Is there any truth in the plant in the dark of the moon, or plant in the full of the moon, theories? You know, the old folklore. I searched the web, including your archives, and to my surprise found not one single scientific paper about this.
So … I went to da man … said "Ceece, should I plant my moonflowers by moonlight? "
Lo, even mighty Cecil responded thusly …
"Sadly, Cecil just doesn’t have enough staff to answer everyone’s questions. Cecil gets dozens (sometimes hundreds) of questions each week, and can only address one in his column. It’s hard to predict what, from that massive pile, will attract his attention.
You might go to our website at http://www.straightdope.com and post your
question on the Message Boards there."
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So … here I am asking. I expected to find the answer easily, and I couldn’t find anything scientific for either side.
Anyone out there got some science on this? Not anecdotes, but actual experimental data?
I seem to recall reading an article in some semi-reliable source (a popular magazine, perhaps) that moonlight can stimulate the sprouting of some weed seeds. This may be what is behind the origin of the traditional advice to till and plant your garden at night during the full moon. I do not myself follow this advice, which may be why most of the things I plant don’t grow.
I have no doubt that the moon does affect plant growth, but not necessarily in the way you meant. Tomato and pepper plants produce best when they get several hours of complete darkness. (They need darkness either to flower or to set fruit, but I can’t remember which.) As little light as a full moon or a streetlamp can significantly reduce crop yields. I read this in a USDA publication, so I presume it to be true unless proven otherwise. I have a security-type light that is normally on all night every night, but when I have tomatoes growing in the garden, I turn it off. This may be why I had more tomatoes than I knew what to do with a few months ago.