How to Plant Seeds in Minecraft

Before growing crops, you need to know how to plant seeds in Minecraft. With the right soil, irrigation, and growing conditions, you can have a garden producing crops year-round.

How to Plant Seeds in Minecraft

The general steps for planting in Minecraft are the same regardless of what you're trying to grow:

1. Find the seeds you want to plant. See the chart in the next section for help finding what you need to grow specific crops.

2. Make a Hoe. In the 3X3 crafting grid, place 2 Wood Planks, 2 Iron Bars, 2 Stone Blocks, or 2 Diamonds in the first two blocks of the top row. Then, place 2 Sticks in the middle of the second and third rows.

   To unlock the 3X3 crafting grid, make a Crafting Table using 4 Wood Planks (any type of wood will do),

3. Equip your Hoe and use it on the ground to till the soil. You'll need one block of tilled soil per seed.
   

4. Equip your seeds and use them on the tilled soil to plant them.
   

   Plant your crops next to water—within 4 tiles will irrigate the dirt well enough to make them grow faster.

5. Wait 10-30 minutes (but times may vary). You should be able to tell when they are ready when you see them poking out of the soil. Harvest the crops with your Hoe to collect crops and more seeds.
   

What Materials Do You Use to Plant Seeds in Minecraft?

Different seeds grow different crops. You can plant some crops to make even more of the same crop. For example, planting 1 Carrot will yield multiple Carrots. This chart explains what you need to plant each crop:

What Kind of Dirt Do You Use to Plant Seeds in Minecraft?

Any type of grass or dirt (other than sand) can be tilled and transformed into soil with a Hoe. All crops will grow on tilled soil, but some plants can be grown on other types of blocks. If you don't plant anything in your soil, it will eventually turn back into regular dirt unless it's next to a water block.

Saplings, Mushrooms, and Sugar Cane will grow on any block, but Sugar Cane will only grow near water. Most crops don't require water, but they will grow faster if they are close to a water source.

How to Make Plants Grow Faster in Minecraft

To speed up the growing process, add a fertilizer such as Carbonated Water, Fish Emulsion, Bone Meal, or Super Fertilizer. To make Super Fertilizer, combine Ammonia and Phosphorus on a Lab Table. The Lab Table is only available in Education Edition mode, which you can enable in your World settings.

Plants grow fastest in warm biomes with lots of light and water. To irrigate your soil, dig a ditch along the side of your crops and fill it with Water Bucket. It will start to turn a darker color, indicating that your crops are watered.

Water blocks irrigate all surrounding blocks in. four tile range, so you can dig a hole one block deep, fill it with water, then plant seeds all around it.

How Do You Start a Garden in Minecraft?

Here's how to start a simple garden that automatically produces crops:

1. Find a clear area of flat land and build a wall around it to keep out enemies. Place Wood blocks on the ground, then put Fence blocks on top.
   

2. Dig trenches and fill them with water.

3. Till the soil and add your seeds.

4. Wait 10-30 minutes (but times may vary), then come back to harvest your crops.

Why Can't I Plant My Seeds in Minecraft?

Your crops need the proper soil and adequate light. Ensure the soil is tilled, and always plant in well-lit areas (unless you're planting mushrooms). If you're playing in Creative Mode, you will be unable to harvest crops, but it doesn't matter since you can summon any item you need.