Moon Signs for Gardening

Though considered by some to be hocus pocus, planting and harvesting by the moon is an ancient practice that many an old farmer swears by. So you want to plant by the moon....you go down to your local general store....you buy a copy of the old farmers almanac..you go home....you read....and reread.....and check the appendix....hmmmmm....what exactly does all of this mean? Moon in Virgo? Cusp of Capricorn? Void of Course? Retrograde? Ingress? To plant or not to plant, that is the question! First a few definitions:

Sun Sign: around the 20th of every month, the sun enters a new sign, which is where your "sign"comes from (i'm a virgo, born august 28th) ~ this sign is sort of like a breakdown of how you appear to others and how you represent yourself to the world.

Moon Sign: the moon rules over growth, which is why we use pay attention to it's sign when gardening. Unlike the sun, the moon changes it's sign about every 2 1/2 days, going through all the signs of the zodiac 29 1/2 days ~ your moon sign represents your inner self, which may not be so apparent to others. This is what indicates WHAT you should plant. Examples are:

Moon in Aquarius: Time to enjoy harvest with your family!

Moon in Pisces: things planted in this sign will grow at a very fast pace

Moon in Aries: good time for planting onions ~ kill weeds and pests

Moon in Taurus: good for planting root crops and seedlings

Moon in Gemini: not a great time for planting

Moon in Cancer: best zodiac sign for planting! very fertile moon, great time for cultivating and transplanting, especially above ground crops

Moon in Leo: most barren, dry sign ~ good time for killing pests and weeds

Moon in Virgo: good time for organizing and planning your garden

Moon in Libra: good moon for planting flowers and ornamental trees

Moon in Scorpio: good for all planting and pruning to stimulate growth

Moon in Sagittarius: take the day off to relax in your garden

Moon in Capricorn: good time for planting root crops

(You will see the sign the moon is in on many calenders in the form of an illustration called glyphs)

Full Moon: Moon is at it's peak (won't get any bigger), good time to harvest

New Moon: Moon is completely dark (can't get any smaller) good time to banish weeds and pests

Waxing: the moon is getting BIGGER (turning into a full moon)

Waning: the moon is getting SMALLER (turning into a new moon)

Quarter Moon: the moon is "half full" of "half empty" (depending on how you look at it), it's in the halfway point between the full moon or the new moon

Ingress ( ---->): indicates when the sun, moon and other planets move into a new sign

Cusp: when a sign is right on the edge of moving into another sign

Void of Course: when the moon is between signs. Said to take place from the last significant lunar aspect in each sign until the moon enters a new sign (this is a lot like the "cusp", but thought I should mention both definitions).

I've used moon phases for just about every aspect of my life for many years and have always had excellent results ~ Hope this helps anyone with questions on planting by the moon!