My journey with dCrops started not too far after my introduction into the Hive Blockchain in mid 2021. It actually occurred whilst watching 
I entered into dCrops not long after the stream. The game was pretty basic compared to what it is today. At the time, all you could really do was plant crops, harvest them and then sell them. There was no crafting, construction or cooking. It had a simplistic charm about it right from the start. It was something about the art style of the cards and core game mechanics of the game that I really enjoyed.
So I wanted to buy in. That is where I faced my first real dilemma. Alpha packs had sold out and were only available from secondary sales from players on the market. From memory, I bought one or two packs and then focussed on buying cards at my discretion from the in-game market.
Reference: dCrops
The first card that I bought was a single Average Farmland. It was followed up shortly after with three Fertile Lands and a total of twenty seed cards split across the four seasons. It was enough for my humble little farm and get me started. At the time I was disappointed about the fact that I had missed the Alpha pack sale but the dCrops Discord was already talking about an upcoming Beta pack sale and planned features to go beyond the simple plant, harvest and sell.
Reference: dCrops
This became my steady state for a long time. As the seasons would pass I would plant my crops, harvest and sell them. Slowly collecting some Crop tokens to buy some more seed cards. My first big valuable purchase was the Tomato seed card. An Epic rarity card that allowed you to plant it and harvest it multiple times during the season. It was a game changer for me and I often think back to how much of an advantage it gave me at the time.
This is where the Beta pack sale came along and really gave the chance for players, like myself, who joined after the Alpha sale to buy and open packs and enjoy that part of the game. I was lucky, in my first two pack openings I pulled a Legendary Trinity Land. It is probably my most prized in game item. It is such a useful card and provides a good advantage.
Reference: dCrops
That really takes us to where I am now. I am slowly starting to expand my farm. I'm now sitting at 12 land cards and 112 seed cards. I also have a number of recipe and blueprint cards and a few resource cards. I am looking to expand into construction, crafting and cooking but I am trying to get to a point where I can comfortably complete the quests each season as they arise.
I would still appreciate any tips that any of the more seasoned and advanced players have and it is appropriate to mention that the Discord community for dCrops has always been a source of timely and accurate information, advice and support. There are a lot of dedicated people who help out in the different channels and it is really one of the more welcoming communities to be a part of.
If you have made it this far. Thanks for reading. If you are existing player - good luck in the next harvest! If you are a new player or would to play feel free to check it out https://www.dcrops.com/