Tomato sown in December?

[zazen999]

Hi Womble.

Nobody decides, it's about the pull of the moon.

Have a read of that guide, i posted, it explains it quite well.

[womble]

Well someone must decide, the moons waning, so its cauliflower planting time.
And do all the different books/guides have the same advice?

[zazen999]

It's all in the linkie I posted - under moon gardening....cut and pasted...

The first calendars

In ancient times when man had not quite got round to inventing the wristwatch, the most reliable source of telling the time was the sun, moon, and stars. There seems to be several opinions of who came up with the moon planting calendar first. Was it the Egyptians or the Babylonians? It is more than likely that each and every farmer had a planting calendar based on the moon phases, and there would be different variations depending on the geographical location. As their calendars where passed on through the generations they evolved to cover the different crops they tried to grow, and the more productive farming techniques used.

It was noticed that different plants grow better when they are planted during different phases of the moon. Each of these phases imparts an influence on the way vegetation grows on the planet through the rising and falling of the moisture in the ground and in the plants.

To provide more accurate records it was noted that certain crops faired better when planted whilst the moon was in a specific constellation. As the moon can take only 2-3 days to pass through a constellation, the planting calendar was a 'cutting edge' technology.

Planting was not the most important time for the farmer, harvest time also had to be recorded. If you harvest at the correct time your crops will last much longer. It is down to how the plant stores the water in the fruit/crop at different times of the Luna cycle.

Moon planting rediscovered

We in our modern and advanced civilization are rediscovering the benefits of planting by the Luna cycle and various sources are being used to generate Moon Planting systems for us to use. Some of these systems would appear to contradict each other in places, but it is important to remember they are guides for you to use and modify, they are not an exact science.

Three Moon planting methods

There are three methods for planting by the moon. The Synodic, or waxing and waning cycle, the Sidereal, and the Biodynamic cycle.

Synodic (waxing and waning) cycle

This is a simple form of Moon planting which divides the Luna cycle into four phases or quarters. This cycle takes 29.6 days to complete. It then groups plants into categories, Root Crops, Foliage, Crops with seeds on the outside, and crops with seeds on the inside. Then it assigns plants to the phases of the moon which best suits there growing characteristics.

Biodynamic cycle

Secondly, there is the more detailed method using the 12 Zodiac signs as a method of position the moon, for more accurate planting. This method was developed by Rudolf Steiner in 1924, and the Zodiac signs used where the actual positioning of the signs in the sky, when the moon passed through them. In addition to the position of the moon, Venus ans Saturn also played a large part in the Biodynamic farming calendar. Form more information see the Wikipedia Article on Biodynamics.

Sidereal cycle

Lastly the Sidereal cycle is very similar to the Biodynamic cycle except only the moons orbit around the earth is used to define the best times to sow and harvest. The orbit is divided up into 12 equal 30 degree sections to represent the position of the moon in the sky, but it may not be the same as the current moon position. The sidereal cycle takes 27.3 days to complete.

Which of the above methods is better is up to you to find out. I suggest starting with the Synodic as a general rule and whilst you record the results, read up on the other two. For more information on the Biodynamic cycle read the The Biodynamic and Planting Calendar 2006 and for more information on the Sidereal Cycle read Gardening & Planting by the Moon 2006.

If you start to use Moon Planting for your crops, keep a diary, and add as much detail as you can. Let us know how you do with your garden using the form below..

The feed for Moon planting contains a general guide to planting crops through the Luna cycle. The feed is updated once a day and is based on the GMT Time zone.

[womble]

Ok Thanks for that, I thought you were talking about your other link, I didn't find that one.

That told me what I wanted to know.

[zazen999]

Tis ok - it was on the page before.

[Alison]

Don't pretend to know enought about moon planting one way or the other to know how and if it works but do appreciate that there are lot of things which we don't understand so fair play to those of you who are trying it. I however struggle to find any time to do the jobs I need to do so would rather risk a lower crop than missing out totally by not being able to do the right thing on the right day. Maybe when I've got things a bit more organised I might give it a go but can't see that being for a few years yet.

Back to the original point about early toms - I agree with whoever it was that said that it's not worth bothering with Sub Artic Plenty, planted them the same time as several other types last year and they were the last to fruit. Didn't really taste them raw so can't comment but they worked OK in pasta sauces / chutneys.

[Alison]

Just noticed, quick question to Zazen999, in your signature you say "46% increase in crop per seed sown and 10% increase in crop per plant". Do you mean that you got a 46% increase in germination and 10% increase in fruit? Just that in order to increase germination by that much, you must have had a very low rate previously which sounds a bit like duff seeds. I find that I normally get pretty much 100% germination with toms so wondered if I'd misunderstood. Thanks in advance.

[zazen999]

May I recommend aurora please, for early starts. I've given away a load in the [currently missing] seed parcel, and to individuals...but I got mine from real seeds [see linkie].

Vegetable Seeds : Bush Tomato Seed

Flavour, slightly acidy but absolutely wonderful when you've been eating supermarket toms for months. Excellent with balsamic vinegar and mozzarella and basil.

And purple ukraine - didn't get mine so early but lovely flavour. I also gave away lots of these this year, but available as below. This will be the one I try to get growing as early as possible this time.

Vegetable Seeds : Vine Tomato Seed

[zazen999]

Just noticed, quick question to Zazen999, in your signature you say "46% increase in crop per seed sown and 10% increase in crop per plant". Do you mean that you got a 46% increase in germination and 10% increase in fruit? Just that in order to increase germination by that much, you must have had a very low rate previously which sounds a bit like duff seeds. I find that I normally get pretty much 100% germination with toms so wondered if I'd misunderstood. Thanks in advance.

Nope...

If you count the weight of toms harvested per seed sown, then there was a 46% increase in yield.
If you count the weight of toms harvested per plant that survived to produce fruit, then a 10% increase.

Basically, although they were treated the same, less plants in the non-moon trial survived to even produce plants.

100% of toms germinated, but not all made it to produce actual fruit.

Basically, 8 moon plants survived to produce fruit out of the 12, and only 6 on the non-moon did.

Yield - 343g per plant of moon, and 313g per plant of non-moon.

If only they hadn't got blighted, the yields would have been much larger.

[Matt.]

If you're going for an early start don't forget to keep some seeds back for planting later on just in case. If you're planning on keeping them in a window sill they will get very leggy and will start to dominate! They also need to be potted on frequently so beware of that...

Personally I'll stick to planting my toms mid Feb but good luck to yoyur experiment!

[gridgardener]

sorry, but I have seen studies that finds no difference,worse or better result of plant planted at wrong time moon.

[Seahorse]

perhaps we can ask seahorse nicely to do us a sticky nearer the date ?

Happy to! Just give me a nudge if necessary.

Might even join in myself

[Alison]

sorry, but I have seen studies that finds no difference,worse or better result of plant planted at wrong time moon.

I'm guessing that it's like most things, you can find pro and anti reports if you google it but if people want to try it then it'll cost them nothing apart from a bit of inconvenience with arranging what they're doing and when. At least if you do your own trials then you've got something you can trust to rely on rather than a lot of confusing reports, some of which aren't substantiated in any way. Don't really see any risks apart from running out of time. I think this is the reason why I'm on the fence on this one, unlike for example, the use of certain chemicals where it's clear to me that the risk outweighs any benefits.

[Two_Sheds]

I find Moon Planting interesting in theory, but terribly confusing in practise. I just copied this off today's planting guide:

Sow leafy vegetables and annuals that produce above ground. Lettuce, Spinach, Asparagus, Broccoli, Cabbage, Cauliflower, Sprouts, Sweetcorn, Cucumber.

Sweetcorn? In November?

[Alison]

Maybe it wasn't country specific Two-Sheds but then again I suppose the moon would be different if we were somewhere where they are having spring at the moment so that wouldn't add up either. Brain hurts, was up most of last night so maybe I need some sleep.