Essay

Moon thoughts

By John Moore

Every time I look at the full or new moon, I remember that we are only one part of nature. There are many parts to nature. Plants know this. They are nature. Humans think too much. I am not nature, I am human. I am above nature. I am apart from nature. We are nature and nature is us. At a cellular level this can be understood. Plants are carbon, hydrogen and oxygen -- sugar. They are made from sunlight photosynthesis and quickly return to sunlight. The process uses chlorophyll to produce cells with no skins. Animal cells contain protein and nitrogen. This forms a skin around each cell -- an outside and an inside. So at this cell level we feel a separation from nature. But is it a true separation or are we thinking too much?

That's why I grow food plants in my room. Home farming is a fun kind of botany that reminds me every day that I am one part of nature. Safe, organic real food from real seeds. Seventy percent of seeds in the world today are in danger of extinction. So I always grow my plants from seeds from the area where I live. The DNA in these heritage seeds is strong, deep, immune to most diseases and insect attack. So growing food becomes easy and fun. They also taste so much better than store-bought seeds.

I plant ground vegetables, like potato and daikon, after the full moon. I plant leaf vegetables, like spinach and lettuce, after the new moon. Soil moisture increases by 30 percent during the full moon; so do plants and trees. Japanese master carpenters only cut trees on the new moon, because there's less moisture and fewer insects. That's why the wood lives thousands of years. Soil smells and tastes different when the moon changes. The lunar cycle is eccentric and elliptic so it appears larger or smaller and shows color changes; and the time between successive phases changes every cycle.

This has a big effect on leaf growth and taste. That's why wine from the same vineyard varies with every vintage.

The Celts had 13 months in their calendar. Agriculture was governed by a three-year moon cycle. The Celtic harvest festival Samhain was held in the most important phase. Death or slumber. Seeds lying dormant in the soil awaiting the rebirth of a new cycle. A new crop. A new generation.

Natural patterns, soil, seed and the human heart are vital ingredients for growing. Now more than ever we need safe, real food. In the months ahead, I'll be writing about growing food together, simple and tasty. We can delve deep into agronomics and allelopathy research but in the end, the most important point is -- does it taste good?

When does a plant flower? Full moon or new moon? When do leaves grow faster? When do seeds fall?

Watch for yourself. Watch the moon cycle and the same plant every day. See the changes and patterns. Don't take my word for it; get closer to nature. Every day.

Shukan ST: APRIL 27, 2012

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