Time’s Toll: Erosion Mechanics
In Project Zomboid, “Erosion” simulates the decay of civilization. Over time, grass will grow over pavement, vines will cover houses, and trees will sprout in the middle of highways. While visually stunning, extreme erosion can impact both gameplay and server performance.
| Reading Time | Difficulty | Last Updated |
|---|
| 4 minutes | Intermediate | January 2026 |
Configuring Growth Speed
Locate the ErosionSpeed variable in your {ServerName}_SandboxVars.lua file.
| Value | Speed | Time to 100% Growth |
|---|
1 | Very Fast | 20 Days |
3 | Standard | 100 Days |
5 | Very Slow | 500 Days |
-1 | Disabled | No growth ever occurs. |
Impact on Gameplay
- Navigation: Fast erosion (
1) means that in less than a month, highways will be blocked by small trees, forcing players to carry axes for every road trip.
- Performance: As more trees and grass objects generate, the server’s save file size increases and client-side FPS can drop in heavily wooded areas.
- Atmosphere: Slow erosion (
5) is recommended for long-term survival servers to ensure the world still feels navigable after several months of real-time play.
Maintaining the Roads
Players can use the Scythe or Mower mods, or simply use the “Remove Grass” context menu in vanilla, to keep their base perimeters and main roads clear of high grass and bushes.Support Channels
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Last Updated: January 2026 | Project Zomboid: Erosion rules set.