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Essential tips and tricks for beginners.
FS19 Tips and Tricks for Beginners
#0 – It is advisable to equip one tractor with narrow wheels to avoid damage to the plants during weed control and fertilization at later stages of growth. It is not worth wasting straw – be careful, however, because a lot of straw is being produced.
#1 – Weeding can only be done in the first or second growth phase. If you forget this, your yield will be reduced by 20% due to weeds. If weeds have appeared in an uncultivated field, this process will also destroy them.
#2 – Sprayingweeds instead of using weeders will not protect you from the possibility of weeds rising later.
#3 – Fields that can be purchased on an ongoing basis are “cultivated” by the AI. Wait for a new plot of land until the crop is harvested on it – you will be able to harvest it for yourself right away.
#4 – In the initial phases of the game, it is worth using machines and vehicles leasing. Remember, however, that you cannot upgrade / modifythe borrowed machines in the further stages of the game – only after they have been rented again.
#5 – By default, you destroy the plants when you ride on them (this option can be disabled in the game settings). Plants do not destroy each other, only in the first phase of growth. So if you have the option of destroying plants enabled, fertilize the field before planting, and in the first phase of growth. Only then try to weed them – otherwise you will lose part of your harvest.
#6 – If you use a cruise control, pay attention: when you hand over the work to an employee, he will move at the maximum speed allowed by the cruise control, e.g. if you have set the cruise control at 20km/h, and the machine can move at 25km/h, the employee will not use the full possible speed and will move at 20km/h. Sometimes you can use this to your advantage: e.g. when two machines with different working speeds are moving simultaneously in the field.
#7 – When driving with cruise control switched on, you can also use the menu: the vehicle will continue to run.
#8 – When harvesting grain – wheat, rye, barley or oats – the harvester leaves behind a lot of straw. You can harvest it with a loading wagon or make bales out of it (you can sell straw or use it in animal husbandry). If you don’t want to collect it, it’s important to turn off collecting it in your combine harvester. Otherwise, large piles of straw can block the operation of another device that will work in this field.
#9 – You can use teleportation: if your vehicle or device overturns, you can select the Reset button from the map. The vehicle will appear next to the store. Be careful, however, if you reset your vehicle, you will get rid of all its contents (if it’s a trailer or a seed drill); even in case of tractor or combine harvester, you will lose fuel.
#10 – It is worth to build machinery shelters – they will help you to better organize the space for left-over machines / raw materials and crops. But be careful: if you build structures on uneven ground, you will pay much more money.
#11 – Keep an eye on which tractor you use for which tasks. If you assign a weaker machine to a demanding job, it will be less efficient. As a rule, you don’t need fast machines for transport or spraying, and elements such as tank capacity or maneuverability may be more important.
#12 – Initially, you can store your crops in “public” silos (by the railway tracks) without any charges, or even on the ground. However, not all the elements can be lifted without the use of spoons and stripe systems (for root crops). You can store everything like: crops, cereals, or even spare fertilizers or seeds.
Growing and Plowing Crops
Although most grains can be cultivated without plowing, there are exceptions to this case.
- Potatoes, reeds, beets, and all trench plants require plowing before being planted.
- For whenever you want to remove certain crops and place different types of them in place.
- On balanced difficulty, for every third crop you plant, plowing is required to maintain soil fertility.
- In case of wheat, barley, oats, sunflower, maize, potatoes, beet, and reed, not plowing the field after planting the crops will reduce the output yield by 15%.
Plowing also has an upper hand since with it; you will not need to cultivate crops so you can skip directly to the sowing process.
Whenever a certain area of field requires plowing, then you will be notified, as they are highlighted red in color when viewed on the map.
Plowing is carried out by a tractor or a subsoiler, with the latter being both lighter, easier to use, and cheaper. However, the tractor still has some benefits and differences like being able to form new fields or combine any two fields that already exist.
Cultivation
Plowing has some advantages, as discussed above over this process including some crops for which just cultivation will not be enough.
However, most of the time, you will be going with cultivation when you can, since it is always much easier to carry out as it is both quicker (allowing you to perform three actions in one go) and requires lighter machinery.
There are several types of “Cultivators” that you can find in the “Shop”. One such variety will have in-built seeders so you can plant and cultivate crops at the same time.
Others are effective at cultivating alone due to high work speed but will not have the function of seeders.
Although most crops will obey the same method of cultivation, there are three types of crops that do not fit into this trend. These are potatoes, beets, and cotton that all require special planters and harvesters.
For cotton cultivation, a large field (at least 1 hectares in length) is required along with the special CaseIH Module Express 635.
The two suitable trailers to collect bails of cotton can be inquired about in “Cotton Technology” tab under the “Tools” section.
Potatoes are a bit more complex when it comes to the cultivation part. For planting, you can only use either Gimme GL 420 or GL 860 Comacta.
Both require seed palettes (purchased ones) at initial sowing stage with the subsequent palettes coming from the previously harvested potatoes batch.
Lastly, for Sugar Beet, you require a special tractor arrangement where Grimme FT 300 is attached to the front of the tractor while the rear part comprises of Grimme Rootster 604.
The tree suitable harvesters to be used can be found in the Vehicles section under Beet growing tech.
Planting and Sowing
Each type of crop will fall under either tool that can plant or those that can sow. You can learn more about these by following the description of each plant itself.
Crops requiring tools to be used under the Seeder category are wheat, rye, rape, oats, soybean, and grass and oilseed radish.
While under the Planter category, you have tools for these particular plants: corn, sunflower, soybean, sugar beet, and cotton.
Two crops that do not fall in either of these general categories are Potatoes and Sugarcane, both of which require the use of special tools and tech unique to them.
Make sure to fill these planters or sowing machines with seed pallets for the crop you wish to plant, before actually using them in the field.
Fertilization
Fertilizers are key to increasing yield of crops ranging from 25% to a maximum of 50%. For this purpose, it is highly recommended to fertilize soil multiple times before harvesting them.
The ideal stages for fertilization would be during the sowing process and when the crop transitions into its next growth phase. Let us talk a little bit about the different types of fertilizers.
Liquid Fertilizers
Though expensive than the other ones (requiring large pallets), these will cover a greater area on the use and are generally faster in their function.
Artificial Fertilizers
Also requiring palette, these types of fertilizers are built within some of the seeders and planters, so in this way, it saves up on the cost. Moreover, they are much easier to work with since you will be fertilizing simultaneously while planting the seeds.
Slurry and Manure
These by-products of cows and pigs can only be put to good use for the means of fertilizing by special machinery that you can purchase from the shop.
Digestate
This material, in addition to being a source of revenue, works as fuel for slurry tanks. You can obtain it by placing the collected grass in a pile, whisking it and allowing it to ferment.
Then you will need to wrap bales of grass or hay around it so you can collect it as silage. This silage can be forwarded to a Biomass plant to create Digestate.
Oilseed Radish
This is a neat and clever trick to enrich the soil and you only sacrifice seeds in the process. The technique here is to first plant radishes, and then destroy them with cultivators that will spread just the minerals you need for a fertilized soil.
Threats and Limitations
It is not all sunshine and songs as occasionally your crops will get attack by weeds and other threats that will inhibit growth and reduce crop yield by 20%.
In such cases, you will need to spray the plants with weeders and chemical sprays. Remember, weeds can only be destroyed at their first stage that is before the process of harvesting.
It should also be noted that weeds on empty fields without crops can just be destroyed by plowing or cultivation and do not require the use of weeders.
If you are facing quite the hardship tackling with weeds, you can always turn this element off in the game settings.
Liming
Every third crop on your field requires the process of liming to be carried out. This is done via the two lime spreaders: Bredal K105 and K165.
Whenever fields are in the need of it, they will be highlighted in blue on the map. Lime spreaders are refilled at tankers appearing as white downward arrows, or by purchasing lime pellets.
Inability to lime the soil will result in a 15% reduction in the output yield at the time of harvesting. Again, if this doesn’t sound like your cup of tea, you can turn the option off in the game settings.
Withering
With the exception of Sugarcane, all crops will wither if not harvested in due time. The indication would be in the form of yellow or orange highlighted regions on the map, depending on severity.
The process can be slowed down in the game setting or could be turned off in its entirety.
Harvesting
You will know when it is time to reap the crops when they will appear yellow in color indicating the final phase of their growth. All grains use a grain module harvester while sunflower and maize require the maize module harvester.
The other crops that we have listed below require their own unique harvesters.
Potatoes
ROPA Keiler 2 or Grimme Varitron 470 Platinum Terra Trac, with the latter being faster and covering more area.
Sugar Beet
Ropa Panther 2, Tiger 6 XL and Holmer Terra Dos T4-40, all of which are distinct only when it comes to the headers of these vehicles.
Cotton
Harvesters will most of the time run out of capacity to continue the harvesting process and collecting crops.
In such cases, to maximize efficiency and collect as much of a yield as possible on a single run, a semi-trailer vehicle like a tractor accompanies the harvester.
This attached vehicle will store any extra output when harvesters run out of capacity so they can continue to function.
Crops like cotton especially require the use of such trailers since the bales they leave behind are often bulky and just a harvester will not suffice.
Do note that it is highly recommended to use trailers or tractors with narrow tires to not damage crops during the harvesting process.
Storing your Harvest
Apart from the default storage space of crops which is the semi-trailer attached to the harvesting vehicles, you can purchase sheds and attach belt systems which makes the whole process of storage much more convenient, faster, and organized.
Belts will automatically load any abandoned potatoes or sugar beets back to the semi-trailer.
You can also choose to store your harvested crops at of the two silos: either public or private. The former category comprises of two free silos: East and West Railroad Silos.
Each one boasts a capacity of 20,000 liters per type of harvest and the content can be transported between the two via a train. Private silos, on the other hand, are much easier to work with should you be able to afford them.
From the Silos section in the “Other” category in the Store, you can choose either of 100,000 liters or 200,000 liters capacity-silos costing $110,000 and $180,000 respectively.
Since they are portable and their capacities can be increased, they are ideal for the process of storing your harvest.
A non-traditional method of storing crops is in bales, both coming in cylindrical and cubical shapes. These are refined from raw sources of grass, hay, and straw. Each bale carries a capacity of 4000 liters.
Again, these are easy to transport so it will not be so hectic for using it as a means of storing harvest.
Selling Crops
Now comes the time for you to get your reward for all the hard work put in. However, if you would rather take care of the animals than make money, you can for sure feed the grown vegetables and crops to these farm creatures.
Otherwise, you can for what will serve as the primary source of income: selling your grains. This can be done by first gathering the grains in a dumper and then driving over to one of the selling or collection points.
Choosing a selling point that offers the best price for your crops can be determined by heading to the “Prices” tab within the in-game menu. There are a couple of factors that account for the fluctuations and different prices of the selling points.
One is the difficulty of the game that you have set from the start. This is obvious to a higher difficulty equals more cash awarded for a particular selling point.
The other factor is where the demand comes in. From time to time, some materials or goods will be in higher demand compared to the rest.
There will be a flashing blue indicator on the top right corner of the screen, and in the “Prices” tab, to alert you of the rising demand of a crop. Utilize these occasions for profits since the demand fluctuates pretty randomly and frequently.
New Farmer (Easy) – map of USA – Ravenport
The New Farmer Level (Easy) – you receive a farm and fields and a few basic machines; cash: 100 000$. You get the fields no.: 19, 24, 25 and 26. Machines:
- 2x Tractor – Case IH 7210 PRO;
- Tractor – Fiat 1300 DT;
- Combine Harvester- New Holland TX 32 + header;
- Cultivator – RAU Polymag 300;
- Seeder- Amazone D8-30;
- Trailer – Strautmann SEK 802;
- 2x Agricultural Weight- Suer SB 1000;
The value of the set is additional sum of 310 000$. Buildings:
- Large Silo,
- Small Shelter,
- Farm House,
- Decorations.
Their value is approx.: 540 000$. Default additional game options (which you can change in the game settings):
- Automatic purchase of raw materials / seeds or fertilizers and fuel when the machine is running out;
- Plants grow fast; fuel consumption is low.
- Plants do not dry out when not harvested.
- You can destroy plants when you ride on them with machines.
- You need to fertilize the field occasionally with calcium to keep your yields high.
- Weeds appear in the fields.
- Periodic ploughing is not required (by default every 3rd harvest).
New Farmer (Easy) – map of Germany- Felsbrunn
Here it’s the same: you get $100,000 in cash and start up with machines and several buildings.
For the start you get agricultural parcelsno. 19 and 20. Machines:
- 2x Tractor – Fendt Favorit 511C;
- Tractor – Fiat 1300 DT;
- Harvester – New Holland TX 32 + header;
- Cultivator – RAU Polymag 300;
- Seeder – Amazone D8-30;
- Wagon – Fortschwitt HW 80;
- 2x Agricultural Weight – AGCO 650;
The value of the set is additional sum of 280 000$. Buildings and structures:
- Large Silos,
- Farm House,
- Decorations.
Game options and other elements are as described above at the USA map.
Farm-Manager (Medium)
Farm Manager (Medium) – At this level you get a lot of cash and a choice of which machines you want to buy at the start and which fields you want to purchase: this allows you to have a total freedom of choice.Recommended for people who are familiar with the series and not only: you will have to learn the basics faster in order to fully start the game. You start with nothing; cash: $1,250,000. You also have a $250,000 bank loan. Please note that this loan is worth repaying quickly. Otherwise, a “percentage” is deducted from the amount (approx. 0.56% per day – i.e. initially $1400).
- Default additional game options (which you can change in the game settings):
- Automatic purchase of raw materials / seeds or fertilizers and fuel when the machine is running out.
- Plants grow at a normal rate; fuel consumption is at the default rate.
- Plants wither when not harvested.
- You can destroy plants when you drive machines on them.
- You need to fertilize the field occasionally with calcium to keep your yields high.
- Weeds appear in the fields.
- Periodic ploughing is required (by default every 3rd harvest).
Start from Scratch (Hard)
Start from Scratch (Hard) – this is a level only for real enthusiasts who plan to devote a lot of time to this game. You start with nothing, just $500,000 in your pocket (no loans taken). Selling prices for goods are appallingly low. Default additional game options (which you can change in the game settings):
- You start the engine yourself and have to switch to reverse gear manually.
- Purchase of raw materials / seeds or fertilizers and fuel has to be done manually.
- Plants grow slowly; fuel consumption is at the default rate.
- Plants wither when not harvested.
- You can destroy the plants when you ride on them with machines.
- You need to fertilize the field occasionally with calcium to keep your yields high.
- Weeds appear in the fields.
- Periodic ploughing is required (by default every 3rd harvest).
How to fill a vehicle’s tank
Just like in every other game from the series, your machines in Farming Simulator 19 must have their tanks filled with necessary goods. A seeder needs seeds, fertilizer spreader needs fertilizer. Fill a sprinkler with herbicides to get rid of weeds.
To fill your machines with the goods, attach them to a vehicle (unless they are self-propelled), buy the right pallet in the Shop, and drive the vehicle with the machine to that pallet. You can’t refill the tanks anywhere you want to, this is possible only near the Shop. Check a few tips that should help you with this process.
Transporting by using machines
You can unload your vehicles. Sometimes, you will do that like a dump truck, other times you will simply “throw” pallets on the ground.
Some machines can be unloaded right after you fill them. In a lime spreader’s case, everything will be unloaded on pallets and placed near the machine. You can use this form of transporting fertilizer that you want to use in, i.e. a seeder.
Transporting pallets
Goods placed on a low bed trailer have great stability while you are driving with them. This trailer also makes unloading easier.
Transporting goods on pallets is a good idea. Buy a loader, front loader to your tractor with an attachment for pallets or a forklift, and load goods on any of your trailers. Low bed trailers or trailers for bales are great for transporting pallets.
Transporting in a dumper trailer
You can pour the content of pallets straight into a dumper trailer – this method will probably be the most popular among the players. This option allows you to quickly and safely transport large quantities of seeds/fertilizers and unload them anywhere you want, even on the ground (on your parcel).
Load the goods by picking them up from the ground with a front shovel.
The problem here is that you can’t load goods on a dumper trailer straight from the ground. If you scattered them on the ground, you have to load goods from above, by using a shovel attached to any of your loaders. The disadvantage is that you can’t transport liquids in a dumper trailer.
Auger wagons
You can choose from four auger wagons with different capacity.
Auger wagons are also a good way of transporting fertilizer and seeds, provided that you have enough money to purchase any of them. These wagons are easy to transport. Thanks to a retractable pipe, they can fill any machine. Seed Runner 3755 XL, the cheapest wagon, has the capacity of 8,000l and costs $20,000. This is plenty enough – you will be able to work away from the shop for a long time.
How do you change the seed type?
I oad chaff made from corn, into silo, drive over it until it is compacted 100%. Then it is to cover it until it fermits to silage. however it doesn’t cover automatically. How do i cover it? Is there a machine the covers the chaff? Pls advise me at: bugguy11@msn.com I would appreciate it.
Great article mate!
Something I recently learned myself, Harvesting Contracts pay out more than the advertised price. If you follow these simple rules.
#1 The Game Time should always be set to “Real Time” when doing Harvesting Contracts.
#2 Check which Harvest contracts are available and if you can afford to Lease. Then check current prices of Goods for available contracts.
#3 Accept Contract with Leasing option. Pick up rented equipment from Shop and take it to contracted field.
#4 Harvest the field yourself. I know it’s boring but paying a worker just eats into your profits.
#5 Always clear 100% of the field, get EVERYTHING, very important. Every Harvesting contract I’ve attempted/completed, never requires 100% of the field. There is ALWAYS Overstock that you get to Keep!
#6 Final & Most Important Rule, DO NOT COMPLETE THE CONTRACT IN YOUR MENU. If you complete the contract Before you finish clearing 100% of the field. You no longer (A) have access to harvest said Field, and (B) your Leased Equipment. I try and gauge how many Full Trailers it will take to complete my contract, and then shortchange the final trailer needed to “Pass” the Contract. Everything left on the Field minus the 1-2% i need to fulfill the contract, is Overstock and mine for the selling or hoarding. Once you have cleared 100% of the field, either sell the Overstock or keep it and then Complete the Contract in your menu. If you’re keeping it, make sure it’s stored in a trailer or silo you own. If it’s in the trailer you leased, when you complete the contract, equipment goes bye bye along with whatever was inside.
Soybeans and Sunflower Contracts have paid out the most in Overstock sales. Ex. Contract paid $7600 after lease. Overstock paid out an additional $6000!
J.Lew good addition to tips. One question why leasing the equipment its better option than using yours? Leasing adds cost… I understand leasing the equipment will let you perform any contract offered but profit is less I guess…