Aesthetics and your Farm

When one visits Neighbours in any Farming Simulation Game, one can see how other Farmers design their fields and how they use Decorations and Buildings.  In the regular Family Farm, one has the option of owning two Farms, the 'Home' Ranch and the 'Garden' Ranch.  Often, Farmers will use one Farm exclusively to grow Crops and place Decorations and ornamental Buildings on the other.

More Profit can be gained by storing Decorations and any Buildings that occupy space without serving any useful function.  For me, though, the joy of the game is somewhat marred if the sight of my Farm does not bring happiness to my soul.  I therefore probably waste considerable space and Crops even to make my Farm attractive.

Here is an overview of my Farm that shows the Aviary, the Peacock and the Pond.   All three actually generate some income, although they are 'ornamental' as well.

The Aviaries Park is in the centre of the field, and can be purchased for 2000 Coins in the Market.  When placed, it will be in unfinished form and the Player will need three different materials to complete it.  All three can be requested from Neighbours.  When complete, a Peacock appears inside the enclosure and roses will be added to the sides.  It then can generate 30 Coins every 8 Hours.

As you can see, you will need an empty space that is approximately the size of 3 x 3 tilled squares to place the Aviaries Park.

At the bottom of my Farm, you will see the Pond on the left and the Peacock on the right.  The Pond is a required 'build' for specific aquatic Animals, namely the Green Duck and the Goose.  The process is a little deceptive, as the Market displays a 'Goose Pond' for 5000 Coins and a Green Duck Pond for 4000 Coins.  These 'Ponds' for some reason do not contain any actual Water and must be placed on top of Pond Water that the Farmer must purchase separately.  Pond Water is the same size as 1 Tilled Plot.   You will find it, curiously enough, in the Animals Section of the Market.  It has a separate Tab named 'Pond'.  Plain Pond Water costs 1500 Coins per square and Pond Shore, which is a little more decorative in appearance, costs 1 RC.  Both serve the same purpose so it is unnecessary to pay premium Cash if you wish to keep aquatic Fowl.

A 4 x 4 Square of Pond Water (4 squares, in other words) is required for the Green Duck Pond.  A 3 x 3 Square of Pond Water (9 squares I believe) is required to keep the Goose Pond.  One can build Ponds in any configuration one wishes.  One can have canals that contain no Aquatic enclosures or one can have a separate Pond for each Aquatic fowl.  I chose to create a large Pond that would house both the Duck Pond and the Goose Pond and to surround it with Lotus Flowers which is the food that the Goose eats.

The Peacock costs 5000 Coins and is one of the prettiest Product-producing Animals in Seaside.  Its enclosure is attractive as well.  If you feed it Rice, it will produce Peacock Feathers.  Ultimately, there many be a Hat Machine in Seaside like the one in the original Game where the Peacock Feathers can be used.  At present, however, the Farmer simply can sell them for 132 Coins each.

Flowers are both decorative and useful in Seaside as in most Farming Simulation Games.  I am partial to the Lotus Flower and the Red Rose and you will find that I have used both as borders for Animal enclosures as well as the Pond and Aviaries Park.  If I were to harvest these Flowers when they became mature, I would make a greater Profit, but the Red Rose in particular is a fairly slow-growing Crop so I tend to leave it in full bloom on my Farm.

Above is a screenshot detail that shows the Aviaries Park when it is ready for harvest.  As with any Decoration that produces Coins, a little icon of a gold coin will appear above the Decoration when it is ready for collection.  The amount produces by the Aviaries Park is 30 Coins and it will take 8 Hours to mature.

Above is a screenshot that shows the Pond on my Farm surrounded by Lotus Flowers.  To the right is the Peacock surrounded by Red Roses.  The Peacock has produced three Peacock Feathers after being fed Rice.

The developers of this game added some nice aesthetic touches.  In this screenshot, you can see a small blue butterfly flying randomly through the field.  Another detail is the small moving white cloud that floats serenely over the field, shown below.

This screenshot shows another interesting detail, which is the way that Flowers change colour after pollination.  You can see Lavender in the photograph.  The darker plant is the one that has been visited by Bees.  Similarly, Clover that has been pollinated will be pink while the unpollinated Flower will be pale lavender.