Farm Town tips: Six easy ways to level up fast

Farm Town on Facebook was the first virtual farming game to hit it big... that is before Zynga's FarmVille came along and stole its thunder.

The farm game from Slashkey currently has 13 million players, and would-be homesteaders plant and harvest crops, in addition to trees and animals in exchange for coins and experience points. If you're new to the game, these six tips will take you from the farm league to the big leagues in no time.

1. Plow as much of your farm as you can -- buy houses and cute hammocks later. For now, use as much of your farm for actual farming as possible. Each field plowed will yield 1 XP (Experience Point).

2. Plant crops frequently. Sure, you will make more money -- in the long run -- on crops that take longer to grow, but save that until later. When you first start out on Farm Town, try to earn as many XPs (Experience Points) as possible, and the easiest way to do that is by planing crops that are ready to harvest in four hours during the day and 12 hours at night. Grapes, for instance, are a good choice for a four-hour crop. (FYI, When you plant seeds you get 2 XPs per plot). Be sure to harvest your crops around the time they finish growing so they don't go to waste.