It’s the season to wear a swimsuit, the time to drink ice-cold refreshments, and a fine opportunity to increase your return on investment in Stardew Valley. Summer’s here, and you can make the most out of it by following this Stardew Valley Summer Season Guide covering all of the best crops to plant during this season, its events, and other ways to make some extra cash.

Stardew Valley Summer Season Guide

Summer occurs after Spring and happens before Fall, lasting 28 days like the other seasons in Terraria. Once the first day of Summer arrives, any Spring-exclusive crops (that aren't in a greenhouse) will immediately wilt. Apart from the date change, Summer is extra noticeable in Stardew Valley thanks to the yellower color of grass compared to Spring.

Best Crops to Plant in Summer in Terraria

Summer in Stardew Valley is perhaps the best time of the year for planting. Players can plant 13 Summer-exclusive crops this season, beating Spring’s crop selection by one. However, it doesn’t mean you should pour your character’s time and energy into cultivating every available Summer crop. Instead, aim to focus your attention on planting, harvesting, and selling the crops listed below:

Hot Pepper

The Hot Pepper is a fantastic Summer crop in Stardew Valley. Once planted, it matures in 5 days and regrows every three days. So, you can harvest and sell Hot Peppers up to eight times during the Summer if you start planting Hot Pepper Seeds from Summer 1. Additionally, a pack of Hot Pepper seeds isn’t expensive, allowing Hot Peppers to be a beginner-friendly in-game crop. As a bonus, there’s a 3% chance to receive an additional Hot Pepper per harvest after its initial growth period.

Prices by Quality

• Regular: 40 gold pieces
• Silver: 50 gold pieces
• Gold: 60 gold pieces
• Iridium: 80 gold pieces

Note: Selling prices increase by 10% with the Tiller profession.

Hops

Another Summer-exclusive crop worth considering is Hops. This vegetable takes 11 days to mature. However, it only has one regrowth day after its initial harvest. That means you can harvest this plant up to during this season. Note that its selling price is lower than Hot Pepper. However, you’ll sell more Hops than Hot Pepper by the end of Summer, making it a lucrative choice for new and veteran Stardew Valley farmers.

Prices by Quality

• Regular: 25 gold pieces
• Silver: 31 gold pieces
• Gold: 37 gold pieces
• Iridium: 50 gold pieces

Note: Selling prices increase by 10% with the Tiller profession.

Melon

Note that the maximum Melon yield in Stardew Valley during Summer is two per plant. It’s because it takes 12 days for this in-game fruit to mature. Also, it has no regrowth period, so you must plant another batch of seeds after its initial harvest. Despite the drawbacks, Melon is still one of the more profitable Summer crops in Stardew Valley. It has a relatively high selling price, and buying a pack of seeds from the General Store won’t hurt your wallet too much.

Prices by Quality

• Regular: 250 gold pieces
• Silver: 312 gold pieces
• Gold: 375 gold pieces
• Iridium: 500 gold pieces

Note: Your selling prices increase by 10% with the Tiller profession. Also, this crop is a requirement to complete the Summer Crops Bundle for the Pantry in the Community Center.

Starfruit

Like Melon, you can only harvest Starfruit up to twice per Summer season, with its growth period of 13 days. It also doesn’t have a regrowth period, so you must purchase extra Starfruit Seed packs from the Oasis (which cost 400 gold pieces per pack) if you want to take advantage of this crop. Nonetheless, Starfruit has a reasonably high selling price, and you can increase this further by processing it into Starfruit Wine.

Prices by Quality

• Regular: 750 gold pieces
• Silver: 937 gold pieces
• Gold: 1,125 gold pieces
• Iridium: 1,500 gold pieces

Note: Selling prices increase by 10% with the Tiller profession.

Blueberry

The Blueberry gains top marks as one of the best Summer crops in the game thanks to its availability and profitability. It has an initial growth period of 13 days and a 4-day regrowth period. Players can also easily buy Blueberry Seeds from the General Store for 50 gold pieces per pack (80 gold pieces at the game’s launch). Plus, you can harvest at least three Blueberries per mature plant with a low chance of gathering more of this crop.

Prices by Quality

• Regular: 50 gold pieces
• Silver: 62 gold pieces
• Gold: 75 gold pieces
• Iridium: 100 gold pieces

Note: Selling prices increase by 10% with the Tiller profession.

Summer Events in Terraria

Summer in Stardew Valley is host to 11 events. Aside from the events listed below, an earthquake will happen in Summer 3 of Year 1, unlocking the railroad and the spa.

• Summer 4: Jas’ birthday
• Summer 8: Gus’ birthday
• Summer 10: Maru’s birthday
• Summer 11: Luau Festival
• Summer 13: Alex’s birthday
• Summer 17: Sam’s birthday
• Summer 19: Demetrius’ birthday
• Summer 22: Dwarf’s birthday
• Summer 24: Willy’s birthday
• Summer 26: Leo’s birthday
• Summer 28: Dance of the Moonlight Jellies Festival

Note: Although not an event, you’ll notice extra forageable items washing up on The Beach from Summer 12 to 14.

Other Ways to Make Money During Summer

Aside from harvesting and selling Summer-exclusive crops, below are other ways you can increase your ROI during the season:

• Craft Kegs and process your Summer crops for higher sales than selling the plants’ raw forms
• Fish at the Mountain Lake for Largemouth Bass (which sell for 100 to 300 gold pieces) and Sturgeon (which sell for 200 to 600 gold pieces)
• Complete the repairs for the Greenhouse to plant Summer-exclusive crops all-year-round