The Moon in biodynamics, (Study Notes #2)
- Maya Carroll Tischler
- Jul 8
- 7 min read
I love the Moon and am delighted to be researching this cosmic body and it's influences in farming. Within biodynamics this is closely considered and understanding the moon's phases and position intimately, as well as it's zodiac alignments, can help immensely with farm planning. The Moon's presence and gravity affect literally everything but can be understood in terms of water, which is a conduit for energy and an intrinsic part of life force.
This post will focus on an understanding of the Moon's phases and their influences, with a post specifically dedicated to spraying the biodynamic preparations coming soon, after I experiment more on the farm and figure out what works for us.
Waxing and Waning (The synodal rhythm)
The Moon Waxes and Wanes on an approximately 29.5 day cycle, this is from one New Moon to the next New Moon. During it's eternal waxing and waning the Moon will grow and shrink in the sky.
Waxing and Waning is the cycle of the Moon's light (reflected from the sun) which changes with it's alignment with the earth.
The most important thing to remember is that when the Moon is Full (Pay attention to the order) the sun, earth and Moon are all in a line and when the Moon is New the sun, Moon and earth are all in a line. We experience spring tides at both a Full and New moon due to this alignment, which helps me imagine the influence these phases might have on the farm. This also relates to using star sign alignments, as when the Moon is Full it's in an opposite star sign to the sun, but when it's New (Dark) it's in the same star sign as the sun.
"At New Moon, the Moon and the Sun are exactly conjunct, which means the Moon is in line between the earth and the Sun, and both are in the same constellation. At Full Moon, the Moon and the Sun are in exact opposition, which means they are on opposite sides of the Earth and in opposite constellations."
Think of the Moon's journey around the earth not as a perfect circle but rather an oval, like a rubber band being stretched at two sides (also referred to as an ellipse).
Apogee and Perigee (The apsidal rhythm)
So following the idea that the moon's journey makes an oval shaped ellipse around the earth, we can imagine there is a furthest point and a nearest point from the earth in the Moon’s orbit. Apogee is the furthest point; Perigee is the closest point. The apogee/perigee cycle takes 27.55 days and is similar in its effects to solar and lunar eclipses. According to https://biodynamics.net.au apogee and perigee times bring a stress period and seed sowing should be avoided 12 hours on either side of these times (except potatoes, which benefit from the multiplying or concentrating energies from both extremes).
Ascending and Descending (The tropical rhythm)
This is related, but different to it's Ascending and Descending cycle, which is it's actual position in the sky, throughout this cycle the line the Moon makes as it travels across the night sky will appear to be moving up (ascending) or down (descending) depending where it is in This cycle. Each period of either Ascending or Descending, takes roughly two weeks. - A month for both.
Help full tidbit from Google AI, (all other content is human made.): The Moon ascends and descends across the sky because it's orbit around Earth is tilted by about 5 degrees relative to Earth's orbit around the Sun (the ecliptic).
Because it takes the Moon about 27.3 days to complete one orbit, it spends roughly half the month above the celestial equator and the other half below it.
"We all know the sun’s tropical rhythm over the course of a year - high in summer, low in winter - but the moon’s path is a lot quicker. The sun takes 6 months to reach the equator, the moon about a fortnight."
More on Ascending and Descending from Lowe family wine co:
Moon Nodes
'Nodes' refer to eclipses and a Moon or lunar node happens when the Moon, earth and sun are on the same plane, which occurs every 27.21 days. This only lasts for a few hours but generally gardening work is avoided around this time, due to unbalanced chaotic celestial energy. I personally don't consider the lunar nodes but many BD practitioners do.
"The Moon’s nodes are the points where the Moon’s path crosses the path of the Sun. This is approximately a fortnightly rhythm. The influence of the node lasts for approximately 2 hours on either side of the node, and the effect is similar to an eclipse. It is best to avoid any agricultural or horticultural work for this brief period."
The Moon in Constellation: (The sidereal rhythm)
The sidereal rhythm observes the Moon's journey across the milky way, aligning with different constellations as it goes. In Biodynamics the sign or constellation the Moon is passing in front of influences the earth in it's own unique way. - This is where ‘root days’, ‘leaf days’, ‘flower days’ and ‘fruit days’ come in, based off the element of each sign or constellation, for instance when the Moon passes in Capricorn it's considered a root day since Capricorn is an Earth sign. Think of the Moon acting as a conduit for the energy of the star sign.
EARTH: Taurus (the bull), Virgo (the virgin) Capricorn (the goat) - ROOT: beetroot, carrot, potatoes, turnip, celeriac, garlic, etc.
WATER: Pisces (the fish), Cancer (the crab), Scorpio (the scorpion) - LEAF: lettuce, spinach, silverbeet, rhubarb, chives, cabbage, etc.
AIR: Gemini (the twins), Libra (the scales), Aquarius (the water bearer) - FLOWER: sunflower, broccoli, cauliflower, globe artichoke, etc.
FIRE: Aries (the ram), Leo (the lion), Sagittarius (the archer) - SEED/FRUIT: tomatoes, beans, pumpkin, peas, wheat, etc.
For the Moon to travel across every sign or constellation takes 27.3 days. As Newstead Garden describes, the zodiac used in the BD calendar is different to the astrologer's star signs we're used to.
The zodiac used in the sidereal calendar is different to the one that most astrologers use for star signs - this can also be confusing! The BD/astro-calendar zodiac is based on the star background which we see, not on the earth’s horizon and seasons which the astrologers use (the difference is 23 degrees/days).
(The Moon) "spends between 1.5 and 3.5 days in each constellation due to the different amount of space each sign takes up in the sky. Each sign corresponds to an element, and a part of the plant, which in turn corresponds to the crops or tasks to tend to." -https://biodynamic.org.nz/news-events/biodynamics-decoded?srsltid=AfmBOorp5umvGGAIx56HrEyzcvcNdcCBsoB_mAfVclyRQLD1d80cpWOT
Moon Opposition Saturn
Another helpful date to keep track of is the 'Moon and Saturn Opposition' which describes the Moon and Saturn on exactly opposite sides of the earth, this is seen as balancing since the Moon affects calcium, while Saturn affects Silica. It's a good time for applying biodynamic preparations and sowing seeds. Moon Opposition Saturn occurs every 27.5 days.
Working with the Moon and farm planning:
Phew! That was a lot of information, I have to admit before starting Biodynamic farming I thought the Moon only had one cycle, turns out it has four (and probably more): The synodal rhythm, the tropical rhythm, the sidereal rhythm and the apsidal rhythm... A lot of Biodynamic articles recommend learning and practicing with just one cycle or rhythm as you go, since keeping track of them all at once might be overwhelming. Because I'm a beginner I've started by aligning my farm planning and tasks to the synodal rhythm, (the Waxing and Waning). This has been working really well and it's definitely the easiest rhythm to follow considering you can simply see the Moon transforming each night in the sky. I'm looking forward to working with the tropical rhythm, that's the way the Moon's arc rises and falls in the sky, I'll be considering this when making decisions on when to spray the preps - I've heard the descending and ascending Moon's act as mini seasons in themselves. I'll have to update this post once I've continued my practical studies, but for now heres what my tasks look like divided by the synodal rhythm of Waxing and Waning:
Full Moon:
Harvesting above ground, I work with medicinals so we harvest on, or near, the full moon. Some Biodynamics practitioners say that fruit harvested on the full moon doesn't store well, I'm not sure about this.
I have been experimenting with pulling weeds near the full moon in a hopes to nock their life force and make it harder for them to re sprout, the idea behind this was that the energy of the plant would mostly be in it's foliar areas and so when pulling it out, if I accidentally left a few roots behind they wouldn't be as strong. Big disclaimer, I'm not yet sure if this is working.
Waning Moon:
Applying compost and manure.
Sowing crops and seedlings that produce below ground, or medicinals that are harvested for their roots.
Dark and New Moon:
Applying soil amendments such as biochar.
Mulching.
Construction, composting and maintenance
Traditionally the Dark Moon was seen as a good time to pull out weeds, as I mentioned I've been experimenting with both pulling them out at the Dark Moon and Full Moon to see if this influences their capacity to re sprout.
I believe for the health of the plant it's best to prune on a New or Waxing Moon.
REST - "Traditional Indian agriculture recognises the day before New Moon as No Moon day, a day on which no agricultural work is done."
Excerpts from https://biodynamics.net.au/working-with-the-antipodean-astro-calendar/
Waxing Moon:
I believe for the health of the plant it's best to prune on a New or Waxing Moon. So this applies to a waxing moon too, since the plant's life force is flowing upwards which will aid in healing and re sprouting.
Sowing crops and seedlings that produce leaves, flowers and fruits, leaf producing plants during the start of the waxing process and fruit producing plants closer to (but still before) the full moon.
Applying quicker release liquid fertilisers, like seaweed teas, weeds teas and manure teas.
Striking cuttings and other nursery quests.
Before I sign off, I hope that was helpful, I know I'll be referencing back to this post over my studies. I've included this rather lengthy quote from Newstead Garden, as I feel like it really sums up the balancing act of considering all the different factors and making your best judgment from there:
"On dates when beneficial cycles co-incide you are more likely to have a positive result/influence - for example, a descending, waning moon in an earth sign would signal a good time to spray BD500 or plant root crops, make compost or transplant seedlings. Of course you wouldn’t spray BD500 if it were dry and windy, so weather and soil conditions are an important factor to consider as well. Don’t just consider cycles or conditions in isolation. This holism is the crux of BD gardening. Secondly, make a note on what you do when, and the results so you can build both observational/experiential knowledge over month and years. Thirdly, try to fit your gardening, no matter how little time you may have, to the lunar rhythms, rather than just when you have the inclination or time."
Until next time, keep looking at the moon
Maya Carroll Tischler
Another website reference:
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