In Nonogram, use the row that leaves no room to move

Spoiler notice: this worked example gives the complete solution to the fixed Little Leaf puzzle. Choose a different puzzle first if you want to solve Little Leaf unaided.

Nonogram clues describe runs of filled squares. A clue of 3 means three adjacent filled squares; a line with clues 1 and 2 needs a one-square run followed by a two-square run, with at least one empty square between them. Every placement must agree with both its row and its column.

A useful starting question is not “What picture is this?” but “Which line has the least freedom?” In a five-square row with a clue of 5, there is no choice: every square must be filled. A five-square column with a clue of 5 has the same consequence. Their intersection is confirmed by both lines without needing to recognize the final picture.

The Little Leaf puzzle in Puzzle Fern uses row clues 1, 3, 5, 1, 1 and column clues 1, 2, 5, 2, 1. Fill row 3 and column 3 first. Rows 1, 4 and 5 each need just one filled square, which column 3 already supplies, so their other squares are empty. Columns 1 and 5 also need one filled square, already supplied by row 3; their other squares are empty. That leaves row 2's three-square run in columns 2, 3 and 4. Every row and column can then be checked directly.

This is a worked example of a fixed practice puzzle, so it contains its solution. If you would rather solve Little Leaf unaided, choose a different puzzle before continuing. When sharing a deduction with someone else, it is often more helpful to explain one forced line than to post the whole filled grid. A note such as “this row has no room to shift” can let the other player make the next move independently.

Empty-square marks are reminders, not additional filled squares. In the game, a green clue means the current line matches that clue; it does not prove that every unfinished choice elsewhere is correct. Use Undo if a later constraint reveals a conflict, and check the complete set of rows and columns before calling a picture finished.

I'm the creator of Puzzle Fern. Its independent Nonogram game at https://puzzlefern.com/nonogram/ contains 12 project-created pictures, each clue set checked for one solution, with Fill, Mark, Erase, Undo and separate browser saves. Choose Little Leaf in the visible selector to play this example; there is no invented fixed-puzzle URL or daily schedule. This article was drafted with AI assistance. It is a rules and reasoning guide, not a claim of measured educational effectiveness.