Red Full Moon

A while back on the Aquaponics forum someone mentioned that they only sow their seeds according to the phases of the moon! Planting at the wrong time of the moon’s cycle would result in plants “bolting” or growing straight out to seed.

The theory was that the moon could have an influence on the way seeds germinate and allow the sap to rise and fall. Some periods are good for root crops and some for fast germinating plants like Alfalfa and Mung Sprouts. We looked around for a simple calculator but couldn’t find one on the internet – so we made our own based on an old farmer’s almanac.

To make it easy for you – we’ve included a moon phase calculator that should work properly for the Southern Hemisphere. If you are reading this in the Northern Hemisphere – probably best to double check your moon phase elsewhere to make sure the moon is properly calibrated!

All you need to do is click on the animation in the chart below and select the moon image that closely matches the moon outside your window right now! If you’re in doubt – go outside and see if you can find the moon. It should look like one of the images below.

Click on the moon image and a simple description will advise you whether its safe to plant seedlings or not. You can also use the chart to tell you if you should go fishing! I should have checked this graphic out ages ago – as it would have saved me coming back empty handed! But in Aquaponics – you are never really empty handed. Your fish are only as far away as your fish tank.

We haven’t tested this theory so can’t vouch if it works or not. Give it a try. Plenty of people say it does work. Let us know if you think it works or if you have tried this method and are convinced it all a load of crap? We don’t mind. Have you tried sowing seeds according to the phases of the moon? It should work for aquaponics or conventional vegetable gardens.

Does it work? Let us know.

One of the great tips in the Permaculture Soils DVD is how to use chickens to do a lot of the composting for you. We all know chickens like to scratch and break the pest cycle but did you know how to harness chickens to direct their scratching to create compost for you?

One of the little known facts is that chickens will direct their scratching downhill as they forage for insects, seeds and grubs. Siting your chicken coop on a downhill sloping site will direct the chickens to scratch in the downhill direction. You’ll end up with a bigger pile downhill of old mulch and rotting vegetation.

The rotting heap will attract worms and other microbes to break down the underlying layer of mulch turning it into great compost. Chickens wont be able to scratch down to this bottom layer. All you need to do is periodically turn over the upper mulch to get to the good stuff underneath. Geoff Lawton has his larger chicken coop built this way to allow the chickens to scratch and push the mulch downhill.

Digging up worms out of reach to the chickens

He describes it as his straw yard. A place where you dump all your excess organic matter for the chickens to process. “Weeds and vegetable waste matter can be a problem for the gardener – but here they are turned into a solution.” He says. “The chickens are turning waste into wealth.” Geoff digs under the heap and lifts up a large wriggling worm. The compost he digs up looks great too.

Working with a garden fork he digs up the good compost and use it straight on the fruit trees of an emerging food forest planted just outside the chicken coop.

A simple and effect way to build compost using chickens.