So, I have to admit I am a bit skeptical about the zodiac shaping fertility in my plot. But, to me, the moon thing totally makes sense. It is also really fun to think about our planet spinning in the sky and all of the water it contains tipping from one side to the other–like a Camelback on a curvy bike ride.

On March 27, 2007 10:14 PM

Jean said…

I have NEVER planted anything at night. I have stolen flowers from gardens at night, I admit.
Is the arugula supposed to grow better when planted at night? Aren’t there other things that are supposed to be planted at night? Let me know. I have many sleepless nights that could be put to good use. Like tonight. Here I’m reading this blog when I could be sowing seeds.
Smooches.
J

Jean, I did a bit of research on this question and while I cannot find anything that suggests what time of day seeds should be sown, I did find interesting info about gardening by the phases of the moon. Scroll to the bottom of any page in my blog to see the current moon.

According to Gardening by the Moon:

Gardening by the phases of the moon is a technique that can speed the germination of your seeds by working with the forces of nature.

Plants respond to the same gravitational pull of tides that affect the oceans, which alternately stimulates root and leaf growth. Seeds sprout more quickly, plants grow vigorously and at an optimum rate, harvests are larger and they don’t go to seed as fast. This method has been practiced by many for hundreds of years, and is a perfect compliment to organic gardening because it is more effective in non-chemically treated soil.

National Geographic investigates this gardening trend in Age-Old Moon Gardening Growing in Popularity. The article refers to a 1995 experiment by researchers at the Agricultural Research Service’s National Soil Tilth Laboratory in Ames, Iowa. One very exciting conclusion suggests that gardeners who till soil at the new moon will have greatly reduced weed seed germination.

Click here to learn about the phases of the moon and how it affects what you’re putting in the earth
Click here to learn about how the astrological signs influence your yield

It is important to pay attention to natural cycles and work with them. This is sort of like feng shui. The concept may seem a bit too metro-hippy for many but at the core it is all about balance of good and bad (whether it is bugs or Qi) and the balance of texture, color and harvest time (whether it is drapery or root veggies.)