One of my readers has kindly brought to my attention that posting the moon signs only from week to week makes it difficult to plan gardening activities in advance. For example, I might post one week that it's a great time to pull weeds and destroy all kinds of pests, but upon reading that, he has no idea how long it will be until there comes a favorable time to plant most common garden vegetables again, and thus doesn't know how to plan for the following week. I will therefore try to give a long-range forecast.
According to my information and based on my experience, all warm-weather crops should be planted before the end of July. Crops that do well in cool weather may be planted anytime from the beginning of August to about the middle of September, depending a little on how far north you live. Almanacs show that there's a real possibility of cold weather setting in sometime after the equinox, probably about October or November, effectively putting an end to all but the hardiest of crops. This will be followed by a period of several months of which the only recommended gardening activity will be browsing through seed catalogs.
All right! All right! I admit I got a little carried away. I'm teasing! Seriously though, I have an announcement to make. Now that spring is officially over and, at least around here, it is very difficult to start any more plants because of the heat and drought, I have decided to take a break from my weekly posting of the moon signs. True, there are still things like weeding, watering, fertilizing, mowing, and harvesting that a person could try to coordinate with the celestial signs, and there will no doubt still be some of my readers that want to plant more vegetables this year. I'm going to give you some general advice about how to do these things in accordance with the moon's phases. The only thing we'll be lacking is the specific dates that the moon is in fertile or barren constellations. If that really matters to you, let me hear from you.
Just about any calendar will tell you on what date the full moon and the new moon occurs. At least they used to. I'm not so sure they do like they used to. If your calendar does not, you can easily figure it out for yourself. Everyone knows what a full moon looks like. Full moon is when the moon reaches a point exactly opposite from the sun. On that day the moon rises right after the sun goes down. For about seven days after the full moon, you are within the period of time that is ideal for planting potatoes and all other root crops, trees, shrubs, etc. The idea is that anything planted when the moon is "waning" or diminishing will put most of its energy into establishing big, strong roots. Things to plant at this time would include all biennials and perennials.
Next comes a seven-day period (approximately) wherein it is best not to do any planting at all, but to destroy weeds and pests of all kinds. Mulching at this time to suppress weeds is most successful. Mowing or trimming during this time tends to slow top growth.
About two weeks after the full moon, the moon will have caught up with the sun and instead of being opposite the sun it will be traveling right with the sun. On the day that the moon rises with the sun and/or sets with the sun it is officially new moon. Since you can't see the moon at this time (the light of the sun makes the moon invisible) you might have to make a guess at the exact date. The best way to do this is to get up at dawn each morning as new moon approaches and look towards the east. Make a mental note of how high in the sky the moon is each morning when the sun rises, and you will soon learn how fast the moon moves against the backdrop of the stars. Once you see the moon rising just minutes before the sun rises, or you can't see the moon at all anymore you will be within 24 hours of the new moon.
Immediately after the new moon it is time to plant garden crops that bear their edible parts above the ground. The reason for this is that things planted when the moon is "waxing" or increasing, plants will devote more energy into making strong stems and developing healthy seed. Some people plant specific vegetables in the first week after new moon, and then others in the second week after new moon, but there's no clear distinction or hard and fast rules about which week works better. For more details, see some of my earlier posts. Mowing or trimming during this time will stimulate growth.
Blessings to all!
According to my information and based on my experience, all warm-weather crops should be planted before the end of July. Crops that do well in cool weather may be planted anytime from the beginning of August to about the middle of September, depending a little on how far north you live. Almanacs show that there's a real possibility of cold weather setting in sometime after the equinox, probably about October or November, effectively putting an end to all but the hardiest of crops. This will be followed by a period of several months of which the only recommended gardening activity will be browsing through seed catalogs.
All right! All right! I admit I got a little carried away. I'm teasing! Seriously though, I have an announcement to make. Now that spring is officially over and, at least around here, it is very difficult to start any more plants because of the heat and drought, I have decided to take a break from my weekly posting of the moon signs. True, there are still things like weeding, watering, fertilizing, mowing, and harvesting that a person could try to coordinate with the celestial signs, and there will no doubt still be some of my readers that want to plant more vegetables this year. I'm going to give you some general advice about how to do these things in accordance with the moon's phases. The only thing we'll be lacking is the specific dates that the moon is in fertile or barren constellations. If that really matters to you, let me hear from you.
Just about any calendar will tell you on what date the full moon and the new moon occurs. At least they used to. I'm not so sure they do like they used to. If your calendar does not, you can easily figure it out for yourself. Everyone knows what a full moon looks like. Full moon is when the moon reaches a point exactly opposite from the sun. On that day the moon rises right after the sun goes down. For about seven days after the full moon, you are within the period of time that is ideal for planting potatoes and all other root crops, trees, shrubs, etc. The idea is that anything planted when the moon is "waning" or diminishing will put most of its energy into establishing big, strong roots. Things to plant at this time would include all biennials and perennials.
Next comes a seven-day period (approximately) wherein it is best not to do any planting at all, but to destroy weeds and pests of all kinds. Mulching at this time to suppress weeds is most successful. Mowing or trimming during this time tends to slow top growth.
About two weeks after the full moon, the moon will have caught up with the sun and instead of being opposite the sun it will be traveling right with the sun. On the day that the moon rises with the sun and/or sets with the sun it is officially new moon. Since you can't see the moon at this time (the light of the sun makes the moon invisible) you might have to make a guess at the exact date. The best way to do this is to get up at dawn each morning as new moon approaches and look towards the east. Make a mental note of how high in the sky the moon is each morning when the sun rises, and you will soon learn how fast the moon moves against the backdrop of the stars. Once you see the moon rising just minutes before the sun rises, or you can't see the moon at all anymore you will be within 24 hours of the new moon.
Immediately after the new moon it is time to plant garden crops that bear their edible parts above the ground. The reason for this is that things planted when the moon is "waxing" or increasing, plants will devote more energy into making strong stems and developing healthy seed. Some people plant specific vegetables in the first week after new moon, and then others in the second week after new moon, but there's no clear distinction or hard and fast rules about which week works better. For more details, see some of my earlier posts. Mowing or trimming during this time will stimulate growth.
Blessings to all!
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