Surface

Surfaces are the different types of terrain that make up your garden. They are often placed down with the use of different packets, and are important for building your garden.

Surface area is measured in square pinometers, and can be viewed in the Garden Area section of the journal. Often, you will require a specific number of pinometers of a surface to please certain piñatas. There are a total of 1000 square pinometers of terrain per garden in the original and Pocket Paradise, or 100 in TiP, that can be changed however you please.

All plants must be grown on different surfaces. Some, like weeds, can grow on anything, but other plants are more finicky. Growing a plant on the wrong surface will stunt the plant, and eventually cause it to wilt and die.

Surfaces are important to hatching the Dragonache, as the surface type the egg is on when it hatches will determine Dragonache’s color.

Types of Surfaces

Soil

Soil is one of the most common surface types, and exists underneath all other surface types. It doesn’t have its own packet; instead, soil can be revealed by using the Remove button with any packet.

All plants can be grown in soil, with the exception of aquatic plants.

Hatching a Dragonache in soil creates the brown variant.

Grass

Short grass is one of the most common surface types. It can be placed with the grass packet. Like dirt, most plants can grow in it fine, however some used to more extreme temperatures dislike growing in grass.

Hatching a Dragonache in grass creates the green variant.

Long Grass

Long grass is the more overgrown version of regular grass. It is grown from the Long Grass Packet. Any plants that like short grass will also grow in long grass, though some piñatas are more picky about the grass length.

Hatching a Dragonache in tall grass creates the green variant with a long mane.

Mud

Mud is the surface that borders ponds, and can only be created by making ponds. Only aquatic plants and weeds can grow in mud.

Hatching a Dragonache in mud creates the brown variant.

Water

Water is the main body of ponds. Created by digging with the pond shovel head and its subsequent upgrades, water is a very important part of the garden, and is loved by many piñatas.

In the console games, plants cannot grow directly in water, with aquatic plants growing in the mud at the water's edge instead. In Pocket Paradise, however, aquatic plants do grow directly in the water.

Hatching a Dragonache in water creates the blue variant.

Sand

Sand is a new surface type introduced in Trouble in Paradise. It can be placed with the sand packet, and is loved by both desert species and many aquatic species.

Hatching a Dragonache in sand creates the red variant.

Snow

Snow is a new surface type introduced in Trouble in Paradise. It can be placed with the snow packet, and is loved by all sorts of arctic species.

Hatching a Dragonache in snow creates the white variant.

Hard Soil

Hard soil is a unique surface type only seen in Viva Piñata and Pocket Paradise. It cannot be placed by the player, only destroyed with the use of your shovel. Hard soil is the result of Professor Pester’s attack on Jardiniero’s garden, leaving the top soil in a condition completely unable to grow any plants or attract even the most basic piñatas. Whacking it with your shovel will remove it, and reveal the still usable soil underneath.

Hatching a Dragonache on hard soil will create the gold variant. Since more hard soil cannot be created by the player, you must save a patch of it in order to obtain the gold variant. Another method is to simply create a new garden for this purpose, as new gardens will start with hard soil.

Since Trouble in Paradise takes place in a different garden, hard soil is not seen in this game. To get the gold Dragonache, you must instead hatch it on Golden Paving.