TL;DR — what you actually need to know
- Riven Tides is the new gold standard. Way more planters than any old map. If you need ten, this is your one-and-done run.
- Hydroponic Domes (Dam Battlegrounds) are the classic backup — three glass houses, planters lining the floors, expect company.
- Blue Gate Village has destroyed greenhouses on the east side. Lower density, but a nice tag-along if you're already there.
- Lush Blooms map condition drops fertilizer into wicker baskets on the sides of buildings and vehicles. Free top-up if you see the buff active.
- You need it for Avian Alarm Stage 3 — 10× Fertilizer alongside Comet Igniters, Rusted Tools, and Velocity ship models.
- Riven Tides spawns are beach piles, not planters. Eyes down on the sand, not inside pots.
Every Fertilizer Spawn on Riven Tides
What Even Is Fertilizer?
Fertilizer is a crafting material that spawns in a couple of different ways depending on the map. On the old maps it lives in planters — round soil-filled pots in hydroponic facilities and ruined greenhouses. On Riven Tides it skips the pots entirely and shows up as loose piles scattered across the beach.
It's used in two ways:
- Avian Alarm Stage 3 — 10× Fertilizer, alongside 3× Comet Igniter, 10× Rusted Tools, and 5× Velocity Ship Models. The single biggest material gate in the project.
- Scrappy upgrades and Seeds. Fertilizer breaks down into Seeds at Scrappy, which feed into a chain of agricultural upgrades. Worth keeping a small stockpile even after the project's done.
What Avian Alarm Wants
| Material | Avian Alarm Stage | Qty Needed |
|---|---|---|
| Fertilizer | Stage 3 — Secondary Validation Birds | ×10 |
| Comet Igniter | Stage 3 | ×3 |
| Rusted Tools | Stage 3 | ×10 |
| Velocity Ship Model | Stage 3 | ×5 |
Need the full project breakdown? Avian Alarm Project guide is here — including where every Velocity model spawns.
Best Fertilizer Farm: Riven Tides
Scattered Piles Along the Beach
Top SpotRiven Tides is the best map to farm fertilizer. It spawns as loose piles on the beach.
The density is high enough that you can finish the entire 10× Stage 3 requirement in a single run (if you hit the spawns before everyone else). Every confirmed pile is pinned on the Riven Tides interactive map with the fertilizer filter on by default.
Classic Backup: Hydroponic Domes (Dam Battlegrounds)
Hydroponic Dome Complex
Solid #2
Before Riven Tides, this was the spot. Expect to pull 2–3 fertilizer per dome on a good roll — sometimes more, sometimes a depressing zero if the squad before you was doing the same quest.
The domes are also a notorious raider hot zone. You're walking into a small space with predictable spawns and exactly two doors. Pre-aim, peek first, and don't camp the third planter you walk past — somebody else is on their way.
Honorable Mention: Blue Gate Village
Village — Destroyed Greenhouses
Tag-Along
The east side of the Village has the wreckage of a few old greenhouses, with planters scattered across the broken concrete. Density is noticeably lower than Riven Tides or the Domes, but the planters are out in the open and easy to clear. Treat this as a side-objective, not a primary farm — perfect if you're already on Blue Gate for a contract and don't want to leave empty-handed.
Lush Blooms: The Free Top-Up
Want to know when the next Lush Blooms hits? Check the Events page for the full rotation schedule.
Sometimes the map condition wheel lands on Lush Blooms, and suddenly you have wicker baskets sprouting on the sides of buildings, fences, and parked vehicles across the whole map. They're easy to spot — woven, beige, and obviously not part of the architecture. Inside: rare fruits, mushrooms, and yes, fertilizer.
It's not a reliable farm — you don't get to pick the condition, and fertilizer is one of several possible drops — but if you log in, see Lush Blooms in the condition list, and were planning to play anyway? Sweep the baskets while you're doing other quests. It's the laziest 1–2 fertilizer you'll ever pick up.
Finding Baskets on the Interactive Map
Wicker baskets are marked on every map. The quickest way to isolate them:
- Open the map for whichever map you're dropping on — Riven Tides, Dam Battlegrounds, Blue Gate, etc.
- Click Hide All in the legend to clear every marker type.
- Type basket in the search bar — only wicker basket markers will appear.
Each marker has an in-game screenshot of the exact spawn so you know exactly where to look.
I farmed Hydroponic Domes for two evenings to scrape ten fertilizer together — got third-partied twice, took a fight that wasn't worth taking, and finished with a sour taste in my mouth. Then Riven Tides launched and I did the same ten in one quiet run, hit no other raiders, and walked out with extras. The math isn't even close anymore.
If you're starting Stage 3 today: do Riven Tides first. If it's contested or you've got Lush Blooms active on another map, sweep the baskets while you handle other contracts. The Hydroponic Domes are still a fine spot, but they're no longer the obvious answer they used to be.
Quick Tips Before You Drop
- Riven Tides: look at the sand,. Fertilizer here is loose piles on the beach — static spots, but easy to miss.
- Dam and Blue Gate: planters only. Round soil pots inside the domes and ruined greenhouses. Empty pot = someone got there first, same spot refills next raid.
- Lush Blooms? Check the Events page to confirm it's active, then open your map, hit Hide All, and search "basket" to see every wicker basket pin.
Every confirmed spawn is pinned on the Riven Tides interactive map. Good hunting.