A Matter of strategy

I find that pursuing the Yield first and then the Flavour is more rewarding, especially if one isn't after a specific outcome but sheer epa. When aiming at anything else than the three basic philosophies, it's really unlikely to get the desired harvest in minimum actions. Postponing the decision on the balance of one's harvest allows for more flexibility according to which cards are available. Saving the Yield gain for later increases one's chances to get their hand congested with only Flavour/Rot options and to end up wasting actions for re-balancing the harvest. Considering that the advanced options require minimum 6 (Correspondence plaques), 8 (Storm-Threnodies and the first part of Airag option), or 9 (Comprehensive bribes) yield, one will have to deal with the penalty card anyway. Having at least 2 Yield, one can always cash in with an easier option, in case of unfavourable draws. Excess Yield provides 4 epa (1 action = 1 Yield = 50 fruit = 8 Memories of Distant Shores, with 1 Memory per 6 fruit). Excess Flavour provides no profit, and only complicates the harvesting. Thus said, I always aim to collect Yield first, so I can use one or two Flavour options to free a space in hand if Yield increase is not available, and I have a "retreat" option with 4 epa if the RNG is not kind. Rot is the easiest to collect, as it is available from the biggest number of cards. The Rotten harvest is a better though harder option than the "retreat" one. The Airag payout I would only recommend in case of the need for this specific reward, since it requires at least two harvests with very balanced outcomes.