Stardew Valley Walkthrough: Year 1 Summer, Crops, Festivals and Bundles

This is part 1 of our full Stardew Valley walkthrough, written for version 1.6. It picks up on Summer 1 of Year 1, right after your first Spring, and ends on Summer 28. You'll learn what to plant, which festivals to attend, which Community Center bundles to work on, how deep to get in the mines and which building to save for.

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The whole walkthrough

How to use this walkthrough

Stardew Valley has no single story to beat. Your "main quest" is to restore the Community Center (or take the Joja route), grow your farm and reach the endgame on Ginger Island. This series is organised by season, so you can open the page for the season you're in and follow the checklist. Every season is 28 days long.

New to the game? Read our first Spring beginner guide first.

Day 1 of Summer: get ready

1. Your Spring crops died overnight when the season changed. Clear the dead plants with your scythe.
2. Strawberries, green beans and other Spring crops are gone, so sell or store what you harvested on Spring 28.
3. Go to Pierre's General Store and buy Summer seeds. Pierre is cheaper than JojaMart for the same seeds.
4. Check the TV for the weather. Summer has fewer rainy days than Spring, so you will water more. If you have the Sprinkler recipe (Farming level 2), start crafting them now.

Summer crops to plant

Here are the main Summer crops at Pierre's in Year 1, with growth times for version 1.6:

A simple plan that works for most players:

• Summer 1: plant as many blueberries as you can water. They pay for themselves after the first harvest and keep going all season.
• Same day: plant at least one melon, tomato and hot pepper for the Summer Crops Bundle. Plant a few extra melons in case you want gold quality ones for the Quality Crops Bundle.
• Plant some corn early. It keeps producing into Fall and is needed for the Fall Crops Bundle and the Quality Crops Bundle.
• Plant a sunflower or two for the Dye Bundle.
• Don't plant a 12 or 13 day crop late. Count your days. Anything not ready on Summer 28 dies (except corn and sunflowers, which carry into Fall).

Two crops you can't get yet: red cabbage (Pierre sells it from Year 2) and starfruit (sold at the Oasis in the desert, which opens after you repair the bus). The 1.6 crop summer squash isn't sold at Pierre's; its seeds come from things like seed spots and mystery boxes.

Summer festivals and dates

• Summer 11: Luau at the beach. Everyone adds something to a big soup for the Governor. Put in a good quality item (a gold crop or a nice fish) to raise your friendship with everyone. A bad item lowers it, so never add trash.
• Summer 20 and 21: Trout Derby (new in 1.6). A fishing event on the river in Cindersap Forest, below Marnie's Ranch. Catching a Rainbow Trout can give you a Golden Tag, which you trade at the prize booth. Fishing goes on all day, so you can still farm in the morning.
• Summer 28: Dance of the Moonlight Jellies at the beach, late at night (10pm to midnight). Nothing to win; just a pretty scene. Water and harvest first, because Fall starts the next morning.

Community Center bundles for Summer

Summer is the only season for several bundle items. Keep one of each before you sell:

• Summer Crops Bundle (Pantry): tomato, hot pepper, blueberry, melon.
• Summer Foraging Bundle (Crafts Room): grape, spice berry and sweet pea. These grow wild on the map in Summer. Check bushes near the bus stop, the forest and the mountain.
• Quality Crops Bundle (Pantry): 5 gold melons count as one of the three slots. Quality Fertilizer raises your odds.
• Ocean Fish Bundle (Fish Tank): tuna and red snapper are easier to catch now. Red snapper bites in the ocean on rainy days.
• Specialty Fish Bundle: the pufferfish is only in the ocean in Summer, on sunny days from noon to 4pm. It's a hard fish, so upgrade your rod first.
• Dye Bundle (Bulletin Board): a sunflower and a sea urchin (found at the beach, past the broken bridge in the east once you repair it).

The full list for every room is in Part 4: Community Center bundles.

Mine goals for Summer

The mines have 120 floors, with an elevator every 5 floors so you don't lose progress. In Summer, aim to:

• Pass floor 40. Floors 40 to 79 are the frozen levels, where you find iron ore and Frozen Tears (for the Geologist's Bundle).
• Push toward floor 80 if your weapon is good. The lava levels from 80 have gold ore.
• Fish on floor 20 for the Ghostfish (Specialty Fish Bundle) if you have a rod with you.
• Save your copper and iron. You need a copper, iron and gold bar for the Blacksmith's Bundle, and bars for tool upgrades and sprinklers.

Rainy days are perfect mine days, since you don't need to water.

Buildings to aim for

• Coop (4,000g, 300 wood, 100 stone): your first building for most players. Chickens give eggs every day, and large eggs fill the Animal Bundle. Robin builds it at the Carpenter's Shop.
• Silo (100g, 100 stone, 10 clay, 5 copper bars): cheap, and you need hay for animals and for the Fodder Bundle. Cut grass with the scythe once the Silo is up and the hay is stored for you.
• Tool upgrade: a better watering can or pickaxe from Clint helps a lot. You can't use the tool for two days while he works on it, so upgrade the watering can on a run of rainy days.
• Start saving for a Barn in Fall.

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Like having the whole game in a book next to you? The official Stardew Valley Guidebook is often on sale.

Tips for this part

• Blueberries and corn are your best "plant once" crops. Less replanting means more time for mining and fishing.
• Get your fishing level up in Summer. Many Fish Tank fish are easier with a better rod and bait.
• Craft a few Sprinklers as soon as you can. Less watering is the biggest time saver in the game.
• Keep a chest just for bundle items so you don't sell them by accident.
• Bring food to the mines. Fried eggs, salads and foraged items keep your health and energy up.

My take

My first Summer I planted a field of melons and forgot about blueberries. Big mistake. Blueberries quietly made me rich while I was down in the mines. These days I go blueberries plus one of each bundle crop and spend the free time fishing. What did you plant in your first Summer?

FAQ

What is the best crop for Year 1 Summer?

For most players it's blueberries. They take 13 days, then give several berries every 4 days for the rest of the season. Melons and hops are also very good later, when you have Kegs.

When is the Luau in Stardew Valley?

Summer 11, at the beach. Add a high quality item to the soup to raise your friendship with the whole town.

Where do I catch a pufferfish?

In the ocean in Summer, on sunny days between noon and 4pm. It is hard to catch, so use a better rod and some bait.

Does corn survive into Fall?

Yes. Corn (and sunflowers) grow in both Summer and Fall, so a crop planted in Summer keeps growing when Fall starts.

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