Watering Cans

Watering Cans are tools used to water crops. Every crop plant, from seed to mature plant, requires water every day in order to grow. A plant that goes unwatered on any day does not die, but it does not grow either. Mature crop plants that produce multiple harvests also require daily watering, and do not progress towards a new harvest if they go unwatered. A flower crop, once mature, continues to live while planted without watering or harvesting, until its season ends. Thus, it may be left planted near a Bee House without further tending. No plant needs watering by can on a day that it rains; the rain itself does the watering.

Tip: Use Retaining Soil fertilizer to help keep your crops watered for extra days.

The player is given a base-grade watering can at the start of the game, which can be found in the backpack (inventory). Its operation is limited to watering one tile per tool use. The player can purchase upgrades to the watering can at the Blacksmith by paying the proper fee and submitting the needed materials. Each rise in the grade of the tool allows it to perform another higher level of operation, increasing its speed and efficiency. Each higher grade of watering can is also able to perform any of the lower levels of operation, giving it a choice of effect.

The watering can has its own reservoir of water, with a capacity measured in charges. The capacity increases with each tool upgrade. The tool is able to water tiles until it has used up its supply. The player must then refill it at any body of water, or at a Well. The can can be refilled at any time. It is not necessary to wait until it is completely empty. The game displays a gauge that shows the tool's current fill level.

Tip: Upgrading the watering can requires some planning, as you face one full day unable to water your crops, plus some hours on the days before and after, as well as traveling twice to the blacksmith shop. The best time to upgrade the watering can is when it is not needed. Bring it in for upgrade when the weather forecast predicts rain the next day, or on the 27th day of any season. Remember that if you cannot harvest your crops on the 28th, they will die when the season ends anyway. Of course, if you have planted a crop that grows across the two seasons, it will still want watering as usual, so you will either need to skip it for a day, or look for rain instead.

Grades of Watering Can

Image	Name	Cost	Ingredients	Improvements
	Watering Can	Starter Tool		Has a total water capacity of 40 charges before it has to be refilled.
	Copper Watering Can	data-sort-value="2000">2,000g	Copper Bar (5)	Capacity increased to 55 charges. Increases maximum area of effect to 3 tiles in a straight line.
	Steel Watering Can	data-sort-value="5000">5,000g	Iron Bar (5)	Capacity increased to 70 charges. Increases maximum area of effect to 5 tiles in a straight line.
	Gold Watering Can	data-sort-value="10000">10,000g	Gold Bar (5)	Capacity increased to 85 charges. Increases maximum area of effect to a 3x3 area (9 corresponding tiles).
	Iridium Watering Can	data-sort-value="25000">25,000g	Iridium Bar (5)	Capacity increased to 100 charges. Increases maximum area of effect to a 6x3 area (18 corresponding tiles).

Upgrades and Water Consumption

Each rise in the grade of the watering can permits it to water a larger rectangle of tiles with one tool use. While the upgrade allows the tool to spread the water more effectively, reducing water usage per tile, one tool use at a higher level of operation does still consume a greater quantity of water overall. The base operation uses one water charge per tool use. The copper operation uses two charges per tool use, the steel operation, three, the gold operation, four, and the iridium operation, five. But the iridium operation waters eighteen tiles, meaning it uses only five eighteenths (a little over a quarter) as much water per tile. Thus, the upgraded tool not only has more charges, but each one can spread water over a greater territory.

With only 40 charges, the base level tool can cover 40 tiles before it needs refilling. With 55 charges, the copper tool, using the base operation, covers 55 tiles. But using the copper operation, it covers 84 tiles. Using two charges per tool use, 27 tool uses consume 54 charges, leaving only one charge. The game does not treat the tool as empty, however, but allows one more use (the 28th), and since each use covers three tiles, 28 times 3 accounts for the 84 tiles the watering can can cover in one refill. That is more than double the maximum coverage of a base-grade tool.

In general, if any near-empty upgraded tool contains a smaller number of charges than normally required by an advanced operation, the game permits that one final operation before it is considered empty. The gold grade tool, capacity 85 charges, used four at a time, gives 21 tool uses (84 charges) plus one more (for 22 uses), and each use covers 9 tiles, for 22 times 9 (198) tiles watered with one fill. Maximum coverage for a steel can works out to 120 tiles. An iridium can's maximum is 360 tiles.

Energy Cost

Each use of a watering can uses some of the player's daily supply of energy (visible in-game in the Energy Bar display). The base cost is two energy points for each water charge used. This means that, unlike Hoes, one use of a watering can consumes energy at different rates for different operations. The base energy cost of a base operation is two energy points, with four energy for a copper operation, six for steel, eight for gold, and ten for iridium, all because of the numbers of water charges dispensed with each of these operations. The energy required for an iridium operation in a watering can is therefore five times what it is in a hoe. Even so, the energy used to water each tile decreases significantly with each higher level of operation, because the number of tiles watered increases much faster than the energy usage increases.

If the can is almost empty, and you perform an advanced operation with only a smaller number of charges available, the energy cost is the same as though the full number of charges were dispensed. That's the price for being granted the extra capacity for free.

Farming Skill Levels

The player's farming skill increases proficiency in use of the watering can, and that skill is reflected in a reduced energy consumption with each use. The reduction is 5% (one twentieth) per skill level, the same as in Hoes. Unlike Hoes, however, the total energy used depends on the watering can's level of operation, the number of water charges dispensed. This means that at skill level 5, the reduction is still 25% (one quarter), meaning it takes 75% (three quarters) as much energy as the base, just as with Hoes. In a base operation, one tool use costs 75% of 2, or 1.5 (one and a half) energy points. In an iridium operation, one tool use costs 75% of 10, or 7.5 energy points.

The game does not display fractional amounts, and rounds to whole numbers there, but it retains the fractions internally, so two charges cost 3 energy points instead of 4, even if that is not always immediately visible precisely. At farming skill level 10, then, the reduction is 50% (one half), meaning it takes only the other 50% to dispense a water charge: one energy point each, the smallest cost available. One use of the tool for an iridium operation is therefore five energy points, half the base cost of ten. For a steel operation, it is three energy, half the base cost of six.