Gardening – Skill progression & money guide - Updated with Flower Arrangements

Tips & Guides
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:herb: Gardening – Skill progression & money guide (Level 0 → Level 10)

In my rotational play I’m testing different money-making skills with Zois dedicated to a single skill. Since I noted everything down for future reference, I’m sharing my Gardening observations here.

Settings: 96-minute day
Main money method for this skill: Bonsai Pod Stand → prune bonsai → sell on Pocket Market

:white_check_mark: Quick Summary

  • Gardening (bonsai) is one of the fastest money makers in the game — alongside Painting and Handiwork.

  • Level 0 → Level 1 is very fast (under ~10 min) with basically any gardening action.

  • From Level 1 onward, leveling is quite consistent: most level-ups took roughly ~1h20–2h10, slightly depending on mood.

  • Mood matters: Content > Joyful > Elated (Elated felt noticeably faster).

  • Bad bonsai is normally rejected on Pocket Market → sell Bad via Build Mode instead.

  • Late game bonsai is extremely strong: pruning becomes very fast (~5 min at Level 8) and Good/Excellent results happen often enough to be a reliable Pocket Market income stream.

:puzzle_piece: Key unlocks

  • Level 1: Bonsai Pod Stand (Build Mode), cost 100 Mew

  • Level 6: Multi-Tier Lettuce Grower (Build Mode), cost 35 Mew

  • Level 10: If the Plant Lover ambition is completed:

    • “Instantly grow plant” (only works for potted seedlings unfortunately, not farming plot crops)

    • conversation option: “Give advice on taking care of plants”

:potted_plant:Bonsai style options unlocked by level

  • Level 2: Sunlit Cloud • Cozy Nest • Form of Truth

  • Level 4: Perfect Form • Nature’s Cradle • Winter Fantasy

  • Level 6: Layers of Hope • Graceful Breath • Curves of Time

  • Level 8: Dance of the Wind • Everlasting Love

  • Level 10: Serene Balance • Direction of Life

:stopwatch: Gardening action timings (useful baselines)

Bonsai

  • Prune bonsai tree costs 15 Mew per prune

  • Pruning gets faster as you level:

    • early: ~17 min

    • Level 5: ~9 min

    • Level 8: ~5 min

Farming plots (for reference)

  • Prepare soil: 5 min • Water: 3 min • Plant seeds: 2 min • Pull weeds: 3 min • Fertilize: 4 min

  • Fertilizer: regular 3 Mew, premium 10 Mew

  • Seeds: usually 7 Mew (banana/mango seeds 4 Mew)

:bar_chart: Leveling speed (grouped)

Mood has an effect on this skill. Elated levels faster than Content/Joyful.

Level range Typical time per level-up Notes
Level 0 → Level 1 <10 min Any gardening action
Level 1 → Level 3 ~1h30 Bonsai pruning as the main loop
Level 3 → Level 4 ~1h20 Faster here, likely mood-related (Elated)
Level 4 → Level 6 ~1h30–1h48 Pruning becomes quicker by Level 5
Level 6 → Level 7 ~2h10 Bonsai pruning and farming plot work
Level 7 → Level 9 ~1h40 Pruning becomes even quicker by Level 8
Level 9 → Level 10 ~1h30 -–

:money_bag: Bonsai Price Sheet (Pocket Market focus)

Pocket Market note:

  • Bad bonsai is normally rejected on Pocket Market → sell Bad via Build Mode.

  • PM prices vary (ranges shown). Base value is fixed and equals the Build Mode sale value.

What to expect at high level: At Level 10, Good/Excellent are the consistent earners; Perfect is rarer but massive.

:star: Endgame (Level 8 → Level 10)

Level Bad (Base) Medium (Base → PM) Good (Base → PM) Excellent (Base → PM) Perfect (Base → PM)
8 20 50 → 60–64 100 → 130–147 150 → 225–253 500 → 855–995
9 20 50 → 60–64 100 → 130–147 150 → 225–253 (not observed)
10 20 75 → 90–97 150 → 196–223 225 → 338–382 750 → 1280–1495

Legend:

  • Base = fixed base value (same as Build Mode sale value)

  • PM = Pocket Market sell price (observed range)

Prune fee: pruning costs 15 Mew.

Level 10 “net profit after prune fee”

  • Medium: 75–82 net

  • Good: 181–208 net

  • Excellent: 323–367 net

  • Perfect: 1265–1480 net

Early/Mid reference (Level 2 → Level 7)

Level Bad (Base) Medium (Base → PM) Good (Base → PM) Perfect (Base → PM)
2 12 (loss vs fee) 30 → 36-38 (not observed) (not observed)
3 (not observed) 30 → 36-38 60 → 86–87 (not observed)
4 15 (break-even) 37 → 44–47 60 → 70–88 (not observed)
5 15 37 → 44–47 75 → 97–112 (not observed)
6 18 45 → 54–58 (not observed) 450 → 766–895
7 18 45 → 54–58 90 → 117–137 (not observed)

:seedling: Farming plots / crops (why it’s weaker for money)

  • High upkeep, low return: watering/weeding/fertilizing takes time; premium fertilizer costs 10 Mew per plot → overall profit is only around ~140 Mew per plot, which is weak compared to bonsai Pocket Market sales.

  • Grow time: most crops need 3–4 days to harvest (96-minute day).

  • Typical non-tree yield: about ~19 items per plot, usually:

    • ~12 normal crops at 3 Mew each

    • ~7 special/large crops at 15 Mew each

  • Pumpkins (outlier): only ~4–5 per harvest; special variants sell for 20 Mew.

  • Banana/Mango trees: take about ~1 week to become harvestable (96-minute day) and yield only ~4–5 fruits per harvest:

    • normal fruits 8 Mew

    • special/large fruits 20 Mew

    • Extra note: if Nutrition > 80, the trees stay planted (no replant needed) and can produce another harvest again about half a day later.

  • Gem crops (Jewel watering can): you usually get a few extra gem crops on top of the normal harvest. They sell for the same price as the crop’s large/special variant (20 Mew for Pumpkin/Banana/Mango, otherwise 15 Mew) → so profits still don’t compete with bonsai.

  • Resale store: prices can sometimes be higher (even double), but checking daily adds overhead and still didn’t beat bonsai overall.

  • Potted seedlings: not good for profit (only low-quality vegetables, ~1 Mew each).

:brain: Practical conclusion (money)

If your goal is earning Mew, bonsai pruning + Pocket Market selling is the clear winner:

  • pruning becomes very fast (~5 min at Level 8)

  • Good and Excellent happen often enough to be reliable (Level 10 Good 196–223, Excellent 338–382)

  • Perfect is rare, but when it hits it’s a massive profit for 5 min of work (Level 10 1280–1495)

  • Potted seedlings: not good for profit (only low-quality vegetables, ~1 Mew each).

:cherry_blossom: Update (post-March patch): Flower Arranging (levels, selling & buffs)

Since the March patch, Flower Arrangements are also relevant for Gardening-focused money-making because they can be sold via Business display cases (and they scale strongly with quality). Crafting Flower Arrangements also levels Gardening.

Basics

  • Craft time: ~7–8 min (Bouquets + Baskets)

  • Flowers: 3 days grow time, ~9–12 flowers per plot, no special variants, Jewel Watering Can has no effect on flowers.

  • Direct flower resale via inventory is effectively the Pocket Market price.

:seedling: Flower costs & why growing your own matters

  • Seed costs: Rose 4 • Gerbera 2 • Carnation 2 • Tulip 3 • Lily 3 • Chrysanthemum 1

  • Pocket Market (also used by Business crafting if you don’t own flowers): Rose 6 • Gerbera/Carnation 3 • Tulip/Lily 4 • Chrysanthemum 2

  • Farmer Supply Store: Rose 8 • Gerbera/Carnation 4 • Tulip/Lily 5 • Chrysanthemum 3

If you craft arrangements in a Business without flowers in inventory, the game uses Pocket Market prices for the missing flowers automatically — so growing your own is the main way to reduce costs.

:trophy: Top sellers in shop (quick list)

  • Rose Basket (L7) — Perfect base value 350 → sells up to 560 (5★)

  • Lily Basket (L7) — Perfect base value 250 → sells up to 400 (5★)

  • Carnation / Gerbera Basket (L3–4) — Perfect base value 200 → sells up to 320 (5★)

  • Chrysanthemum Basket (L1) — Perfect base value 150 → sells up to 240 (5★)

:blossom: Recipes & base values (Inventory)

Legend: Bouquet uses 2 flowers (craft fee 3 Mew) • Basket uses 4 flowers (craft fee 5 Mew) • “Base” = inventory sell/base value

Bouquets (base ladder)

Unlock Bouquet Base (Med) Base (Good) Base (Exc) Base (Perf)
L0 Chrysanthemum Bouquet 7 15 22 75
L2 Carnation Bouquet 10 20 30 100
L3 Gerbera Bouquet 10 20 30 100
L5 Tulip Bouquet 12 25 37 135
L6 Lily Bouquet 12 25 37 135
L7 Rose Bouquet 17 35 52 175

Baskets (base ladder)

Unlock Basket Base (Med) Base (Good) Base (Exc) Base (Perf)
L1 Chrysanthemum Basket 15 30 45 150
L3 Carnation Basket 20 40 60 200
L4 Gerbera Basket 20 40 60 200
L5 Tulip Basket 25 50 75 250
L7 Lily Basket 25 50 75 250
L7 Rose Basket 35 70 105 350

:convenience_store: Business selling examples (compact)

Not every ★/quality combo was tested for every item — these are the values I observed.
Legend: 108@3★ = sells for 108 Mew at Business ★3.

Bouquets (Business sell)

Unlock Bouquet Medium Good Excellent Perfect Bad
L0 Chrysanthemum Bouquet 21@1★ • 25@3★ 45@1★ • 51@2★ • 54@3★ • 57@4★ 66@1★ • 79@3★ • 83@4★ 108@3★ • 120@5★ base 3
L2 Carnation Bouquet 34@2★ • 36@3★ 68@2★ • 72@3★ • 76@4★ • 80@5★ 108@3★ • 120@5★ 144@3★ • 160@5★ 15@4★ (base 4)
L3 Gerbera Bouquet 34@2★ • 36@3★ • 38@4★ 68@2★ • 72@3★ 108@3★ • 114@4★ • 120@5★ 144@3★ • 152@4★ -–
L5 Tulip Bouquet 43@3★ 90@3★ 133@3★ • 140@4★ • 148@5★ 180@3★ • 190@4★ • 200@5★ 19@4★ (base not logged)
L6 Lily Bouquet 43@3★ 90@3★ • 95@4★ 133@3★ • 140@4★ • 148@5★ 180@3★ • 190@4★ 38@4★ (base 5)
L7 Rose Bouquet 61@3★ • 64@4★ • 68@5★ 126@3★ • 133@4★ • 140@5★ 187@3★ • 197@4★ 252@3★ • 280@5★ -–

Flower Baskets (Business sell)

Unlock Basket Medium Good Excellent Perfect Bad
L1 Chrysanthemum Basket 54@3★ 108@3★ • 114@4★ 153@2★ • 162@3★ 216@3★ • 228@4★ • 240@5★ 22@4★ (base 6)
L3 Carnation Basket 68@2★ 144@3★ • 152@4★ 216@3★ • 228@4★ 288@3★ • 304@4★ • 320@5★ base 8
L4 Gerbera Basket 72@3★ • 80@5★ 144@3★ • 152@4★ 216@3★ • 228@4★ 288@3★ • 304@4★ -–
L5 Tulip Basket 90@3★ • 95@4★ • 100@5★ 180@3★ • 190@4★ 270@3★ 360@3★ -–
L7 Lily Basket 90@3★ 180@3★ • 200@5★ 270@3★ • 285@4★ 360@3★ • 380@4★ • 400@5★ base x
L7 Rose Basket 126@3★ 252@3★ • 280@5★ 378@3★ • 420@5★ 504@3★ • 560@5★ base 14

:herb: Buffs / effects (arrangements)

  • Perfect-quality baskets (Gerbera / Lily / Rose tested) can give “Artistic Bouquet”: +3 Focused for 3 hours when using “Inhale the fragrance.”
    This likely applies broadly to perfect baskets.

  • Excellent quality: “Pleasant scent” → +2 Content for ~20 min (observed).

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Business Guide (post-March) – progression, money systems, staffing, pricing, top sellers & known bugs
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I have updated the guide with the information on the newly added flower arrangements after March Patch.

The update includes a full base value list for each quality as well as selling price guidance in a business. Top Sellers for profit are definitely Rose and Lily Baskets. Rose basket is the single highest item price which can be achieved in a shop at the moment. This might change once we can sell whole dishes again :wink:

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@EllaEstella It’s impressive how detailed your community guides are. Thank you very much for that.

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Thank you so very much @Taibak :blush:

I was always a big fan of Carl"s Sims Guide back in the Sims 3 times and found myself always going back to check the mechanics for certain skills and value boosts etc. there. For Inzoi there is nothing similar yet as it seems so I started to track everything myself. And why not share if I have gathered all of it together anyway. I am actually using my own guides now from time to time :wink:

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Bonsai sell for 1400mew ?
Interesting. That’s close to my rebalanced painting mod.

I might need to set a bonsai shop at home to test this now.
Great guide, thanks !

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Thank you - this guide is very helpful :heart_hands::two_hearts:

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Same..!! :grinning_face: I love having a reference for how things work and used Carl’s guide as well.

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@Samuriko thank you!

That is the highest price I observed with perfect quality but only with Level 10 and selling via Pocket Market. At lower Levels perfect is worth less.

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@VIBES thank you so much! Great to hear that you also used Carl’s guide. This was always the best available among most other guides :grinning_face:

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Now we have EllaEstella’s guides for inZOI :+1::two_hearts:

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Thanks, I really appreciate that :two_hearts::yellow_heart: — but those are some very big shoes to fill…

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No, you don’t need to fill his shoes - these are your shoes.

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