood alongside foraging. On the way to the Secret Woods, there are plenty of chances to find foragables on the ground. 

However, while there are plenty of foraging opportunities here, if you’re looking for more forageables, don’t hesitate to take the path to the north and then east of your farm, as you can often find many forageable items here. This is also often the path you’ll take to find Sebastian if you need to give him gifts or build a friendship with him.

Gathering All the Hardwood You Need in Stardew Valley

Stardew Valley is a relaxing game about tending to crops, creating the farm of your dreams, and crafting items. However, many of these items require Hardwood, which isn’t always easy to find.

Knowing how to get Hardwood Stardew Valley is incredibly important for optimizing your playthrough, whether you’re playing solo or farming with your friends (make sure to find out if Stardew Valley is cross-platform before planning to play with people on other platforms).

It lets you make housing upgrades, ride a horse, double the value of fish, speed up the tapping process, and so much more.

Thankfully, there are numerous methods for obtaining Hardwood reliably. This includes visiting the Secret Woods, creating a Mahogany Tree farm, chopping down Large Logs and Stumps, and other techniques. Don’t forget to bring your upgraded axe to speed up the process, as well.

If you haven’t tried it yet, make sure to get Stardew Valley on Eneba to start your farming journey and experience all the joys that this cozy game has to offer.

---

FAQs