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To turn on tree regrowth in Sons of the Forest on a dedicated server, open serverconfig/dedicatedserver.cfg in Files, set "Gameplay.TreeRegrowth": true inside the GameSettings block and restart the server. With regrowth on, 10% of the trees you have cut down grow back each time players sleep. Unlike most world settings, tree regrowth also works on an existing world.

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Do trees grow back in Sons of the Forest?

Yes, when tree regrowth is on. Each time players sleep, 10% of the cut-down trees regrow overnight.

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How to enable tree regrowth on your server

1

Open dedicatedserver.cfg

Open your server, click Files, open the serverconfig folder and click dedicatedserver.cfg. See how to use the File Manager.
2

Add the setting to GameSettings

Find the GameSettings block and add the line:
If the block already holds other settings, put a comma between the lines. Use false to turn regrowth off.
3

Save the file

Click Save Content.
4

Restart the server

Restart the server so it reads the file again.

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Tips for a long-running world

  • Players have to sleep for trees to come back, so plan regular nights in a shelter. See how sleep works in multiplayer.
  • Kelvin’s Clear order (5, 10 or 20 meters) keeps the area around your base free, while regrowth refills the forest elsewhere. See Kelvin and Virginia.
  • Make a backup in Backups before you change dedicatedserver.cfg, so you can go back if something goes wrong.

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GameSettings you can change on an existing world

GameSettings is the only block the server applies to a world that already exists. It has two settings: Everything else, such as season length or enemy aggression, is a custom game mode setting for new worlds only. See dedicatedserver.cfg explained.

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Frequently asked questions

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How fast do trees grow back?

10% of the trees you have cut regrow overnight each time players sleep.

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Do I need to start a new world for tree regrowth?

No. Gameplay.TreeRegrowth is in GameSettings, which the server applies to your current world after a restart.

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Can I make trees easier to cut instead?

Yes, on a new custom world: "GameSetting.Survival.OneHitToCutTrees": true in CustomGameModeSettings makes trees fall with one hit. See change difficulty.

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My change doesn’t work. What should I check?

Check that the line is inside the GameSettings block, that the lines are separated by commas and that you restarted the server. A missing comma or bracket makes the file invalid JSON. You can also restore the file from a backup. See how to create and restore backups.

Sons of the Forest server guide

Every Sons of the Forest page in one place.

Sleep in multiplayer

How sleeping skips time.

dedicatedserver.cfg explained

Every key of the server config file.

Infinite logs

loghack and build hacks.
Tested by the FREAKHOSTING team on our Game Panel on 30 October 2026 (Sons of the Forest dedicated server on our Game Panel). Setting names checked against the official dedicated server guide and the Sons of the Forest Wiki. Steps may differ slightly if the game changes.

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Last Updated: October 2026