Knowledge · Moon phases

Moon phases in the garden

From new moon to new moon the moon’s light grows and fades again. Gardening tradition puts certain work into the waxing moon and other work into the waning one. It uses the full moon for harvesting herbs.

Waxing and waning at a glance

Waxing moon

Period: From new moon to full moon.
In the sky: The crescent grows wider every evening.
Counts as the time for: Sowing leaf and fruit vegetables.
At the end: Full moon: harvest herbs; sow cereals before it.

Waning moon

Period: From full moon to new moon.
In the sky: The moon rises later and grows narrower.
Counts as the time for: Planting, pricking out and transplanting.
At the end: New moon: the next cycle begins.

In the biodynamic calendar the day type comes first, the phase as a second layer, and the weather stands above both. If the soil is too wet or too cold, the work is put off.

One cycle in four sections

A good 29 days pass from new moon to new moon. In that time the lit side of the moon grows until it is fully visible at full moon, and then shrinks again. The calendar gives new moon, first quarter, full moon and last quarter with date and time.

The phase tells how much light the moon shows. How high it stands in the sky is a different movement: the moon’s course, ascending and descending. The two run independently of each other.

The waxing moon

Tradition links the growing light with rising sap and germination. The time between new moon and full moon therefore counts as the time for sowing leaf and fruit vegetables — lettuce, spinach and tomatoes under cover, beans outdoors once the soil is warm enough.

Full moon and new moon

The biodynamic calendar does not block the hours around full moon and new moon. Unfavourable are the lunar nodes, the moon’s perigee, planetary nodes, occultations and eclipses; around full and new moon the day type applies as on any other day.

Pierre Masson counts the full moon, like perigee, among the times strongly marked by water. Root vegetables meant for storage are therefore harvested in the descending moon, not at full moon. Cereals, above all rye, germinate better and yield more when sown before full moon, according to Masson; sown before new moon, they germinate less well.

Tradition uses the full moon for harvesting herbs and medicinal plants, because essential oils and sugars are then held to be high. If it coincides with the moon’s perigee, the time counts as favourable for fungal disease; Pierre Masson then advises against pruning and flower harvest and recommends a preventive horsetail spray.

The waning moon

With the fading light, in tradition’s picture, the forces of growth draw more strongly into the root zone. The time between full moon and new moon therefore counts as favourable for planting, pricking out and transplanting. Root vegetables such as carrots and radishes are preferably sown when the moon is also descending.

Phase, day type and weather

In the biodynamic calendar the phase is the second layer. First the fitting day type is found — a root day for carrots, a leaf day for lettuce — then the phase is checked, and last the weather. If the soil is too wet or too cold, the work is put off despite a favourable moon window.

Frequently asked questions about moon phases in the garden

Can you sow at full moon?

Yes. The biodynamic calendar does not block the hours around full moon; the day type applies. According to Pierre Masson, cereals are best sown before full moon.

What do you sow when the moon is waxing?

Tradition puts the sowing of leaf and fruit vegetables between new moon and full moon — lettuce, spinach, tomatoes, beans. In the biodynamic calendar, though, the day type decides first.

What do you do in the garden when the moon is waning?

Planting, pricking out and transplanting. In tradition’s picture the forces of growth then draw more strongly into the root zone.

Which matters more, the moon phase or the day type?

In the biodynamic calendar the day type. The phase comes in as a second layer, and the weather stands above both.

Should you prune at full moon?

If the full moon coincides with the moon’s perigee, Pierre Masson advises against pruning and flower harvest, because the time counts as favourable for fungal disease. A preventive horsetail spray is used instead.

How long is a lunar cycle?

A good 29 days from new moon to new moon. The moon’s course, the rise and fall, takes a little less at a good 27 days.