With all the new updates and Minecraft’s long history, it’s no surprise some features get overlooked. Whether they’re old or just obscure, there are plenty of reasons players never encounter certain mechanics. Not every item or block is equally useful either, so some things simply fade from memory. Today, we’re taking a closer look at exactly those details to help make your gameplay more varied. Especially if you’re playing Minecraft with little prior knowledge or coming back after a long break, you’ll likely find a surprise or two.
1. Minecraft farming: Make crops grow faster without bone meal
When you want wheat, carrots, or potatoes to grow faster, most players think of bone meal first. But there’s a mechanic that speeds up growth without any input: Plant different crops in alternating rows or a checkerboard pattern. Identical crops placed side by side slow each other down; varied neighbors reduce this penalty and increase the chance of random tick growth.
Pro tips:
- Keep farmland hydrated (water within 4 blocks) and ensure nighttime light level ≥ 9 so growth doesn’t halt.
- Classic layout: 9×9 field with water in the center.
- Use a composter to turn excess plant material into bone meal.
2. Minecraft moon phases: Swamp spawn rates and black cats (Java)
Minecraft has 8 moon phases that affect things like slime spawns in swamp biomes (Java Edition): During a full moon, you’ll see significantly more slimes, and fewer at new moon—perfect for stocking up on slimeballs. Cat note: Witch huts always spawn a black cat; as stray cats in villages, black cats are more common during a full moon, but not exclusive.
Note: Slimes in slime chunks are independent of moon phases; there, depth and light level matter.
3. Mining diamonds: More diamond ore under lava and water (1.18+)
Since the Caves & Cliffs changes, diamond ore is most abundant around Y≈−59. Due to the air exposure mechanic, diamonds generate less often next to air, but relatively more often beneath lava or water. That makes it worthwhile to check lava lakes in deepslate layers and explore underwater caves.
Safety tips:
- Drink a Fire Resistance potion and use buckets (water/powder snow) to counter lava.
- Place bridge blocks (e.g., cobblestone) across lava and systematically mine the edges.
4. Biomes and flowers: Predefined flower patterns in Flower Forest and Plains
Using bone meal on grass in certain biomes like Flower Forest, Meadow, and Plains creates flowers in fixed patterns. Each biome has a defined distribution and set of flower types—ideal for planned designs or specific color schemes.
Tip: Tall flowers (e.g., rose bushes) can be duplicated directly with bone meal.
5. Instant cooked meat: Smart use of Fire Aspect
With Fire Aspect on your sword, animals drop cooked meat when killed. This also works if they die to fire or lava (note: not with explosions/fireworks). A bow with Flame can also yield cooked meat if the final hit sets the target on fire.
6. Curing zombie villagers: Faster with iron bars and beds
The basics are well-known: Use a Splash Potion of Weakness + golden apple on a zombie villager, then wait 2–5 minutes. Less known: You can speed up curing if, within a 9×9×9 area, there are up to 14 blocks of iron bars or beds. Each of these blocks reduces the remaining time by a percentage until the cap is reached.
Tip: Protect the patient from sunlight and mobs; name tags prevent despawning.
7. Gold tools: Fastest mining speed vs. durability
Gold tools are the fastest— a gold pickaxe mines many blocks faster than netherite. The downside: extremely low durability and limited mining tiers (a gold pickaxe can’t mine iron, redstone, or diamond ore, for example). With Efficiency V and Unbreaking, gold can be situationally useful, such as for soft blocks or short speed-farming sessions.
8. Blast furnace and smoker: Smelt and cook the right way
Alongside the regular furnace, there’s the blast furnace (for ores/metals) and the smoker (for food). Both work at double speed, burning fuel proportionally faster per unit of time but the same amount per item. XP yield per item is identical—perfect for quickly processing large amounts of copper, iron, or steak.
9. Chickens from eggs: 1-in-256 for four chicks
When you throw an egg, there’s a 12.5% chance a baby chicken hatches. Very rarely, four chicks hatch at once— with a 1-in-256 chance per egg. Ideal for early chicken farms: Collect eggs with hoppers and automate the throws.
10. Crafting andesite, diorite, granite: Recipes and tips
The decorative stones andesite, diorite, and granite generate underground— but you can also craft them:
- Diorite: 2× cobblestone + 2× nether quartz
- Granite: 1× diorite + 1× nether quartz
- Andesite: 1× diorite + 1× cobblestone
With quartz from the Nether and plenty of cobblestone, you can make large quantities quickly. For precise cuts, use the stonecutter (e.g., stairs/slabs efficiently).
Conclusion: Make use of hidden Minecraft features
Minecraft has plenty of features that may have been forgotten over the years but are still very useful. From moon phases to furnaces to unconventional farming tips, there’s a lot you can put to work in your next world. If you rent your own Minecraft server from us, you can surprise your friends with these facts and maybe introduce them to a few hidden tricks.
