NOTES from. the universe // flower moon
Nature is so much bigger than plants, people, or the earth we walk upon. It's also the connections with the sky, the cosmos, and the great unknown.
This month has gone so fast I can hardly believe that another full moon is upon us. The Flower Moon to be precise, coming into full bloom around 6.34pm UK time. I caught her in dress rehearsal last night as I said a doorstep farewell to a friend, glowing almost obscenely over the rooftops directly opposite. Perhaps she knows she’s about to be eclipsed, by our own Earth no less, a penumbral half-shadow momentarily blocking the rays of the sun and those her usual silver glow. The Earth’s penumbra is less intense than the deeper innermost shadow known as its umbra and thus when it falls across the moon there will still be some semblance of light, a greyish patina rather than a full black out.
The phenomenon won’t be visible from these parts (the eastern vestiges of London, for me), however. You’ll have to hotfoot it to the Eastern hemisphere for that. But it is a happening no less. And for those who follow astrology, this one is in Scorpio, said to bring an amplification of all that who dwell within this intense, emotional, and powerful sign, and bringing breakthroughs, endings, and the facing of fears. I’m in.
This is also the Flower Moon. Also Budding Moon, Planting Moon, Laying of the Eggs Moon, Milk Moon, Mother’s Moon, Hare Moon, Grass Moon, and Get Your Bloomers on Moon (okay, I made that last one up). The moon that symbolises abundance, and growth, and all the riches bestowed upon us by Mother Earth. For plant and flower lovers, it’s the pick of the bunch.
Full moons are a great time to garden and there’s definitely some science in this in that just as the moon’s gravitational pull cause the tides of Earthly water masses to rise and fall, so it affects moisture levels in the soil. There is also the theory that geotropism (or gravitropism) comes into play, whereby plants have the tendency to grow either towards or away from the Earth’s gravitational pull. So roots grow down and shoots grow up.
In that line of thinking, there are certain groups of plants believed to grow better when the moon is waning (between a full moon and a new moon) and when it is waxing (between a new moon and a full moon). So the next two weeks (waning), before the May New Moon on 19 May, is all about flowering bulbs and rhizomes, perennials and biennials (that are just finding their strength again), root vegetables and tubers, and anything else that bears crops beneath the ground. Followed by two weeks (waxing) of growing annual flowers, above ground crops such as fruits, squashes, and tomatoes, and foliage based herbs, edibles, and ornamentals. Wax on (moonlight increasing) – shoots, leaves, flowers, fruits. Wane off (moonlight decreasing) – roots, tubers, bulbs, and rhizomes.
This is all great news as I really need to get those dahlias and agapanthus in. Happy Flower Moon to all. Off to enjoy being a powered up, plant-loving Scorpio.