Curated by myself --written with Ai assistance
I used to think lunar planting was one of those spiritual traditions your aunt might mention between horoscopes and herbal teas. Then my colleagues collaborated on a cannabis documentary titled "Legacy, Southern Humboldt County" and met with the owners of four unique Cannabis farms with generations of experience in partnering with the land. One of the farms was Moon Made Farms, a woman-led, community-oriented regenerative cannabis farm in California. They plant by the moon—not out of superstition, but out of intention and strategy.
I started paying attention, and what I found changed how I see seeds, soil, and time itself.
What Is Moon Phase Gardening?
It’s a method based on the idea that the Moon’s gravitational pull affects not just the tides, but also ground moisture, sap flow, and seed germination. It’s observational science encoded in farming tradition. They explain that during the first lunar phase, seed germination is supported by higher moisture; later waxing phases favor fruiting crops; waning phases encourage root development; and the last, weakest quarter is ideal for pruning, composting, and resting.
Ancient farmers watched the skies like their lives depended on it—which they did. As one old saying goes:
“The farmer’s eye fattens the cow and prospers the crop.”
They didn’t use spreadsheets; they used presence, rhythm, and sharp observation.
They saw four phases:
— New Moon to First Quarter: plant leafy greens and above-ground crops
— First Quarter to Full Moon: plant fruiting crops
— Full Moon to Last Quarter: best for root crops
— Last Quarter to New Moon: avoid planting, focus on rest and composting
Why It Matters
Anecdotal and historical evidence—plus some emerging studies—suggest that sap flow and seed germination respond to lunar rhythms. At Moon Made Farms, these cycles form a core part of their regenerative, sun‑grown model: rainwater irrigation, native soil, living mulch, and planting timed with the moon.
My Dill, the Moon, and Timing
I planted dill seeds on my balcony a few days before the New Moon—during the waning crescent phase, the traditional “rest and root” window. The seeds germinated slowly, nothing dramatic. Then, overnight: a half-inch of growth. Could that surge have been cued by the moon resetting its cycle? Maybe seeds were anchoring silently in the waning phase, then burst upward with the new signal. It’s subtle, but orchestrated.
As a Cannabis Grower, I Know the Dark Matters
When I started indoors, I ran 24-hour lighting with two 150 W lamps. The plants grew, but nothing compared to when I introduced dark cycles. That’s when plants do hormone shifts, nutrient uptake—they work in the dark. It’s essential. So the idea that the Moon affects sap movement feels logical—like an internal tide.
Shoutout to Moon Made Farms
Moon Made Farms (regenerative, sungrown, lunar-planted cannabis) has kept old wisdom alive on their 40-acre farm in Southern Humboldt County. They tune into soil, sun, water, night sky, and lunar cycles as part of a holistic farming ethos rooted in ecology and community farming justice.
Stealing the Bloom Farm Co.
Right here in Ontario, Stealing the Bloom Farm Co. embodies regenerative farming values in a small but powerful way. Located in Westport on a property that sat unfarmed for generations, Matthew and Heidi have revived it as a biodynamic market garden with rotational grazing, farm tours, and a barnyard petting zoo. They may not plant by lunar phases—but they are pioneers in regenerative agriculture return. I grew up admiring that land. Now it’s alive with gardens and community, and it feels like the universe was paying attention all along.
August 2025 Moon Phase Planting Guide
Plant leafy greens and above-ground crops in the waxing crescent (early August), root crops after the full moon around mid-to-late August, and avoid planting during the waning crescent at month’s end.
Join the Experiment!
You can start planting this week—from today, July 28 through Thursday, July 31. Drop seeds, align with the moon, and join this Blogspot-based experiment with the moon, the couch activist, and Lumen AI.
Related links:
Moon Made Farms website (see their Lunar Farming page)
Moon Made Farms Instagram (keep up with what's growin' in Humboldt)
Stealing the Bloom Farm Co. website (book your farm tour or visit their farm stand)
Stealing the Bloom Farm Co. Instagram (see a day in the life of the regenerative farmer and their flock)
Next will be part two on Electroculture--another resurgence of our ancestors' ways.
No comments:
Post a Comment