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For fans of cross-breeding to grow rare flower colors in Animal Crossing: New Horizons, no bloom may be more elusive and difficult to grow than ACNH's Blue Roses. The Blue Rose can add a rich pop of color to any garden, but it takes several generations of cross-breeding to obtain. The complex DNA codes of flowers in the game, coupled with many possible Rose color combinations, make the Blue Rose take quite a few weeks, or even months, to grow.

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Naturally, finally growing Blue Roses can be a point of pride for any player of Animal Crossing: New Horizons. Though they do not sell for very much, they can be worn as an accessory or used to decorate an ACNH player's home or island. For flower enthusiasts and completionists alike, cross-breeding Blue Roses on the island is a must. Players need to be wary, however, because, just like real-world botany, there is always a chance for the offspring Roses to be the genetically wrong color to ever produce Blue Roses. Here's how to improve your chances and make Blue Roses in ACNH as efficiently as possible.

ACNH Blue Roses - Preparation

A player in Animal Crossing: New Horizons plants roses in a diagonal checkerboard pattern with spaces left for hybrid offspring to grow in Animal Crossing: New Horizons

The process for growing Blue Roses in Animal Crossing requires several generations of different color cross-breeding, and because of this, getting the right genetic color is often up to chance. Using more basic growing methods will only spawn Blue Roses 1.6% of the time. To improve the chances of growing a Blue Rose to the maximum 25%, players may need to use a lengthier and more involved method.

Before breeding flowers, players may want to check out our ACNH flower breeding guide to better understand the process.

Players will need to carve out a specific place to create the necessary checkerboard pattern and allow flowers to flourish. The location can also be reused to repeat the process until Blue Roses eventually spawn. Even through cross-breeding, Roses may be the "wrong" color, at least genetically. There are ways for players to check and make sure they have the "right" genetically coded colors through test cross-breeds, which is part of the process.

Blue Roses in ACNH Need Special White Roses

A player stands in a garden of White Roses where one hybrid Purple Rose has spawned in Animal Crossing: New Horizons

The only way to breed Blue Roses is through Hybrid Red Roses, which require special White Roses to grow properly. These are different from the naturally-occurring Red Roses in the game, and even different from regular hybrid Red Roses. While some guides will simply suggest breeding hybrid Red Roses from Purple and Orange Roses, using a more complicated breeding technique that includes the special White Rose will increase the chance of Blue Roses spawning.

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To begin, players should purchase Red, Yellow, and White Rose seeds from Nook's Cranny. Flower seed varieties available at Nook's Cranny change daily, so it may take players a few days to get all the right seeds.

Players should always grow Roses and other flowers for cross-breeding from purchased seeds. All flowers in the game contain a DNA sequence, and flowers occurring naturally on a player's island, friend's island, or Mystery Tour island may have been cross-bred several times already.

If the player's island does not grow Roses or does not grow a certain color of Roses, seeds will not be available at Nook's Cranny, no matter how many times a player checks back. In this case, players should travel to neighboring islands or visit a friend's island to purchase the right seeds there.

Players first need to cross-breed for Purple Roses. Cross-breeding two White Roses together have the chance of creating Purple Rose hybrids. The White Rose seeds, as with all breeding flowers, should be planted in a diagonal, checkerboard pattern with one space between them on all sides to encourage them to cross-breed.

ALWAYS discard any flowers that aren’t purple during this process!

When growing purple roses, there will be roses of another color that will spawn in the area. Players should not waste any time discarding the non-purple rose as it may interfere with spawning “good” purple roses. Once Purple Roses spawn, players should take those Purple Roses and cross them with Yellow Rose seeds to get White Roses. This cross should always yield White Roses. Players need to then take the White Roses and breed them with the Purple Roses from the previous step to get new, or, "good," Purple Roses.

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When players cross-breed for these "good" Purple Roses, there is around a 50% chance for them to be "good," and around a 50% chance for them to be "bad." The qualifiers "good" and "bad" here refer to whether the offspring Roses are good for moving the cross-breeding process forward and eventually spawning Animal Crossing's Blue Roses.

To test if a special Purple Rose is good and has the potential to produce Blue Roses, players can try cross-breeding the Purple Rose with more Yellow Rose seeds. Bad Purple Roses in this cross will produce White Roses 100% of the time, while good Purple Roses will produce both White and Yellow Roses.

Players need to then cross the good Purple Roses together to grow special White Roses. The bad ones can be discarded. Players looking to grow many Blue Roses will likely want many special White Roses, so they should repeat this process as often as possible to increase the chances of obtaining a Blue Rose.

At every step of the process, remember to water your flowers to encourage them to grow!

ACNH's Blue Roses Also Need Hybrid Red Roses

A player tends to Red Roses in a crossbreeding pattern in Animal Crossing: New Horizons

Hybrid Red Roses typically come from a cross between Orange and Purple Roses. However, they can also come from crossing Black Roses and special White Roses. To grow Black Roses easily, players should cross-breed Red Rose seeds. Once Black Roses spawn, players should cross the Black Roses with the special White Roses. Eventually, this combination should create Hybrid Red Roses.

The Final Steps To Making Animal Crossing's Blue Roses

A player stands in a garden surrounded by hedges with several Blue Roses at the center in Animal Crossing: New Horizons

Once players have special White and Hybrid Red roses, they should cross them to breed Orange Roses. While Orange Roses can be generated through other cross-breeding techniques, this is the best way for players to have the highest possible chance of obtaining Blue Roses.

Players will need to cross this Orange Rose with the special White Roses. This should eventually spawn special Hybrid Red Roses. These are the player's ticket to Blue Roses.

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Players will need to cross two or more of the special Hybrid Red Roses to make Blue Roses in ACNH. Players should place as many special Red Roses for cross-breeding as possible to further increase their chances of growing Blue Roses. Blue Roses are also self-spawning, meaning only having one should be enough to grow more on the island.

ACNH Blue Rose Sell Price

Blue Roses only sell for up to 1,000 bells. Because of the lengthy growing process, these are not great flowers to sell for profit. Instead, players should use them for decoration. Blue Roses are the main ingredient for the DIY Blue Rose Crown, which players can wear. With a lot of patience (and, for some players, time traveling), players can grow this rare flower and display them proudly on their island home. If Animal Crossing: New Horizons players need to follow a visual guide to help them make Blue Roses, they can do so following the steps shown by DazzaBound in the video above.

Next: Gold Roses in Animal Crossing: New Horizons - How To Grow & Use

  • Animal Crossing New Horizons Poster Art
    Animal Crossing New Horizons
    Released:
    2020-03-20
    Developer:
    Nintendo EPD
    Franchise:
    Animal Crossing
    Genre:
    Simulation
    Platform:
    Nintendo Switch
    Publisher:
    Nintendo
    ESRB:
    E
    Platforms:
    Nintendo Switch
    Expansions:
    Animal Crossing: New Horizons — Happy Home Paradise
    How Long To Beat:
    68-600 hours
    Prequel:
    Animal Crossing: New Leaf
    Expansion Packs :
    Animal Crossing: New Horizons- Happy Home Paradise