Root, leaf, flower and fruit days
The biodynamic planting calendar assigns every day to a part of the plant: root, leaf, flower or fruit. What decides is the constellation in front of which the Moon stands. The system goes back to Maria Thun.
The four day types
Root day
107Days in 2027- Element
- Earth
- Constellations
- Taurus · Virgo · Capricorn
- In the beds
- Carrots, beetroot, potatoes, onions — everything that grows below ground.
Leaf day
83Days in 2027- Element
- Water
- Constellations
- Cancer · Scorpio · Pisces
- In the beds
- Lettuce, spinach, cabbage, herbs — everything grown for its leaves.
Flower day
78Days in 2027- Element
- Light
- Constellations
- Gemini · Libra · Aquarius
- In the beds
- Flowers, broccoli, artichokes — everything that blooms.
Fruit day
97Days in 2027- Element
- Warmth
- Constellations
- Aries · Leo · Sagittarius
- In the beds
- Tomatoes, beans, grain, fruit — everything that bears fruit.
How a day gets its type
The Moon passes through the twelve constellations of the zodiac in a little over 27 days. Each constellation belongs to an element, and the element sets the day type. The order never changes: a fruit day is followed by a root day, then a flower day, then a leaf day, then a fruit day again.
Each day type comes round three times per cycle. Miss a root day, and the next one is about nine days away.
Why the stretches differ in length
The constellations vary in width. Virgo spans 44 degrees of the ecliptic, Cancer 20. The Moon needs just over three days to cross Virgo and about a day and a half to cross Cancer. That is why 2027 has clearly more root days than flower days.
The constellation rarely changes at midnight. For every change, the calendar gives the time from which the next day type applies.
Sowing, planting, harvesting
Sow and plant on the day of the plant part you grow the crop for: lettuce on a leaf day, tomatoes and beans on a fruit day, carrots on a root day, flowers on a flower day. Hoeing, transplanting and harvesting follow the same pattern.
Broccoli and artichokes count as flowers, because it is their buds that are eaten.
When the day type steps back
In the biodynamic calendar, some hours count as unfavourable for sowing and planting, whatever the day type: the lunar nodes, the Moon’s perigee and the time around new Moon and full Moon.
Days without such disturbances and without a change of constellation are marked in the calendar as favourable days. On them, the day type holds from morning to evening.
In context
Planting days are a working method of biodynamics, and many farms have planned by them for decades. Controlled trials have so far not consistently confirmed the effect.
Frequently asked questions
What is a root day?
A day on which the Moon stands in front of Taurus, Virgo or Capricorn. These three constellations belong to the element Earth. On a root day you sow and plant whatever is grown for its root, beet or tuber.
Which day type is it today?
The home page of dyyna.bio shows it, together with the time from which the next day type applies.
Is the ascending Moon the same as the waxing Moon?
No. Ascending describes the path: the Moon stands higher in the sky from one day to the next. Waxing describes the light between new Moon and full Moon. The two run independently of each other.