Hybrid Flower Breeding Guide | Cross Pollination and How to Cross Breed Flowers | ACNH - Animal Crossing: New Horizons (Switch)

This is a guide to cross pollination or flower breeding in Animal Crossing: New Horizons (ACNH) for Nintendo Switch. Read on to learn how to make hybrid flowers, as well as what flower breeding layouts to use!

How to Make Hybrid Flowers

Flower Breeding Methods

Breed New Flowers from Seeds

We recommend using flowers seeds bought from Nook's Cranny or from Leif's Garden Shop as you can control the outcome of the breeding process. These flower seeds have fixed cross pollination patterns so you're guaranteed to get the hybrid color you want.

Cross Pollinate Native Flowers

You can also use the flowers growing natively on your island to make hybrid flowers. While this method is faster than breeding two flowers from seeds, it is harder to control the outcome as these flowers have random cross pollination patterns.

For example, cross pollinating a Red Rose and a White Rose from seeds will create a Pink Rose, but when cross pollinating the same flowers that were native to your island, it is possible to get Yellow Roses instead.

Cross Pollinate Two Hybrid Flowers

Sometimes the only way to get a specific color, like most of the Purple flowers, is to crossbreed two hybrid flowers.

The example above shows how to make Purple Tulips. This is done by cross pollinating Red and Yellow Tulips first and then using the Orange Tulips to make Purple Tulips.

Cross pollinating two hybrid flowers of the same color is also one way to make more of the same flower.

Breed Flowers through Cloning

Layouts where Flowers will clone
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Layouts where Flowers won't clone
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Another method of getting the flower you want is to clone it. To clone a flower, plant it somewhere where it isn't touching any other flowers of the same species and water them every day. Eventually, the flower will clone itself in one of the empty spaces.

Flower Breeding Tips for ACNH

Water Your Flowers to Cross Pollinate Them

Watering flowers with the Watering Can causes buds to grow into flowers and nearby flowers to bloom, making crossing pollination much easier. Water the flowers at least once a day for them to grow.

How to Get the Watering Can

There are Hybrid Flowers that Require Specific Tools

You need a Gold Watering Can to make Golden Roses

A Golden Watering Can is required to make Golden Roses. Unlike most flowers, these roses can only be obtained through specific instructions. For more information how to make Golden Roses, see the link below.

How to Grow Golden Roses

ACNH Flower Breeding Layouts

Cross-Breed in a 2x1 Grid Layout

The easiest way to cross-breed two flowers is by placing them next to each other, within a 2x1 grid. The hybrid flowers will grow directly below the two flowers, like in the image above.

Cross-Breed in a 3x3 Grid Layout

Another method you can use is the 3x3 grid layout. By placing the flowers in a 3x3 grid, you can get a hybrid colored flower in the middle of the layout, like in the image above.

Hybrid flowers may not grow the next day

Even if you've fulfilled all the preconditions for Cross Pollination, hybrid flowers may not grow the very next day. If there are no new flowers, you'll simply have to continue watering them.

See the chart below for more information on hybrid flower colors.

ACNH Flower Breeding Charts

Flower Breeding Charts Overview

Jump to a Section▼
Roses	Tulips	Hyacinths	Mums
Pansies	Lilies	Windflowers	Cosmoses

Hybrid Rose Flower Chart

Hybrid Flower	Parent 1	Parent 2
Pink Rose (Best)	Red Rose	White Rose
Pink Rose	Red Rose	Red Rose
Orange Rose	Red Rose	Yellow Rose
Purple Rose	White Rose	White Rose
Red Rose (1)	Purple Rose	Orange Rose
Black Rose (Best)	Orange Rose	Orange Rose
Black Rose	Red Rose	Red Rose
Blue Rose (Best)	Red Rose (1)	Red Rose (1)
Blue Rose	Black Rose	Black Rose
Golden Rose	Black Rose (2)	Black Rose (2)

(1): This Red Rose needs to be a hybrid between a Purple Rose and an Orange Rose.
(2): You need to water the Black Roses with a Golden Watering Can.
(Best): This combination yields the highest chance of getting this hybrid.

How to Get All Roses

Hybrid Tulip Flower Chart

Hybrid Flower	Parent 1	Parent 2
Orange Tulip	Red Tulip	Yellow Tulip
Pink Tulip	Red Tulip	White Tulip
Black Tulip (Best)	Red Tulip	Red Tulip
Black Tulip	Orange Tulip	Orange Tulip
Purple Tulip (Best)	Orange Tulip	Orange Tulip
Purple Tulip	Black Tulip	Black Tulip
Purple Tulip	Yellow Tulip	Black Tulip

(Best): This combination yields the highest chance of getting this hybrid.
How to Get All Tulips

Hybrid Hyacinth Flower Chart

Hybrid Flower	Parent 1	Parent 2
Pink Hyacinth	Red Hyacinth	White Hyacinth
Orange Hyacinth	Red Hyacinth	Yellow Hyacinth
Blue Hyacinth (Best)	White Hyacinth	White Hyacinth
Blue Hyacinth	Orange Hyacinth	Orange Hyacinth
Purple Hyacinth (Best)	Orange Hyacinth	Orange Hyacinth
Purple Hyacinth	Blue Hyacinth	Blue Hyacinth

(Best): This combination yields the highest chance of getting this hybrid.
How to Get All Hyacinths

Hybrid Mum Flower Chart

Hybrid Flower	Parent 1	Parent 2
Pink Mum	Red Mum	White Mum
Yellow Mum (1)	Yellow Mum	Red Mum
Purple Mum (Best)	White Mum	White Mum
Purple Mum	Yellow Mum (1)	Yellow Mum (1)
Purple Mum	Red Mum	Yellow Mum
Green Mum (Best)	Yellow Mum (1)	Yellow Mum (1)
Green Mum	Purple Mum	Purple Mum

(1): This Yellow Mum needs to be a hybrid between a Yellow Mum and a Red Mum.
(Best): This combination yields the highest chance of getting this hybrid.
How to Get All Mums

Hybrid Pansy Flower Chart

Hybrid Flower	Parent 1	Parent 2
Orange Pansy	Red Pansy	Yellow Pansy
Blue Pansy	White Pansy	White Pansy
Red Pansy (1)	Red Pansy	Blue Pansy
Purple Pansy (Best)	Red Pansy (1)	Red Pansy (1)
Purple Pansy	Blue Pansy	Blue Pansy

(1): This Red Pansy needs to be a hybrid between a Blue Pansy and a Red Pansy from a seed.
(Best): This combination yields the highest chance of getting this hybrid.
How to Get All Pansies

Hybrid Lily Flower Chart

Hybrid Flower	Parent 1	Parent 2
Pink Lily	Red Lily	White Lily
Orange Lily	Red Lily	Yellow Lily
Black Lily (Best)	Orange Lily	Orange Lily
Black Lily	Red Lily	Red Lily

(Best): This combination yields the highest chance of getting this hybrid.
How to Get All Lilies

Hybrid Windflower Flower Chart

Hybrid Flower	Parent 1	Parent 2
Blue Windflower	White Windflower	White Windflower
Pink Windflower	Red Windflower	Orange Windflower
Red Windflower (1)	Blue Windflower	Red Windflower
Purple Windflower (Best)	Red Windflower (1)	Red Windflower (1)
Purple Windflower	Pink Windflower	Pink Windflower
Purple Windflower	Blue Windflower	Blue Windflower
Purple Windflower	Blue Windflower	Pink Windflower

(1): This Red Windflower needs to be a hybrid between a Blue Windflower and a Red Windflower from a seed.
(Best): This combination yields the highest chance of getting this hybrid.
How to Get All Windflowers

Hybrid Cosmos Flower Chart

Hybrid Flower	Parent 1	Parent 2
Orange Cosmos	Red Cosmos	Yellow Cosmos
Pink Cosmos	Red Cosmos	White Cosmos
Black Cosmos (Best)	Orange Cosmos	Orange Cosmos
Black Cosmos	Pink Cosmos	Orange Cosmos

(Best): This combination yields the highest chance of getting this hybrid.
How to Get All Cosmoses

Related Guides

List of Flowers

Flower Related Links
Flower Breeding Guide | How to Make Hybrid Flowers
Windflowers	Roses	Hyacinths
Mums	Lilies	Tulips
Pansies	Cosmoses	Bushes
Lily of the Valley