Farming manual

This book is obtained during My Arm's Big Adventure, and can be found in the bookcase of a player owned house. According to the examine text, the manual was written by Farmer Gricoller.

During the quest, you follow the directions for Soil Preparation of a Mountain patch. It may look like the other listed regions are in accordance with other special patches (Desert -> Cactus, Jungle -> Calquat), but this is in fact NOT true. The manual states that the preparations are for unprepared land, not the soil in public farming patches such as the cactus and calquat patches.

The destroy text tells you to get a new copy from My Arm, but it is also available from any POH bookcase.

Basics
The aim of Farming is to sow seeds, help them grow into healty plants, then harvest the crops. Although the trade can seem complicated, everything a farmer does is part of this simple process.

Most seeds can be planted directly into a suitable patch of soil with the aid of a seed dibber. The soil may first need raking if it has become overgrown with weeds. When the seeds have been sown, they will grow slowly until they are fully grown. At that point the crop may be harvested with a spade.

All the toolds commonly used by farmers are sold in Farming shops throughout the land.

Disease
The greatest threat to crops is disease. Where crops become diseased, they usually die unless the disease is promptly treated in an appropriate way.

For small crops, a vial of plant cure should restore the health of the entire patch. Larger plants such as bushes and trees may be treated by cutting off the diseased leaves with secateurs.

Prevention, of course, is far better than cure. Farmers are strongly advised to take all necessary steps to ward off disease from their crops. There are a variety of techniques for this:
 * Compost: If the soil is treated with compost before the seeds are sown in it, the chance of the crops becoming diseased will be considerably lower. Supercompost has an even greater effect on the likelihood of disease.
 * Complementary crops: Certain flowers attract the pests that cause disease in vegetables and fruits. You may therefore be able to protect your crops in allotments by growing appropriate flowers in the nearby flower patches. Marigolds protect potatoes, onions and tomatoes. Rosemary protects cabbages. Nasturtiums protect watermelons.
 * Scarecrows: A scarecrow may be placed in an empty flower patch. This will repel birds, thus protecting any sweetcorn growing in nearby allotments from disease.
 * Protection: The simplest method of preventing disease is to hire a gardener to look after your crops for you. Throughout the lands, you will usually have little trouble finding someone willing to help in exchange for a few sacks or baskets of food.

Soil Preparation
It is critically important that your crops be planted in the best available soil if they are to grow successfully. In general, amateur farmers are advised to do their farming within the farming patches available to the public across the lands.

Where one is required to grow crops in some other place, the ground must be treated very thoroughly before any seeds are planted. The appropriate treatment shall depend on the nature of the existing soil and the climate. It is widely believed that camel dung surpasses all other creatures' dung in both fertility and stench. Keen farmers preparing soil for important crops should therefore aim to use camel dung wherever possible. It may be freely obtained in the desert lands south of Misthalin.
 * Woodland: Mix 2 buckets of dung and 8 buckets of supercompost into the soil.
 * Desert: Mix 6 buckets of dung and 4 buckets of supercompost into the soil. Finally, stir with plenty of water with a trowel.
 * Mountain: Mix 3 buckets of dung and 7 buckets of supercompost into the soil.
 * Jungle: Mix 10 buckets of supercompost into the soil. Pour a vial of plant cure over the soil and provide some means of drainage.