Farming Station
The Farming Station from EnderIO is an automated crop and lumber management block. It can be configured to automatically plant and harvest when supplied with power and tools; a Hoe for crops and Axe for wood. Any enchantments applied to the tools also work, such as Looting/Fortune to increase drop rates. Farming Station is well suited to mass lumber or sweed production, where it's high energy consumption is offset by the utility of having resources in bulk. Eventually superseded by the Tree Growth Simulator.
Usage
Opening the Farming Station's GUI gives access to its internal slots. A capacitor can be added to the bottom left, below the red power bar. Capacitors increase the range, power use, and power storage of the Farming Station. Tools and fertilizer go in the top row, while seeds are placed in the center four slots with padlock icons. Up to four different plants can be managed in separate quadrants. Locking a seed will prevent any other from being used in that quadrant. The six slots in the bottom right are output. The Farming Station can automatically push/pull items when configured using the white gear icon interface. As a RF machine, it can be powered with RF or EU from a GregTech power source. In its smallest configuration (7x7), the Farming Station passively consumes ~225 EU/s even when not actively working, and significantly more when harvesting or planting. For wood harvesting, three Vibrant Photovoltaic Cells (480RF/t) and a Basic Capacitor will let a 7x7 Farming Station work all day and night with default size/growth speed trees, such as Darkwood or Birch. Conduits can be used to provide power and item logistics with a minimal footprint.
It is highly recommended to get an Unbreakable tool to reduce upkeep.
Limitations
Every time the Farming Station harvests it costs tool durability, eventually requiring replacement or unbreakable tools such as the Healing Axe or Tinker's Construct Unbreakable trait. IC2 Crops do not work with the Farming Station. The Farming Station does not collect 100% of drops automatically, sometimes dropping items into the world. Vacuum Hoppers or Item Collectors are recommended to collect these loose entities.
Capacitor | Total Farm Size | Plots (in blocks) | Power Usage (RF) |
---|---|---|---|
None | 7x7 | 12 x 4 | 40 RF /t |
Double-Layer Capacitor | 11x11 | 30 x 4 | 67 RF /t |
Octadic Capacitor | 15x15 | 56 x 4 | 93 RF /t |
Crystalline Capacitor | 19x19 | 90 x 4 | 260 RF /t |
Melodic Capacitor | 21x21 | 132 x 4 | 460 RF /t |