Terraria Gemcorns - How to grow more gems
Mining glittering gems in Terraria is a practical way to fast profit. But now with the release of Terraria 1.4, you can invest some time into growing Gemcorns to turn your unearthed find into a king-worthy horde.
With Gemcorns, you can turn the gems in your inventory into more gems by growing them in the ground.
To make the best use of Gemcorns in Terraria 1.4, you will need easy access to the underground layer of your world, multiple gems, and some time on your hands. Growing Gemcorns isn’t an instant win, and requires some patience, but seems quite reliable in the long run.
Here’s what you have to do to get started with growing Gemcorns.
How to grow Gemcorns in Terraria 1.4
When you mine a gem in Terraria, it’s tempting to flip it for a quick buck or craft with it straight away. But following the 1.4 Journey’s End update, you can craft Gemcorns in your inventory out of normal gems and an Acorn.
You get Acorns as drops from cutting down trees on the surface layer of your world, while there are seven kinds of gems to hunt down in the ground:
- Amber
- Amethyst
- Diamond
- Emerald
- Ruby
- Sapphire
- Topaz
You don’t need a crafting table or anvil to create a Gemcorn, it can be done from your inventory via the crafting window.
Where to plant a Gemcorn in Terraria 1.4
Once you’ve crafted a Gemcorn in your inventory, you need to plant it in the ground for it to grow.
Gemcorns must be planted in the underground layer or below of your world, and grow best in the dark - so remove any torches from the area. Also, Gemcorns must be planted in stone, or they will not grow.
As shown in this video by YouTuber FlameNDragon, you need to give the Gemcorns room to grow next to each other. Leave at least a 3-4 block gap between each Gemcorn you plant, and excavate about 20 blocks worth of headroom for it as well.
The Gemcorns are then reported to take anywhere from a few minutes to a couple of hours of real time to grow to maturity.
While this happens, you can either adventure on your merry way or go AFK.
Gemcorn drops in Terraria 1.4
Once they’re fully grown, Gemcorn trees can be mined for stone blocks, gems and more Gemcorns. You’re always going to get blocks, but what you’re really after is the chance at multiples of the same gem you planted, along with more Gemcorns.
If you’re unlucky, it is possible to just get blocks. However, again as you can see in FlameNDragon’s video, he at one point gets two Rubies and two Ruby Gemcorns from one tree - doubling his initial ruby investment with two more trees to plant on top.
Doing this, you can see that cultivating an orchard of Gemcorn trees can quickly add up.
Alongside new ways to cultivate gems, Terraria made fast travel easier by introducing pylons - check out our page on how to unlock pylons and increase NPC happiness here.
If you’re more into combat, here’s how to craft the new best sword in Terraria: Zenith.
Then when you need a boss to test out your build on, here’s how to summon the Empress of Light.
Or if you fancy something easier to acquire, here’s how to get your hands on the new whips.