Animal Crossing Material Sources: How To Get Wood, Stone, Trash ...

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Finding materials is a new and important part of Animal Crossing: New Horizons.

Furniture and tools require a series of materials before they can be made, and, as you've probably guessed, you're going to spend a lot of time hunting these special items down.

We explain where to find a variety of material types in the early game to help you get the equipment you need as easy as possible.

On this page:

  • Animal Crossing materials explained
  • How to get wood, softwood, hardwood and branches in Animal Crossing New Horizons
  • How to get plants such as weeds, tulips and lillies in Crossing New Horizons
  • How to get trash such as an empty can, boot or tire in Animal Crossing New Horizons
  • How to get stone, gold nuggets, iron nuggets and clay in Animal Crossing New Horizons

How materials in Animal Crossing New Horizons work

Materials are components you want to gather as often as you can. Thankfully, they're usually a byproduct of other activities you might already be doing, whether it's fishing, shaking trees or scouring the beach.

Of course, each receipe or tool needs specific materials before they can be made.

A Simply DIY Workbench requires two types of materials.

Additionally some DIY recipes will require certain pieces of furniture. If you wish to build a Tiny Library, for example, you will need five pieces of wood and three copies of the Book furniture item. This means that you need to either craft or buy these pieces of furniture first, before you can build the Tiny Library.

It's also important to note that the larger the item, the more materials, and possibly pieces of furniture, will be required to make it.

Thankfully New Horizons gives you the ability to stack materials in your pockets, so you don't have to worry too much about inventory organisation.

How to get wood, softwood, hardwood and branches in Animal Crossing New Horizons

Wood-based materials will be found from trees by performing the following actions:

  • Branch location - Found on the ground or by shaking trees
  • Hardwood location - From hitting trees with a flimsy or stone axe
  • Softwood location - From hitting trees with a flimsy or stone axe
  • Wood location - From hitting trees with a flimsy or stone axe

Remember, if you are hitting trees, you need a flimsy or stone axe, and they will only drop three pieces per tree per day.

Chopping trees is one way of finding materials.

How to get plants such as weeds, tulips and lilies in Crossing New Horizons

Plants will either grow naturally - or require you to seed and nurture yourself before they become a material you need:

  • Lillies location - Plant and grow these flowers, then collect the flowers once they bloom
  • Tulips location - Plant and grow these flowers, then collect the flowers once they bloom
  • Weeds location - Pulling up the weeds that grow on islands

How to get trash such as an empty can, boot or tire in Animal Crossing New Horizons

One person's trash is another's treasure, or so they say. In the past, the trash you found from activities was just that - something to be recycled or sold on. In New Horizons, it's one of many useful components you need to track down:

  • Boot location - Caught by fishing
  • Empty Can location - Caught by fishing
  • Tire location - Caught by fishing

Animal Crossing: New Horizons version 3.0 is on its way! It will bring Zelda items, LEGO items, Splatoon items and NES games. While you wait, make sure your Museum is full of fish and bugs. Cooking, meanwhile, will let you make some tasty gifts for your villagers. If your island needs decorating, why not add some Gyroids, flowers or fruit? Don't forget to make sure you've got every tool though and that your home is up to Happy Home Academy standards. There's also your Happy Home Paradise restort too!

How to get stone, gold nuggets, iron nuggets and clay in Animal Crossing New Horizons

Earth-based materials, from stone to nuggets and clay, are sourced primarily from rocks. You need a tool before you get started however!

  • Clay location - Hit a rock with an axe or shovel
  • Gold Nugget location - Hit a rock with an axe or shovel
  • Iron Nugget location - Hit a rock with an axe or shovel
  • Stone location - Hit a rock with an axe or shovel

You can hit a rock over and over, so be sure to do so to get the maximum amount of material from it!

Cover image for YouTube videoAnimal Crossing: New Horizons Gameplay - An Island After 80 Hours Watch on YouTube

Hopefully this will help you build the island of your dreams!

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