Switching from Mines to Irrigation

[Ubergeek]

I have a question for the wise minds here. Assume for the following that the cities in question are built on grassland. As my cities develop, I tend to mine all available spaces rather than irrigate, since A) the population grows slower and is thus easier to keep happy, and B) the city has more production as it's growing. Since all my cities hit Size 12 a long time before I build hospitals anyway, it's never struck me as a problem.

However, now I'm wondering if it makes more sense to irrigate to grow the cities to 12 faster and then switch enough spaces over to mines so that there's no excess food production, then switch back when I get hospitals built?

Also, as a related issue, once you get factory/power plant of choice built, does it make more sense to set grassland to mines to boost production, or to irrigation to boost population? I have modded the specialists to produce twice as many coins/beakers as standard, if that matters.

[vmxa1]

Growing fast is good as that lets you expand faster. I would do it pretty much like you are. Mine until the city stops growning and then irrigate as needed to keep growing. Once you get Hospitals you will have to irrigate more squares to feed the people.

Once I have factories and then hospitals in place, that is the time I will be most likely to have to do some irrigation. It depends on the land and ow many tiles I have to work. If I have 19 tiles for the city and they are mostly grasslands, then it will not need irrigation for a long time.
I have no clue about the effect of any mods.

[Ubergeek]

I'm not sure I expand in the most efficient way that I can, but I seem to keep up with the AI on the levels I play at (Regent and the occasional Monarch game) on the huge maps I favor. I will of course irregate occasionally rather than mine if I need to produce a settler factory, but it always seems that the core cities are rioting from excess population before my expansion is finished anyway.

[badams52]

If you want to use the production from hills and mountains when in anything but despotism, then you should irrigate some of the grasslands. Doing so will net you better production.

2 mined grasslands = 4 food + 2 production*
1 irrigated grassland + 1 mined hill = 4 food + 3 production*
1 irrigated grassland + 1 mined hill = 3 food + 3 production*

* add +1 for each grassland with shields.

[Panag]

hi ,

its intresting to get irrigation on some spaces and then plant some forests for shields , this way after the hospital , the shield vesus food ratio tends to be great

another great thing is cities near the sea , this way you have some food , and forest's on the land

have a nice day

[Theseus]

Ubergeek, good instincts.

I mine like mad... until hospitals, and then I irrigate shielded grassland.