Sowing Seeds based on the Moon and Signs

barkeater · February 1, 2007

Per request of Papa Vic, I've cut and pasted these links for the best times to sow seeds:

I use the free online calender at this site:

http://www.throughnightsfire.com/ast...nuary2007.html

There is a link for updating the calender to the next month at the end of the calender, I believe.

For an explanation of the water signs, etc., try this site:

http://www.stariq.com/pagetemplate/a...sp?pageid=1006

travis · February 1, 2007

Barkeater,

Thank you for those two links.

Looks like the entire month of February is not suitable for starting tomato seeds according to those two Websites ... with the possible exception of Feb. 26 & 27 ... but is that the second quarter moon or still the first quarter?

And then the calendar for March is not yet generated at that Website.

But I will keep the following information from the other Website in mind:

Second quarter Moon: Plants that set seeds inside a pod or skin do best when planted in this quarter. These are primarily vegetables such as beans, tomatoes, squash and cucumbers.

The water signs (Cancer, Scorpio and Pisces) and earth signs (Taurus, Virgo and Capricorn) are considered female and fertile. Planting when the Moon is moving through one of these six signs will result in hardier plants, greater yields and larger produce or flowers. If possible, choose to plant on a day when the Moon is in a water sign …

... and wait 'til the March information is available.

PV

Tomstrees · February 1, 2007

I usually check out the lunar dates in the
"Old farmers Alamanac" for plant dates etc.
- but this looks cool ~

Tom

tomgrow · February 1, 2007

yea'
our local funeral home has free old farmers almanac calenders every year 'they give away 'and I always go by the signs ' there dead on it most of the time.

barkeater · February 1, 2007

Papa Vic, you boiled that info down to the basics the same way I use it. For me, the moon phase is the most important factor and I try to find the most favorable sign that week.

One of the most cited practice I came across while looking up all the planting lore way back is to sow seeds in the 3 day period before the full moon.

On the flip side, I prune my apples and hoe weeds during the last quarter in a fire sign, and that seems to work well too.

I sowed some Red Robin seeds the day before the full moon in a water sign I believe, and had germination in 31 hours. They were in the furnace room where the temps were near 80, but still, that was pretty darn quick!

And yes, the March calender won't be available before mid month on that web site, but I haven't found anywhere else that provides it free in advance.

I'll have to ignore the phases this spring as I need to start my tomatoes around the 10th of April, and the moon is waning from the 3rd to the 17th

LoreD · February 17, 2007

I assume that if I am starting in March that I would be starting the plants from the Feb 28-March 2, the March full moon or I would have to wait until the end of the month during the 27th-30th.

I think I'm getting that right?

LoreD

dcarch · February 17, 2007

The moon is full every 15th of each month in the lunar calendar. The Lunar calendar is the one that Asians farmers use to guide them in planting crops.

dcarch

barkeater · February 18, 2007

LoreD, yes that's right if you want to always start seeds at the full moon.

March 21 and 22 are good if you follow the general principle of planting aboveground plant seeds during the waxing moon, and knowing tomatoes favor water signs.

March 25 and 26 are even better as the moon is in its second quarter and a water sign, both best for tomatoes according to the lore. I'll be starting my eggplants and peppers at this time.

LoreD · February 18, 2007

Thats a little late for me, I'm in zone 6 but I understood you to say that tomatoes should be started 3 days before the full moon.

LoreD

barkeater · February 18, 2007

No, the planting lore is that all seeds germinate quickest if sowed within 3 days of a full moon.

The best time to plant tomato seeds was summed up in Papa Vics post above, which the March dates I gave correspond to.

In your zone 6, May 16-22 should be your target date for planting, which means March 25 or 26 is a perfect time for sowing tomatoes. Your plants will be 7+ weeks old when they go in the ground.

Personally, I prefer 6 week old tomato transplants for setting out.

LoreD · February 18, 2007

Since I put them in the ground under tunnels I'm usually planting the first group of my tomatoes the last two weeks of April so I would be starting my plants at the end of February or beginning of March.

LoreD

flowerpower · February 19, 2007

Above-ground crops should be planted prior to the full moon-while it is waxing (growing bigger). Root crops are best planted when the moon is waning.

The Old Farmer's Almanac

http://www.farmersalmanac.com/gardening/gardening.html

LoreD · February 19, 2007

Thank you flower power for the link.

LoreD

LoreD · March 20, 2007

This is great. The Farmer's Almanac said the 18th was good for above ground crops and I planted my eggplants and gave them some heat and just saw their little heads sprouting out of the soil. Less than 48 hours for EGGPLANTS. Oh Yeah!

Thank you Barkeater and Flowerpower for your help.

LoreD

michael johnson · March 24, 2007

I must say that since I got into this moon phase thing this year promoted by Barkeater, I tried it for the first time this year and can honestly say that so far I have had the best germination results in years - nearly every darned seed that I sowed has germinated- what an amazing difference it seems to make.

February 1, 2007	#1
barkeater Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: NE Kingdom, VT - Zone 3b Posts: 1,439	Sowing Seeds based on the Moon and Signs Per request of Papa Vic, I've cut and pasted these links for the best times to sow seeds: I use the free online calender at this site: http://www.throughnightsfire.com/ast...nuary2007.html There is a link for updating the calender to the next month at the end of the calender, I believe. For an explanation of the water signs, etc., try this site: http://www.stariq.com/pagetemplate/a...sp?pageid=1006

February 1, 2007	#3
Tomstrees Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: NJ Bayshore Posts: 3,848	I usually check out the lunar dates in the "Old farmers Alamanac" for plant dates etc. - but this looks cool ~ Tom __________________ My green thumb came only as a result of the mistakes I made while learning to see things from the plant's point of view. ~ H. Fred Ale

February 17, 2007	#6
LoreD Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Chicago Suburbs Posts: 306	I assume that if I am starting in March that I would be starting the plants from the Feb 28-March 2, the March full moon or I would have to wait until the end of the month during the 27th-30th. I think I'm getting that right? LoreD __________________ Its not what you get to keep in life, its what you get to give away.

February 17, 2007	#7
dcarch Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: NY Posts: 2,618	The moon is full every 15th of each month in the lunar calendar. The Lunar calendar is the one that Asians farmers use to guide them in planting crops. dcarch __________________ tomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomato matomato tomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomato matomato tomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomatomato matomato

February 18, 2007	#9
LoreD Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Chicago Suburbs Posts: 306	Thats a little late for me, I'm in zone 6 but I understood you to say that tomatoes should be started 3 days before the full moon. LoreD __________________ Its not what you get to keep in life, its what you get to give away.

February 1, 2007	#2
travis Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Evansville, IN Posts: 2,984	Barkeater, Thank you for those two links. Looks like the entire month of February is not suitable for starting tomato seeds according to those two Websites ... with the possible exception of Feb. 26 & 27 ... but is that the second quarter moon or still the first quarter? And then the calendar for March is not yet generated at that Website. But I will keep the following information from the other Website in mind: Second quarter Moon: Plants that set seeds inside a pod or skin do best when planted in this quarter. These are primarily vegetables such as beans, tomatoes, squash and cucumbers. The water signs (Cancer, Scorpio and Pisces) and earth signs (Taurus, Virgo and Capricorn) are considered female and fertile. Planting when the Moon is moving through one of these six signs will result in hardier plants, greater yields and larger produce or flowers. If possible, choose to plant on a day when the Moon is in a water sign … ... and wait 'til the March information is available. PV

February 1, 2007	#4
tomgrow Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: tennessee Posts: 10	yea' our local funeral home has free old farmers almanac calenders every year 'they give away 'and I always go by the signs ' there dead on it most of the time.

February 19, 2007	#12
flowerpower Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Catskill Mountains, NY Z5 Posts: 94	Above-ground crops should be planted prior to the full moon-while it is waxing (growing bigger). Root crops are best planted when the moon is waning. The Old Farmer's Almanac http://www.farmersalmanac.com/gardening/gardening.html

March 20, 2007	#14
LoreD Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Chicago Suburbs Posts: 306	This is great. The Farmer's Almanac said the 18th was good for above ground crops and I planted my eggplants and gave them some heat and just saw their little heads sprouting out of the soil. Less than 48 hours for EGGPLANTS. Oh Yeah! Thank you Barkeater and Flowerpower for your help. LoreD __________________ Its not what you get to keep in life, its what you get to give away. Last edited by LoreD; March 20, 2007 at 10:36 PM.

March 24, 2007	#15
michael johnson Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: UK. Posts: 960	I must say that since I got into this moon phase thing this year promoted by Barkeater, I tried it for the first time this year and can honestly say that so far I have had the best germination results in years - nearly every darned seed that I sowed has germinated- what an amazing difference it seems to make.