That Michaelmas, now on 29th September would have originally been a Julian calendar Michaelmas, which is now 12 days out from the Gregorian calendar currently in use, so there's a couple of days left. And if the Devil doesn't get them on Wednesday, it looks like a frost on Friday night will.
Hoho great read. All codswallop I'm afraid. Good fun though. My favourite is "planting by the moon". It's even in serious RHS articles, but it's complete. And. Utter. Nonsense!
The tale that the phase of the moon has an influence at time of planting is of course silly, but in general, planting at night does have some solid (theoretical) benefits. I prefer to plant stuff in the evening rather than the morning. The reasons being that: 1) Without direct sunlight, the ground will not dry out as quickly and 2) The plant you are planting is less active after sunset. Both of these points mean the plant will suffer less from the transplant. Harvesting by the moonlight has much more scientific backing. Something to do with sugars turning into starches (or the other way round - I'm not a chemist/biologist). The chemical reactions slow right down after dark, so fruit and veg apparently stays fresh longer if its harvested after dark.
You're such a cynic, Andrew:D I think the old tales and folklore that have stayed with us gardeners over the centuries are a good thing as they give a bit of romance to it all. Some of the folklore might have a shred of truth to them, and some may not, some may have been born out of experience and been made in rhymes to get folk to remember them. Fairies, Pixies, Witches, planting under the Moon, one can only hope:D
I love stories of Witches and planting by the moon and the tooth fairy, don't get me wrong! It's just, unfortunately, codswallop. My dad has passed me many such tales down from his dad, and my Grandad, and the chatter down the Allotment... ooh, yer wanna poot the ole pumper seed in't parrafin DDT on t first moon O'Ween in a hosses ass befors ye plant on plot...
Oh, I agree with you, Andrew:D My family worked as Estate Managers, Head Gardeners, Gardeners, Game Keepers, House Staff for several centuries for Chatsworth House, Derbyshire, and my sisters have got quite a few folklore tales and sayings written down that were acquired over the years from the experiences of the family. I don't believe in them, although there are a few that spring from common sense, and they do lend a sense of history to gardening.:D
Growing Sage does bring wealth. As unemployment rose towards a record 3 million recently following the lastest f-up by the bankers, it was much under-reported that Sage cultivation was at a 17 year low.
I know Armandii, and I won't break the whimsy any more than I have already now. But really geeky people with PhDs in white coats have studied ALL this stuff, and we know what's tosh and what isn't. My grandad used to taste seeds for viability.
Move went well thanks! Back garden already landscaped - patio, pond, paths, arches, trellis etc, and partly planted up. Front garden still a building site, project pencilled in for this winter. Would've stormed the walking stick challenge - have lovely chalky soil, the brassicas love it - cabbages were the size of basketballs even though I got em in late
On the folklore thing, I've personally found that understanding more of the science makes gardening even more interesting and fun than being all mystical about it. Gets you closer to nature - letting the worms do the work rather than bottles of chemicals etc. I can highly recommend An Ear to the Ground, by Ken Thompson. Best gardening book ever.
Uhm, I'm new to the game, but I've got four herbs here my aunt always used to tell me - "ROSEMARY for remembrance, THYME wafts the smoke Thus BORAGE does give me courage And SAGE makes spirits choke~" I have no idea if she made it up or not - she was a poet, so it might have just been a silly rhyme she invented for her interested-in-homeopathy niece ^^;;
