Plant

Plants are the growable organisms used throughout Oxygen Not Included for food, industrial materials, utility effects, and decoration. Most plants are planted in a Planter Box, Farm Tile, Hydroponic Farm, or an appropriate Pot, and their growth depends on a combination of temperature, atmosphere, pressure, illumination, and sometimes fertilization or irrigation. If any requirement is not met, the plant becomes stifled, stops growing, and becomes wilted until conditions improve.

There are four general kinds of plants in the game: food plants, industrial plants, utility plants, and decorative plants. Food plants provide edible items and cooking ingredients, while industrial plants provide manufacturing resources or other special outputs. Utility plants do not grow or get harvested in the usual way; they instead perform a unique function, such as cooling the environment or converting carbon dioxide to oxygen. Decorative plants are primarily used for Decor and do not grow or produce seeds.

Most productive plants need a steady supply of water or polluted water, though some use solid fertilization or other special inputs instead. Hydroponic Farms and Auto-Sweepers can help automate these needs. Many plants also require specific gases, such as Carbon Dioxide or Chlorine, and most require at least 150 g of atmosphere pressure to grow. Because of these differences, dedicated farm areas are often the easiest way to keep each crop in stable conditions. For example, some farms are deliberately sealed and dark so plants that prefer darkness or Carbon Dioxide can thrive efficiently.

A plant that reaches full maturity will continue consuming resources for a short time before harvest. Ripe plants automatically drop their product after four cycles and then begin growing again. Plants also have a chance to produce seeds when harvested, uprooted, or killed. For food and industrial plants, the base chance is 10% per harvest, with an additional bonus from Agriculture skill that can eventually bring the chance to 100%. Each seed weighs 1 kg.

The Spaced Out! DLC adds plant mutation. Radiation can mutate seeds at harvest time, giving them additional traits, but mutated plants are infertile and do not drop seeds themselves. Only the radiation present on the plant at the moment of harvest matters. Mutated seeds must be analyzed in a Botanical Analyzer before they can be planted, even if the mutation type is already known.

In the Prehistoric Planet Pack DLC, plant pollination is also a plant-related mechanic. It is a symbiotic interaction between plants and certain critter species that improves plant growth.

Some broad practical points apply to most plants:

• Check the full set of requirements, not just temperature; atmosphere and pressure are often just as important.
• If a crop is resource-hungry, isolate it in its own farm room so it does not interfere with the rest of the base.
• Decorative plants are useful for reducing stress, but only if their requirements stay met; otherwise they become stifled and give negative Decor.
• Utility plants keep the same farming-style requirements as other plants, but their purpose is functional rather than agricultural.

Plants are a major part of progression because many scenarios gate critical resources behind biome access, teleporter use, or rocketry. Depending on the asteroid and scenario, a colony may have easy access to some crops and struggle to reach others, making plant choice and farm design an important part of survival.