How to Plant With the Lunar Cycle

Planting with the lunar cycle is a way to produce healthier crops and maintain beautiful, natural gardens year round. The moon's influence on the Earth's water table, as we see with the tides of the sea, affects everything on the planet, including the atmosphere, plants, animals and the entire biosphere. By planting with the lunar cycle we can determine the water requirements needed by our crops, as well as the best times to plant.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Lunar calendar
• Compost
• Plants and seeds
• Pruning shears

1. Buy a lunar calendar and familiarize yourself with the common terms. Watch the moon in the night sky to set your own body to the lunar cycle. Soon planting times, plant care and life by the lunar cycle will become second nature.

2. Prepare your soil for planting by making your own compost or buying manure compost from a local farmer or stable and turn the compost into the soil. You will want to prepare your soil in early autumn in the third quarter moon, leaving your soil with the compost through the winter, creating a perfect planting surface for the spring.

3. Add organic waste from your kitchen whenever possible if your soil is on the lighter side. Lighter soil contains less bacteria, hinders fertilization and doesn't incubate your plants well. Generally, the darker the soil the better.

4. Find the best moon phase for producing your crops. Annual plants that grow above ground should be planted in the first or second quarter moon, near to the full moon. Root crops should be planted shortly after the full moon.

5. Schedule your day to day gardening an hour before or after the moonrise or moonset. For example, seeds thrive in warm soil, so planting in the afternoon before the moonrise creates the perfect environment for your seeds to flourish. Check your lunar calendar for specific times.

6. Prune your plants in the morning hours on the waning third quarter moon when the water content is decreasing. This will minimize the amount of water loss in the plant. Grafting on the other hand, should be done on the first quarter moon when the plant is full of water, allowing the graft to take more easily.

[ashfeather]

on 5/29/2009 Great advice!

[gnash]

on 3/3/2008 i'm going to try it this year. thanks!