What is Planting by the Moon?
Many gardeners swear by Planting by the Moon, a technique that’s said to produce larger, tastier harvests. Watch the video above for a quick overview of this age-old practice!
What is Planting by the Moon?
Simply put, Planting by the Moon (also called Gardening by the Moon or Moon Phase Gardening) is the idea that the lunar cycle affects plant growth. Just as the Moon’s gravitational pull creates the tides of the oceans, it also creates more moisture in the soil, which encourages growth.
The technique goes as follows:
- Plant your annual flowers and fruit and vegetables that bear crops above ground (corn, tomatoes, zucchini, etc.) during the light, or waxing of the Moon—from the day the Moon is new to the day it is full.
- Plant flowering bulbs, biennial and perennial flowers, and vegetables that bear crops below ground (onions, carrots, potatoes, etc.) during the dark, or waning, of the Moon—from the day after it is full to the day before it is new again.
Read more about Planting by the Moon.
Dates for Planting by the Moon
Find specific dates for Planting by the Moon in our free online Planting Calendar. The Planting Calendar shows planting dates based on both the Moon phase and local frost dates, and is customized to your location.
You can also find a planting table in the annual Old Farmer’s Almanac , which contain the best planting days based on the Moon’s phases.
Do you garden by the Moon? Let us know in the comments!
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I've always had great luck gardening by the moon, and gardens that hardly produced anything on the years I didn't. I'm a master gardener in Texas, and this main seem nonsensical, as it did to me years ago, but somehow it works. Not just minor differences that you barely notice, but dramatic increase in harvest the years I planted in the correct moon phase.
I don't care how crazy it sounds, I follow the moon planting guides.
Hi.
Does Moon Gardening work with potted or contained Plants, I'm asking because I'm interested and I want practice Moon Gardening.
My next full moon in Durban South Africa is on the 16th of November which I've been waiting for, to plant on my herbs Vertical Garden, and I'm wondering how is the pulling of water is going to work, since my plant are not in the ground where action is taking place?
Kind Regards Cyfoh.
Do you start seeds in a controlled environment ie: indoors or green house, by the moon phase or does moon phase planting just apply to when you put the seedlings in the garden?
Thank you:)
Lunar gardening applies from germinating seeds to harvest. It is said that the Moon’s gravitational pull affects soil moisture and the rise/fall of sap in plants, which can affect germination and plant growth/fruiting. The other influence is moonlight, which may also affect germination (some seeds like light to germinate; others like dark) and plant growth. In an indoor environment that does not receive natural light, then the moonlight aspect would not be in play, but the gravitational pull would still be a factor. So with this method, you can still sow seeds indoors as well as outdoors.
What is the best time to harvest onions?
When lunar gardening, onions are considered a below-ground crop, so they would be harvested when the Moon is between full and new (waning). For general guidelines on when to harvest onions, you might like to visit this page:
https://www.almanac.com/plant/onions
To find out when the Moon is full or new on a particular date or month, see:
https://www.almanac.com/astronomy/moon/calendar
what video???
The video appears on this page above. We’re not clear why it’s not showing up for you?
One grate book has been used successful for lot's of years . Lots of good things and information
Interesting
