Verdant Scoring

Completed plants and bonus pots are separate

A completed plant scores its printed points, not its verdancy requirement. Score its pot separately: concrete is worth three points, wood two, ceramic one and terra cotta zero. A plant with a terra cotta pot is still completed.

Example: three completed plants show four, six and seven printed points. They contribute 17 plant points. If their pots are concrete, ceramic and terra cotta, the pots add four more. Record 17 and four in separate rows, rather than writing 21 under plants and adding the pots again.

The difference matters when checking a total. A completion can secure a plant’s own value and a pot reward, but the same reward must appear only once in the score.

Pool incomplete verdancy before rounding

Add all verdancy remaining on incomplete plants, divide the combined amount by two and round down once. Do not round each plant separately.

Example: incomplete plants hold one, three and three verdancy. Together they hold seven, scoring three points. Rounding those plants individually would produce zero, one and one, incorrectly reducing the score to two.

As a practical check, gather the incomplete totals on scrap paper before returning tokens to the supply. Keeping the physical tokens in place until everyone has confirmed the count makes it easier to resolve a disagreement.

Room scoring asks about plant type

A room scores one point for each orthogonally adjacent plant of its depicted type. A furniture or pet token matching the room’s color/pattern doubles that to two per matching plant. A different item does not activate the doubling.

Example: a room touches three plants, two of which match its type. It scores two points without a matching item and four with one. The third plant does not contribute to that room simply because its lighting matched during play.

Lighting and room scoring answer different questions. Lighting helped the plant grow when a new connection formed; the room’s final score looks at plant type. Completion is not a prerequisite for the adjacent plant to count toward the room bonus.

Count each room in reading order. A plant may contribute to more than one neighboring room, because you evaluate each room separately. Avoid switching between rooms and plants mid-count: that makes repeated or missed neighbors harder to spot.

Unique furniture and pets

Count the distinct furniture and pet types placed in the home, then use the printed scoring scale on your player aid or scorepad. A duplicate type does not increase the unique count. Items left in storage are not placed in the home.

Example: a chair, another chair, a cat and a lamp make three unique types. The second chair may still improve a room if it matches, but it is not a fourth unique type. This is why item variety and matching-room placement should be evaluated independently.

Lay out a quick list of the types you have counted before consulting the scale. That check is more reliable than counting tokens and assuming every token represents a new type.

Collection bonuses, goals and ties

The Plant Collector bonus awards three points for having all five plant types. The Decorator bonus separately awards three for all five room types. Optional advanced Goal Cards add their own points; apply the card’s requirements and the rulebook clarifications.

In standard multiplayer, tied totals are resolved by remaining Green Thumbs. If that is also tied, share the victory. Do not use the family variant’s completed-plant tiebreaker in a standard game.

Keep advanced goals on their own rows. A goal may reward a feature already relevant elsewhere, but its points should remain visible as an additional category so the final total can be audited.

A scoring routine that is easy to check

First identify potted plants and count their printed scores. Then collect the incomplete verdancy total, followed by pot points. Walk across the rooms row by row. Finally check unique items, the two collection bonuses and any advanced goals.

If the total seems wrong, revisit one category at a time instead of recounting the entire home at once. The pooled-verdancy calculation and the distinction between matching light and matching room type are particularly useful checks.

The family variant changes plant completion and scoring: completed plants are worth five each and pots provide no bonus. Solo keeps the usual end scoring but changes play and pot collection. For the standard turn sequence, use How to Play Verdant.

Sources and scope

Rules checked 5 October 2026 against AEG’s official Verdant rulebook and AEG’s product page. This is researched base-game coverage. Examples and teaching recommendations are original editorial material; we do not claim firsthand playtesting. Consult your included rules for edition differences and the dedicated solo or family procedures.