Joan (カブリバKaburiba?) is a special visitor who comes to the player'stown each Sunday morning (6 AM to 12 PM) to sell turnips. She is a brown boar with large white tusks carrying a basket on her back with white turnips inside. She has orangish brown cheeks. She wears ragged blue clothes and a small, blue bandanna on her head. Originally she only sells one type of turnip in Animal Crossing and sells two types in Wild World and City Folk. In New Leaf, however, she goes back to only selling White Turnips. In New Horizons, she is succeeded by her granddaughter Daisy Mae.
Joan's background is unknown, but she has told the player she had been selling turnips for sixty years. She appears in town on Sundays before noon in every mainstream game except New Horizons, where her role was replaced by Daisy Mae. In Animal Crossing and New Leaf, she sells White Turnips. White Turnips, however, sell for a different price depending on Stalk Market. The Stalk Market is a play on the existent Stock Market in reality. More than one can be bought a week from Joan. Players can ask Tom Nook (Reese in New Leaf) what White Turnips are currently selling for at two different times of the day, which will have different prices and he will buy White Turnips between Monday and Saturday.
In Wild World and City Folk, she continues to sell White Turnips which work the same way as they did in the original games every Sunday. She now also sells Red Turnip Seeds for 1,000 Bells which will need to be planted like flowers, and be watered each day so they can grow to their full potential and later sold. If the player forgets to water them for one day it will wilt. This cannot be fixed unless the player waters them with a Silver watering can. The player needs to catch Joan early in order get a red turnip. Sometimes there are none. Only one Red Turnip can be sold to the player(s) each week.
Joan can be asked to explain her store and turnips, but she wishes not to explain how her store works. However, she does not act gloomy while explaining. Some villagers also explain that the player can buy them in bulk and go to Tom Nook's to sell them on a certain day. The player must not go too far ahead, though. After a week the turnips will expire and become spoiled turnips, which are useless. In Animal Crossing, turnips will spoil if the player travels to another town with them in their inventory.
As sure as the sun shines, you can count on Joan showing up every Sunday to peddle her turnips. While savvy investors can make a mint playing the turnip market, casual buyers may end up with a rotten-turnip ant farm.
“I'm sure it doesn't help that I was hauling turnips on my back all those years either.
At least I've got my granddaughter to help with the hauling these days so I can just focus on the crops.
And now I've gone on and on. Never mind me. I'm just here for my usual Monday checkup. Hyeh heh heh...
Y'know, I happened to pick a few turnips before I left home today. Why don't you take 'em, kiddo?
There you are—<number> turnips!”
― Joan, Happy Home Paradise
Trivia[]
In Animal Crossing and New Leaf, she refers to herself as "Sow Joan". This is likely a reference to the Dow Jones stock market index since her turnips are resold as part of the "stalk market". In New Horizons, Daisy Mae refers to her grandmother's business as "Sow Joan's Stalk Market".
She and Grams are the only female elder character in the series.
Along with Farley, Luna, and the player (In the Happy Home Showcase or in a Dream Town) Joan is the only character to have her own unique voice. Her voice is much lower and gruffer than that of the rest of the female characters, which leaves her mistaken as a male character. It is rumored that her voice in Wild World and City Folk was re-used in New Leaf for snooty villagers.
Also, in New Leaf, she has the voice of a normal villager, somewhat in a deeper, gruffer tone.
Joan always tells the player no matter how many years they have been playing, that she has been selling turnips for over 60 years, she still mentions this in City Folk, even if the player has been playing for ten years, or have time traveled. This may be because she says "over" sixty years, which covers any number of years beyond sixty.
Joan is also part of the Golden axe trading event and at times she may not have the red turnip seed with her.
She is the second character to appear on the first and second games, Animal Forest and Animal Crossing. The player can see her sleeping in the backseat of the train after K.K. Slider introduces the game.
If the player repeatedly talks to Joan at the Campground, she will reveal that her driving license allows her to drive buses.
Joan may be antisocial, citing that she is "more comfortable spending time with turnips than [...] with people."
Walking around and selling turnips helps make Joan feel strong and young.
In Animal Crossing, When talking to Joan about the Stalk Market, she will state that you could eat them, but that's not why anybody buys turnips anymore. However, if the player offers a turnip to Wendell, he will say that it is "not edible"
Even though Joan doesn't initially appear in New Horizons, her granddaughter, Daisy Mae often speaks about her. She sometimes even says that one day, she wants to take her grandmother with her to the island.
However, as of the 2.0 update, Joan can be seen with her granddaughter if you invite Daisy Mae to The Roost.
