Lunar Gardening A Basic Guide To Gardening With The Moon

I see that moon gardening is trending, it isn’t something that I have ever looked into. As a self professed Selenophile and professional as well as hobby gardener I have decided that it is high time I did some research into lunar gardening. I went in search of a basic guide to gardening with the moon.

This is what I have learned.

Lunar Gardening A Basic Guide To Gardening With The Moon

It makes a lot of sense to garden with the phases of the moon, after all farmers, aboriginal tribes and gardeners alike have been gardening with Nature in this way for hundreds if not thousands of years. We can learn an awful lot from ancient time tested, organic gardening methods.

How To Work With The Moon Phases

Simply put, the moon has some pulling power on the water. We all understand that the tides turn with the waxing and waning of the moon. This also applies to the sap in plants. Therefore, it stands to reason that certain gardening tasks concerning planting, pruning or harvesting should prove more beneficial when done in conjunction with the moon’s cycle.

Lunar gardening takes into account the moon’s phases and where the moon is in its passage through the star zodiac.

The moon spends about two and half days in each sign in this fixed zodiac, each sign corresponds to one of the four elements.

• Fire
  
• Earth
  
• Air
  
• Water
  

This knowledge shows lunar gardeners when the best time is for crop planting

For example:

• Root days are the best to plant root crops when the moon passes in front of the “Earth” signs of Taurus, Virgo and Capricorn.
• Leaf days are leafy crops of spinach, lettuce etc. during the “water” signs of Cancer Scorpio, and Pisces.
• Flower days for cauliflower, broccoli, and flowers passing the “air” signs of Gemini, Libra and Aquarius.
• Fruit/seed days for tomatoes, onions, garlic, peppers passing the “fire” signs of Aries, Leo, Sagittarius.

The above information is courtesy of https://www.allotment-garden.org/gardening-information/lunar-gardening-planting-phase-moon/

The article is credited to Tansy Jams 2013

These two methods-gardening with the moon’s phase (the waxing and waning moon) and gardening with the moon zodiac signs are used in conjunction with each other for best seeding, growing, pruning, planting results.

Best Tips For Gardening With The Moon

• First get yourself a lunar gardening calendar and study the days and moon cycles.

 

You can download them at https://mooncalendar.astro-seek.com/gardening-moon-calendar-farmers-guide

Leaf Days-Water

Sow or transplant plants where their leaves are the main harvest as they will take up water more efficiently during these days.

Salads, kale, spinach, cabbage.

Fruit Days-Fire

Sow, transplant, grow plants that produce fruit or seeds.

Strawberries, tomatoes, beans, peas, cereals, nuts, cherries.

Root Days-Earth

Sow, transplant, cultivate root plants such as.

Potatoes, carrots, beetroot, turnips, swede.

Flower Days-Air

Sow, transplant, cultivate and harvest flowers plants or herbs, their scent and medicinal properties are more pronounced when picked during these days.

The calendar also highlights when to harvest and store fruit and vegetables for best results. A lunar planting guide will give you easy to follow insights of when to do each gardening task. Whether it is sowing, pruning, weeding or mowing the lawn. Each has a favourable time that will reward you with the best results.

It’s almost time for starting to plant spring bulbs, read my Step by step guide how to plant spring flowering bulbs. Consult your lunar gardening chart for the best days to plant them. It’s all good fun and you may have better results.

• Learn and understand the Waxing and Waning moon phases.

• Have a go, make notes of when in each moon phase you sowed seeds, which seeds were they? Planting, cultivating, harvesting and pruning notes will help you learn. Do a full year or season for best results and experiences.
• Most of all – Enjoy and have fun.

Take a look at What Jobs To Do In The Garden In August and see if you can work out what can be done over the next few days in conjunction with the moon.

 

Moon Gardening Phases

When I look at the phases of the moon with sowing, cultivating and plant care processes in mind it all starts to make complete sense.

Pruning plants, for example, when they are dormant is a given, pruning them when the sap is going back into the roots to give them strength while they rest is an obvious thing to do.

Using the waxing and waning moon cycles will tell me when the sap is going down the plant…therefore when to prune it.

 

New Moon

Rest time

New Moon First Quarter

More light, more gravitational pull, soil releases energy, sap moves up the plant. A time for growing and propagation.

Sow above ground leaf plants

Sow, mow, graft and prune foliage plants to encourage fresh new growth.

First Quarter to Full Moon

Light is becoming stronger and the gravitational pull is a little less.

Sow above ground plants with internal seeds such as beans, peas and tomatoes. As well as cereals, ornamental flowers and lawns.

Planting and grafting is more successful just two days before full moon.

Full Moon

Time to rest

Harvest medicinal herbs or flowers.

Full Moon to Last Quarter

Moonlight is diminishing now and gravitational pull starts to decrease.

Soil absorbs energy, pulling strength down into roots.

Sow, transplant, nurture root plants and veg such as potatoes, carrots, beetroot. Plant or transplant trees, shrubs and perennials. Prune to slow growth and direct energy into plant roots.

Harvest, cut flowers and fertilise.

Last Quarter

Barren phase, time to rest and prepare for the next growing time

No seeds sown or taking cuttings.

Harvest and store stone fruit.

Fertilise, transplant, weed and remove any unwanted plants.

Prune to reduce growth.

In Conclusion

I hasten to say I am by no means an expert on moon gardening as I have only recently started to forage for information and inspiration on the subject.

Suffice to say that the above is a basic guide. I hope that you will find it interesting.

I enjoyed researching this article, I have learned useful methods that I have started to put into practice.

I will report back in due course my successes and, I am sure, my failures.

Please use the comments box below to get in touch if you have anything to add. I would love to hear your experiences on lunar gardening.

Please share with your friends and family and on social media.

I’m off to study my moon charts, we’re coming into a full moon phase so I think I will have a short rest while deciding which seeds to sow over the next best germination phase. Fruit trees are on order, I hope they arrive during the full moon to last quarter phase so that they can be planted at the optimum time. Wish me luck!

Happy Gardening.