My question was, "Sims 4 - How do I Harvest Plants when they won't Produce?" Not really able to find a solution, it appears to be one of those glitches that occasionally pops up.
Background to the Problem
I had used the Create-a-Sims personality that allows you to answer some questions and the AI in Sims will create a Sims that matches the profile. This usually puts your new Sim into a career two or three levels above the starting level. My Sim came in as a Gardener, level 3, Seed Scatterer, with a level 3 garden skill. The primary personality trait was Alluring, along with Bookworm, Noncommital and Perfectionist.
I selected a small starter home in Oasis Springs. I have Seasons and chose Spring. With my Sim's free starter seeds and the planter box (career rewards), proceeded to start planting. My Sim planted mushrooms and carrots in the garden box, with sage in the backyard, along with some grapes and a banana tree that would not be available until later in the year. Sage should produce all year, and carrots should produce in the spring and fall.
All seemed fine until the next day. The plants had started to mature, but nothing, absolutely NOTHING could be harvested. Typically, Wild Sage and Daisies can be harvested after an evening in that neighborhood (by 5:30 am). I had my Sim wander around the neighborhood looking for anything to harvest and eventually down to the community garden, past Zest's home, and still nothing. Spent the day doing other things on that Monday. Thankfully, the only work objective was to purchase seeds and level up to skill level 4 in Gardening. Easy enough, and handled a few other activities to whittle away the day for my Sim.
Tuesday (Day 3), I figured my Sim should be able to harvest something. By that time, my Sim should have been able to harvest wild strawberries, sage and daisies, along with the plants in the community garden for spring, from the lemon tree, and carrots. Got up at 5:30 to try to harvest the garden in the backyard, but absolutely nothing could be harvested. Again, all the wild plants in the neighborhood could only be viewed, but not harvested. Headed down to the community garden again. Yay! My Sim could harvest anything in the garden boxes that were mature; the lemons, carrots, sage and daisies. So I assumed we were finally getting somewhere. Perhaps the next day (Wednesday) my Sim could harvest their own garden.
Wednesday (Day 4), no garden plants could be harvested still. My Sim could water, weed, spray for bugs, fertilize, talk to plants, and hire a professional, but nothing to harvest either in the backyard or in the wild around the neighborhood. Again, my Sim could harvest in the community garden, and did.
I did not know IF this was because my Sim had come in as a level three gardener, or if it had something to do with the Sim's Personality. Saving you the details, after creating a different Sim (new game) that came in as a level 3 Gardener, and moved into the same house, by Monday, that Sim was able to harvest backyard and wild plants. So it was obvious it had nothing to do with career. That new Sim had different personity traits; Collector, Good, Art Lover and Self Assured.
SOLUTION FOUND
Went back to the earlier Sim with the harvesting deficient, and had the Sim invite a friend to move in. After an evening, by 5:30 am, Thursday morning, the Sim was able to harvest their own plants in the backyard and in the wild. So, whatever was the issue/glitch, it seemed to be fixed with a new Sim in the household to kickstart their ability to harvest their own plants, along with harvesting plants in the wild. After that, I had the friend use the computer to split from the household and move back into their original home. (PS if you have the friend split back into their household, you will end up in that friend's family - you will need to click on Manage World to get back to your original Sim's household. You can save the game if you want, but I didn't and everything switched to my Sim's household just fine.)
