Plant genetics and DNA

Setup

Inspect a seed’s traits before investing in its crop. The Plant Analyser and DNA disks support a different workflow from merely adding a production module. The DNA Manipulator has separate seed, input-disk and output-disk slots. A written input disk plans an apply operation; extraction uses the other operation path.

How it works

Trait compatibility and rank matter. Traits in an exclusive group cannot simply be combined as independent bonuses. Stat multipliers multiply: each matching trait contributes its own factor, rather than adding all percentages to one total. Growth speed, water use and harvest yield therefore need separate comparisons.

Checks before committing

The machine plans success chance and operation progress from seed complexity and machine quality. Stabilizer, positive/negative filters and precision modules change the relevant operation choices. Check the displayed plan before committing a valuable seed or disk; a listed success chance is not a guaranteed result. Effective complexity is complexity plus heat. Success chance is clamped to 5–100% from 95−5×max(0,effective complexity)+adjusted machine quality. Required operation progress is 20+4×max(0,effective complexity). Progress is not a fixed number of nights.

Apply and extract DNA safely

1. For application, place a written disk in the input-disk slot and a compatible seed in the seed slot. A successful operation adds the disk’s rank, capped by the trait’s rank limit, and spends one disk use. A failed application does not spend that use, but still adds genetic heat to the seed.
2. For extraction, put a blank disk in the output-disk slot; filters and precision modules narrow the selectable traits. A written output disk instead recharges that same trait, if the seed carries it. Successful extraction from an innate trait grants uses equal to at least its current rank; other traits grant one use. A newly written disk has rank one.
3. Without a Stabilizer, extraction destroys the seed even when the roll fails. With a Stabilizer, the seed survives; success removes one rank of the selected trait, and the attempt adds heat. Choose a donor you can spare rather than risking your only improved seed.

Keep improved seeds and inspect infused crops

1. Returned seeds copy the parent seed’s trait ranks and clear genetic heat. Save those returned seeds for the next crop; do not assume every ordinary harvested item is a reusable genetic donor. Seed-producing harvests run only the hooks that explicitly allow seed produce.
2. Production traits add a liquid component to each affected harvest item. Rank-one amounts are 2 mL caffeine, 10 mL coffee mash or 2 mL Dream Cap mash; higher ranks scale by rank^0.75, not linearly. The matching Dream Cap farm module suppresses that trait’s infusion; module conversion rules can also change the infused liquid.
3. Inspect the actual harvest before selling or processing it. Infusion initializes chemical contents, and the Dream Cap production trait can mark produce as contraband. The crop’s normal name is not proof that it contains only its usual ingredients.

Reference

Trait	Effect	Cannot combine with
Edible	Everything this plant produces can be eaten.	—
Nutritious	Produce carries more calories.	Nutrient-Poor
Nutrient-Poor	Produce carries fewer calories.	Nutritious
Fast Grower	Grows faster.	Slow Grower
Slow Grower	Grows slower.	Fast Grower
Bountiful	Yields more produce.	Sparse
Sparse	Yields less produce.	Bountiful
Delicious	Edible produce sells for more.	Unappetizing
Unappetizing	Edible produce sells for less.	Delicious
Drought Resistant	Drinks less water.	Thirsty
Thirsty	Drinks more water.	Drought Resistant
Hardy	Less sensitive to contaminants in the water.	Frail
Frail	More sensitive to contaminants in the water.	Hardy
Fertile	Gives back more seeds when harvested.	Infertile
Infertile	Gives back fewer seeds when harvested.	Fertile
Simple Genome	An uncomplicated genome: edits are easier.	Complex Genome
Complex Genome	A tangled genome: edits are harder.	Simple Genome
Perennial	Survives its harvest and fruits again.	—
Purifying	Cleans the water it grows in.	Polluting
Polluting	Fouls the water it grows in.	Purifying
Dense	Harvested items last longer.	—
Potent	More of every active ingredient.	Weak
Weak	Less of every active ingredient.	Potent

Harvest infusion at rank one

Component	Volume (mL)
Caffeine	2
Coffee Bean Mush	10
Dream Cap Mush	2

Related guides

• Hydroponic farming
• Specialists and production supplies

Sources

Steam PC · 26274380 · Assembly-CSharp.dll · 52f11980b737. Sources: PlantTraitList; PlantTrait; PlantGeneticsHelper; PlantHarvest; MachineDnaManipulator. Artwork: Steam PC 26284217. Sources · Wiki-authored table translations

Choose the seed to preserve

Keep a backup before another DNA operation. Each attempt adds heat equal to 2 plus the absolute complexity of the selected trait; failed applications can therefore make the next attempt harder without improving the seed. Growing a crop and keeping its returned seeds preserves trait ranks and clears heat. This is a way to continue a good line, not a promise that every crop returns seeds.

Compare the stat you need rather than maximizing every rank. Trait percentages scale by rank^0.75: rank four gives about 2.83 times the rank-one percentage, not four times. A rank-one +25% stat becomes about +70.71% at rank four. Water use, speed and yield are separate stats; the table is a trait effect, not a guaranteed harvest.

Rank	Effect for a +25% rank-one trait
1	+25%
2	+42.04%
3	+56.99%
4	+70.71%

Sources

Assembly-CSharp.dll · genetics