Planting by the Moon

To get things kicked off in the new forum.

I have been interested in planting by the moon for awhile and have recently obtained some charts that explains it all. But does it work ???

Does anyone have any practical experience in using the method and how well does it work ?

Ray way DOWN UNDER the moon

Ray: When I was growing up a neighbor and his brother both farmed. The neighbor planted when he could and his brother planted by the moon phases as listed in the Old Farmers Almanac. It was said that the brother who planted by the almanac had fewer insect problems than our neighbor.

That story is now family story only as we never planted by the moon ourselves.

God Bless, Ward.

I haven't either. That's another variable that I wouldn't be able to isolate to determine the effects.

My grandmother used to plant by the moon. She said "when the moon is in the head" plant crops that fruit above ground. "When the moon is in the foot" plant root crops. Basically as the moon is waxing plant above ground stuff and when it is waning plant root crops.... It must work because her garden was always abundant.

My grandma always planted by the moon and she was an excellent gardener!

One year my husband and I were planting our SFGs, we both planted radishes, I just planted mine when I felt like it, and he planted his by the sign of the moon when the almanac said it was time, maybe a week difference in the time I planted mine. The results were, mine made only tops, no radish, his made nice big radishes! And we both had the same Mel's mix, water, everything the same, just planted them at a different time, he made a believer out of me!

Thanks folks for the comments. I only got my charts recently and I certainly am going to give it a try.
That is what I love about my sfg that you can try different things and methods and if it dosn't work you only have wasted a few squares and not a whole big bed.
I thought I would do what your Grandma did, SFG_friend, and do some random planting as well as by the moon, so I can compare.
Will keep you posted.

makes sense the moon phase. only i must admit, it's hard for me to see th emoon here in the city. :sadface: someday i want to live out in a country area and be self sufficient. . .

I just recently purchased a planting by the moon software which basically tells you what gardening tasks to do on what days. If anybody is interested the url is http://www.gardeningbythemoon.com/
Marrtha

Marrtha, My Mom and Grandma swore by this method of planting..was something that more people used to follow..we get an Old Farmers Almanac every Christmas, I have not figured out how to read all the charts yet! Thanks for the url.
Thanks!
Darlene

My grandmother always planted by the moon. Whether that made the difference or maybe she just had the greenest thumb around, her vegetable garden and flower beds were always showplaces. Strangers used to stop and ask if they could photograph her flowers.

Grandma always planted above-ground crops in the first or second phase of the moon - when it was a waxing crescent or waxing gibbous moon. She planted below-ground crops in the third phase, or just after the full moon when it was a waning gibbous. The fourth phase of the moon, a waning crescent, was used only for weeding and killing unwanted plants. The days the moon changed phases weren't supposed to be used for anything.

In addition, there are certain days within each of the phases which are better for planting than others. If memory serves, Cancer is a good sign for planting, but Aquarius is not, for example. For those signs one would have to consult an almanac or planting chart. I think it's the sign of Libra that is especially good for planting flowers, but if you plant vegetables under that sign, they make all flowers and few fruits. There is another sign that is supposed to be good for planting when you want to save the seed.

Grandma also said that one should harvest root crops and fruit by the moon. If the moon is waxing, or growing larger, then any bruises made to a fruit or vegetable will get larger, too, and the potato or apple or whatever will rot. If one harvests when the moon is growing smaller, then any bruises will grow smaller, too, and eventually dry up or heal over. I haven't tried that for myself but she followed that rule for harvest.

When we built our home next to Grandma's, the electric company came to dig the trench for our underground cable. Grandma came out and told them the moon wasn't right, and we'd never be able to fill up the hole. The man just laughed at her, and dug the trench and finished laying the cable and filling it in. Even though he replaced the same soil that he took out, to this day, 29 years later, there is a dip in our yard over that cable that has never completely filled in. Grandma said if we had waited until the moon was right, there would have been soil mounded up over the trench, even after it settled.

To paraphrase that reindeer song, "You can say there's no such thing as moon signs, but as for me and Grandma, we believe."

I have had friends that planted by the signs and some that didn't, and all of them had great gardens. I think the formula for a great garden, especially a row garden, is sweat equity. The more work you put in it, the better the garden will be. One friend, since passed, used to say, "I don't plant on the moon, I plant when I can."

My Mom always like to plant something on Good Friday, and in honor of her memory, Lord willing, I'll do the same this year.

Joe