This is a solid feature. Thx!
Though not as experienced with farming (being a city resident), growing cultured and, regarding your mod, wild plants isn’t some future physics in my book. Some plants produce from seeds while the rest are nurtured into young specimens. Thus, the whole implementation of yours seems worthwhile and even appealing, but it should be open for discussion.
To be honest, an experienced fruit producer knows the difference between a fertile seed and a “bad” one. He can even find seedlings sprouting but a few inches from the ground and tell if they require attention or should be left alone. Since purchased saplings sometimes need particular soil additives to yield some or maximum harvest, much of this particular dub could be pinned onto survival (so, gardening) skill. On the counterpart, the wild plant is stronger and perhaps more resilient to atmospheric conditions and pests, but it depends on the soil composition too. When crop rotation is introduced (so to keep the soil’s fertility at best) and the rotation is at the switch-point between crops and fruits, the farmer sometimes introduces a native (or wild) culture on soil patches that seem more modest and even infertile. It is not uncommon to approach irregular paterns of cultured / non-cultured trees in a single row of fruits in the orchard - just as other yet non-intrusive plants whereas weed control is a must.
Branching of sprouts depends on the ammount of daylight, with overall health of the plant being a prerequisite. Having the right ammount of distance between two saplings is perhaps the primary concern when planning an orchard; the approximation of the root system in its full is crucial when approaching the issue of the canopy-like structure. Moreso, if the plant has enough sunny hours at its disposal it builds a more robust root structure to paralel the branching and leaf growth. Knowing that, to shape a branch means to understand how the zigzag branch-pattern works with saplings and how to cut individual branches. You cut 'em to be sure that the plant is receiving enough sunlight and to achieve somewhat, ehm, symmetric pattern.
Trees are very interesting to perceive when it comes to growth rates. Gardeners know this, and may instruct you how to slow down this rate in saplings whilst keeping the plant healthy - you’re looking at twice or thrice more time for safekeeping and storage. Soil fertilization triggers the mechanism for a tadbit more rapid-growth, and a regular water supply will ensure that, assuming there are enough sunny hours.
Enough for a start, though one thing seems missing - seed keeping. I know its implicitly relevant to the plant species, but I know fruit seeds are washed and air-dried, then kept in dark, cool places with as little air moisture as possible. Even particularly good seed specimens (I know this for the common species I’ve encountered) can develop micro-fractures from external stimulae and die-off pretty quickly.
Hope you make the Orchard mod even better,
vultures.