Starting to sow this week using the Moon calendar

Freezing fields on the road to Herbertstown from Old Pallas

Whatever about icy fields and freezing fog the sowing year is about to begin! I don't usually begin in January but this year I have the Glasshouse and inspired by Eileen I am going to try sowing earlier indoors with heat and transfer everything out to the Glasshouse as soon as they are up. She reckons her glasshouse has increased her output to three times what it was! Having three gardens to fill instead of one this year I hope it will help me be more productive too.This week I plan to get started with onions from seed, tomatoes, chilli's, peppers, sweet peas, broad beans, summer sprouting broccoli, flowers for summer and the earliest salad greens for under cover.

I use the biodynamic calendar as much as I can for doing my seed sowing . One reason I like it is that it organises me into having to sow things at particular times and that greatly helps me to keep on track with my sowing each month.The other reason I use it is that it works! I have had great success with plants sown on these days.They are healthy, strong and produce well. A lunar phase for sowing using the moon calendar starts on this Wednesday January 23rd and will last until 5th February. If you sow nothing else and you have a packet of onion seeds it is worth giving them a go. This is what the coming week looks like;

Wed Jan 23rd Root all day
Thu 24/Fri 25th Flower
Sat 26th Root to 8 am Leaf from 9am on
Sunday 27th Leaf all day
Monday 28/Tue29/ Fruit all day
Wed 30th Fruit to 5pm Root from 6pm

All of this information is contained within the Biodynamic Sowing and Planting calendar for 2013 by Maria and Matthias Thun. You could work it out yourself but I couldn't be arsed and it's very handy to have it for quick reference. For anyone who is bamboozled on the groups think of the edible part of the plant as the bit that guides you for the planting days;

On Root days plant anything you harvest the root of, eg. onions, parsnips, carrots, potatoes, beetroot etc
On Flower days plant anything you harvest the flower of, eg. all flowers, broccoli, cauliflower etc
On Leaf days plant anything you harvest the leaves of, eg. herbs, salad leaves, spinach, cabbage family etc
On Fruit days plant anything you harvest the fruit of, eg. peas and beans, tomatoes, cucumbers, pumpkins etc

Happy sowing!