Planting by the Moon

One general agricultural tradition that seems to span several millenia and a number of civilizations involves using the moon's orbit to select the exact days on which different agricultural tasks should be performed. Pliny is reported to have advocated planting by the phase of the moon in Natural History, and the Neapolitan scholar John Baptist Porta references the phases of the moon numerous times in discussing how to select optimal planting and harvesting times in the 1584 printing of Natural Magick (Vol III, Chapter 21 and Vol IV, Chapter 4).

This archetype has been manifested in the US for centuries in the form of planting calendars contained in various Almanacs. These planting calendars consider both the phase of the moon and the position of the moon in the zodiac to determine which tasks should (and should not) be performed at a given time.

A quick web search will demonstrate that there are a number of sets of rules in current use for making these correlations; some correspond closely, others do not. The rules that I use are taken from the first volume of The Foxfire Book series, and were originally collected through numerous interviews in the southern Appalachian mountains. As such, I consider them to be representative of traditional correlations used for generations in that particular geographical area.

The following two tables are my own condensation of How it Works and The Rules pp. 215-219.

Sign	Moisture	Fertility	Best For	Worst For	Notes
Aries	Dry	Barren	Plow, Till, Cultivate; Trim, Deaden, Destroy; Gather herbs	Planting, Transplanting (never!)	Death sign
Taurus	Moist	Fertile	Planting (drought resistance) esp. herbs and root crops; Set out plants; Hunting
Gemini	Dry	Barren	Trim, Deaden, Destroy; Cultivate soil; Plant Beans	Planting
Cancer	Moist	Fertile	Planting (Drought resistance), Set out plants, Grafting (waxing)		Most fertile planting sign (above ground)
Leo	Dry	Barren	Trim, Deaden, Destroy; Cultivate soil;	Planting, Transplanting (Never!)	Death sign
Virgo	Moist	Barren	Trim, Deaden, Destroy; Harvest root crops	Planting
Libra	Moist	Semi-fertile	Planting flowers (1st Qtr), Planting flowers for seeds (2nd Qtr)
Scorpio	Moist	Fertile	Planting esp. root crops, Set out plants, Grafting (waxing)
Sagittarius	Dry	Barren	Trim, Deaden, Destroy	Planting
Capricorn	Dry	Barren	Trim, Deaden, Destroy, Grafting (waxing), Root cuttings, Set out flower bushes and trees, harvest root crops (4th Qtr)	Planting
Aquarius	Dry	Barren	Trim, Deaden, Destroy; Gather herbs	Planting
Pisces	Moist	Fertile	Planting, Set out plants, Grafting (waxing), Root cuttings, Set out flower bushes and trees, harvest root crops (4th Qtr)	Planting potatoes

Quarter	Best For	Worst For	Notes
First (waxing crescent)	Plant all things that bear fruit above ground	Planting all things that bear fruit below ground	Do not plant on day of phase change
Second (waxing gibbous)	Plant all things that bear fruit above ground	Planting all things that bear fruit below ground	Do not plant on day of phase change
Third (waning gibbous)	Plant all things that bear fruit below ground; Harvest crops (not root crops); Dig root crops for seed	Planting all things that bear fruit above ground	Do not plant on day of phase change
Fourth (waning crescent)	Plant all things that bear fruit below ground; Pull weeds, turn sod, destruction; Harvest crops, esp root crops; Canning, pickling, jellymaking; cut timber; set fence posts	Planting all things that bear fruit above ground	Do not plant on day of phase change

The Foxfire Book: Ed. Eliot Wigginton, (C) 1972, Anchor Books, Garden City, NY, pp. 212-227


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