If you've spent even a few hours exploring Embervale's foggy valleys and overgrown farmsteads, you've likely stumbled on side quests that feel far more rewarding than the main path for casual players. The a time for harvest quest enshrouded throws a mix of fetch tasks, light combat, and puzzle solving at you, and it's easy to miss critical steps that lock you out of rare seed drops you can't get anywhere else in the early game. I’m the kind of player who wastes hours chasing every side quest even when I’m supposed to be advancing the main story, so I’ve messed up this one enough times to know all the ins and outs.
What to Prepare Before Starting A Time for Harvest Quest Enshrouded
Most players pick up this quest around level 8, when they first unlock access to the western farmlands outside the starting cave. You don't need endgame gear, but there are a few items you should grab before you talk to the quest giver, Farmer Sam, to avoid backtracking halfway through. Bring at least 3 empty inventory slots before you accept the quest, because you'll get unique harvestable seeds that can't be stored in your shared stash until the quest is complete. I made this mistake on my first run, had to drop a stack of iron ore to make space, and lost it when I got jumped by shrouded wolves on my way back.
Also, bring a stone axe or better, and at least 2 healing potions if you're playing solo. The farm area has a small pack of raiders that spawn right as you pick the first crop, and they hit harder than you might expect at low level. You don't need to clear the entire shrouded area around the farm first, but taking out the 2 floating shroud spires nearby will stop extra mobs from spawning while you work, which saves a ton of time.
Step-by-Step Walkthrough of the Quest Objectives
After accepting the quest, follow the marker to the old pumpkin patch on the north side of the farm. You'll see 8 pumpkins total, but only 4 have a faint golden glow around them, those are the healthy ones. Don't pick the wilted ones, they don't count and will despawn after you pick them, so you can't come back later if you mess up.
The core objectives you need to complete in order are:
Complete the objectives in the order listed above to avoid triggering the common glitch where the corn seeds disappear from your inventory before you can plant them. I tested this 3 times, and every time I cleared the well first, the seeds vanished when I picked the pumpkins. It's a small bug that hasn't been patched yet, so following the order is the only reliable fix right now. Once you plant the corn, you don't have to wait for it to grow, the quest will update immediately.
Hidden Rewards You Don't Want to Miss
Most players just turn in the quest as soon as they finish the objectives, but there are 2 secret rewards you can get if you take an extra 5 minutes to explore the farm. First, check the locked cellar under Farmer Sam's house. You can find the cellar key under the doormat to the left of his front door, I almost stepped right over it on my first run. Inside the cellar, you'll find a rare golden potato seed that grows crops worth 3 times as much as regular potatoes when you sell them to wandering merchants. You can only get this seed during this quest, it doesn't spawn anywhere else in the game as of current patches.
Second, if you water the extra tilled soil patches around the farm with a water bucket, you'll get 2 extra corn seeds you can take back to your own base to grow. These corn seeds grow 2x faster than regular corn, which is a huge help when you're first setting up your farm for food and crafting materials. The only catch is you have to do this before you turn the quest in, once you talk to Sam again the extra patches despawn.
How to Fix Common Quest Glitches
Even if you follow all the steps perfectly, you might run into a few common glitches that stop the quest from progressing, and there's no official fix from the devs yet, so these workarounds are tested by the community. First, if the golden pumpkins don't spawn when you arrive at the farm, fast travel back to your nearest flame altar, wait 2 in-game days, then fast travel back to the farm. The spawn glitch usually happens if you wandered near the farm before accepting the quest, so resetting the area fixes it 90% of the time.
Second, if Farmer Sam doesn't have the quest marker over his head even when you're the right level, make sure you've completed the first "Reach the Farmlands" main quest first. This side quest doesn't unlock until you've triggered that main story beat, so you can't pick it up early no matter how many times you talk to Sam. If the corn seeds disappear from your inventory mid-quest, you can get a replacement set by searching the toolbox next to the well. Most players don't know that the toolbox has extra seeds, so they abandon the quest and have to start over, but this fix takes 10 seconds. If all else fails, you can abandon the quest from your journal and pick it up again from Sam, you won't lose any progress you made on the objectives unless you already picked the pumpkins.
The a time for harvest quest enshrouded is one of the most rewarding early-game side quests if you take the time to do it right, and it's well worth the 20 minutes it takes to complete even if you're rushing through main story content. The extra seeds you get will give you a huge leg up on setting up your base farm, and the gold you get from selling golden potatoes can cover the cost of your first major base upgrade way earlier than most players manage. Don't rush through it, double check for hidden spots, and follow the objective order to avoid frustrating glitches, and you'll walk away with way more than the standard quest rewards.