# Plan Garden Calendar > Plan garden activities using solar, lunar, and biodynamic calendars. Covers USDA hardiness zones, frost date calculation, equinox/solstice anchoring, synodic lunar cycle (waxing/waning), ascending/descending moon, Maria Thun biodynamic calendar (root/leaf/flower/fruit days), succession planting schedules, and seasonal task planning. Use when planning a new growing season and needing a planting schedule, integrating lunar or biodynamic timing into garden practice, calculating frost dates and planting windows for a specific zone, setting up succession planting for continuous harvest, or conducting end-of-season review. - Skill: `pjt222/plan-garden-calendar-9` (Agent Skill) - Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add pjt222/plan-garden-calendar-9` - Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/pjt222/plan-garden-calendar-9/raw - Safety review: pending - Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex - Category: Productivity - License: MIT - Author: pjt222 (https://skillmd.com/u/pjt222) - Updated: 2026-09-21 - Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/pjt222/plan-garden-calendar-9 --- # 園曆 以日、月、生力曆計園活以擇時也。 ## 用 - 計新長季需植時→用 - 月或生力時納園→用 - 算邦霜期、植窗→用 - 立連植以續收→用 - 季末察、計次年→用 ## 入 - **必**：USDA 耐區或地（為霜期） - **必**：欲計之作物 - **可**：曆系偏（純日、月、生力） - **可**：園大、畦數 - **可**：前季園誌 ## 行 ### 一：立日框 日曆供硬界——霜期、晝長。 ```text Solar Calendar Anchors: 1. Find your USDA Hardiness Zone: - Zone determines minimum winter temperature and which perennials survive - Also correlates with growing season length - Look up at: planthardiness.ars.usda.gov (US) or local equivalent 2. Determine frost dates: - Last spring frost (LSF): Date after which frost is unlikely (50% threshold) - First autumn frost (FAF): Date after which frost becomes likely - Growing season = FAF minus LSF (in days) Example (Zone 7b, mid-Atlantic US): - Last spring frost: April 15 - First autumn frost: October 15 - Growing season: ~180 days 3. Anchor seasonal milestones: ┌───────────────────┬───────────────┬────────────────────────────┐ │ Event │ Approx. Date │ Garden Significance │ ├───────────────────┼───────────────┼────────────────────────────┤ │ Winter solstice │ Dec 21 │ Seed ordering, planning │ │ Spring equinox │ Mar 20 │ Start indoor seeds (cool │ │ │ │ crops: 6-8 wk before LSF) │ │ Last spring frost │ Zone-specific │ Direct sow tender crops │ │ Summer solstice │ Jun 21 │ Peak day length, begin │ │ │ │ autumn crop planning │ │ Autumn equinox │ Sep 22 │ Harvest season, cover crop │ │ First autumn frost│ Zone-specific │ Protect or harvest tender │ │ │ │ crops before this date │ └───────────────────┴───────────────┴────────────────────────────┘ ``` 得：地特之霜期與長季長明。 敗：霜期未明→用保估（加 2 週於均 LSF 為安直播）。地園社或農推署為地最佳源。 ### 二：覆月曆 月影流津、芽、土生。二輪要。 ```text Lunar Cycle 1: Synodic (Phase Cycle — 29.5 days) ┌─────────────────────┬────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │ Phase │ Garden Activity │ ├─────────────────────┼────────────────────────────────────────────┤ │ New Moon → 1st Qtr │ Plant leafy crops (lettuce, spinach, │ │ (Waxing crescent) │ cabbage). Sap rises — good for above- │ │ │ ground vegetative growth. │ ├─────────────────────┼────────────────────────────────────────────┤ │ 1st Qtr → Full Moon │ Plant fruiting crops (tomato, pepper, │ │ (Waxing gibbous) │ beans, squash). Strong light + rising sap │ │ │ = vigorous above-ground growth. │ ├─────────────────────┼────────────────────────────────────────────┤ │ Full Moon → 3rd Qtr │ Plant root crops (carrot, beet, potato, │ │ (Waning gibbous) │ onion). Sap descends — energy moves to │ │ │ roots. Good for transplanting. │ ├─────────────────────┼────────────────────────────────────────────┤ │ 3rd Qtr → New Moon │ Rest period. No planting. Good for: │ │ (Waning crescent) │ weeding, composting, soil preparation, │ │ │ pruning, harvesting for storage. │ └─────────────────────┴────────────────────────────────────────────┘ Lunar Cycle 2: Sidereal (Ascending/Descending — ~27.3 days) - Ascending moon (moon moves higher in sky each night): Sap rises in plants. Good for: grafting, taking cuttings, harvesting fruit and aerial parts, sowing above-ground crops - Descending moon (moon moves lower in sky each night): Sap descends to roots. Good for: planting, transplanting, root pruning, applying soil preparations, planting root crops Note: Ascending/descending is NOT the same as waxing/waning. Ascending = moon's position in the zodiac moving northward. Check a biodynamic calendar for daily ascending/descending status. ``` 得：知雙月輪及其園用。 敗：月曆過繁→只用朔望輪（盈=地上、虧=地下）、次季加恆星層。 ### 三：納生力曆（可——進） Maria Thun 生力曆按月於黃道位授日為四植器之一。 ```text Biodynamic Day Types: ┌───────────┬─────────────────┬──────────────────────────────────────┐ │ Day Type │ Zodiac Signs │ Favoured Activities │ ├───────────┼─────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────────┤ │ Root │ Taurus, Virgo, │ Sow/transplant root crops (carrot, │ │ │ Capricorn │ beet, potato). Soil cultivation. │ │ │ (Earth signs) │ Compost turning. │ ├───────────┼─────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────────┤ │ Leaf │ Cancer, Scorpio,│ Sow/transplant leafy greens. Water │ │ │ Pisces │ plants. Lawn care. Prune for growth. │ │ │ (Water signs) │ │ ├───────────┼─────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────────┤ │ Flower │ Gemini, Libra, │ Sow/transplant flowering plants. │ │ │ Aquarius │ Harvest flowers and herbs. Apply │ │ │ (Air signs) │ preparation 501 (horn silica). │ ├───────────┼─────────────────┼──────────────────────────────────────┤ │ Fruit │ Aries, Leo, │ Sow/transplant fruiting crops │ │ │ Sagittarius │ (tomato, pepper, bean). Harvest │ │ │ (Fire signs) │ fruit. Collect seed. │ └───────────┴─────────────────┴──────────────────────────────────────┘ Using the Calendar: 1. Obtain the current year's Maria Thun biodynamic calendar (published annually, available from biodynamic associations) 2. Note which days are root/leaf/flower/fruit 3. Schedule your plantings to align day type with crop type 4. Avoid planting on "unfavourable" days (perigee, node crossings) 5. Combine with synodic phase: e.g., plant carrots on a root day during waning moon for strongest root growth signal Practical Reality: - Perfect alignment (right phase + right day type + good weather + you're free) happens 2-3 times per month. Don't wait for perfection. - Match at least ONE calendar layer. Matching two is good. Three is ideal. - Weather and your schedule always override calendar — a plant in the ground on the "wrong" day beats a seed in the packet on the "right" day. ``` 得：知生力日型與年曆用。 敗：生力曆未得→月相曆（步二）已捉最要時號。得年曆乃加生力日型。 ### 四：建連植計 錯時植以續收非一時溢。 ```text Succession Planting Principles: 1. Same crop, staggered sowing: - Sow lettuce every 2 weeks from LSF to 8 weeks before FAF - Sow bush beans every 3 weeks from 2 weeks after LSF to 10 weeks before FAF - Sow radish every 2 weeks (spring and autumn — skip midsummer heat) 2. Different crops, same bed: - Spring: peas (harvest June) → Summer: beans (harvest Sept) → Autumn: garlic (harvest next June) - This is relay planting — each crop follows the previous with minimal gap 3. Example Succession Calendar (Zone 7b): ┌─────────┬────────────────┬───────────────────────────────┐ │ Week │ Sow Indoors │ Direct Sow / Transplant │ ├─────────┼────────────────┼───────────────────────────────┤ │ Feb 15 │ Tomato, pepper │ │ │ Mar 1 │ Brassica starts│ Peas, spinach (under cloche) │ │ Mar 15 │ Lettuce #1 │ Radish #1, carrots (early) │ │ Apr 1 │ Lettuce #2 │ Radish #2, beet #1 │ │ Apr 15 │ │ Transplant brassicas out │ │ May 1 │ Lettuce #3 │ Bean #1, squash, cucumber │ │ May 15 │ │ Transplant tomato, pepper │ │ Jun 1 │ │ Bean #2, lettuce #4 (shade) │ │ Jun 15 │ │ Bean #3 │ │ Jul 1 │ Autumn brassica│ Beet #2, carrot (autumn) │ │ Jul 15 │ │ Transplant autumn brassicas │ │ Aug 1 │ │ Lettuce #5 (autumn), radish #3 │ │ Aug 15 │ │ Spinach (autumn), cover crop │ │ Sep 1 │ │ Garlic (plant 4-6 wks pre FAF)│ └─────────┴────────────────┴───────────────────────────────┘ ``` 得：合邦之週週植曆、注連植間。 敗：計過繁→擇 3 要作物計連植。次季續加。 ### 五：季任計 植之外、園有循養任。 ```text Seasonal Task Framework: ┌───────────┬──────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │ Season │ Tasks │ ├───────────┼──────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤ │ Winter │ - Order seeds (January) │ │ (Dec-Feb) │ - Plan beds and crop rotation on paper │ │ │ - Maintain tools (see maintain-hand-tools) │ │ │ - Apply prep 500 if ground is workable (late Feb) │ │ │ - Start earliest indoor seeds (Feb, 8-10 wk pre LSF)│ ├───────────┼──────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤ │ Spring │ - Soil assessment and amendment (see prepare-soil) │ │ (Mar-May) │ - Direct sow cool crops after soil reaches 7°C │ │ │ - Transplant warm crops after LSF │ │ │ - Mulch beds after soil warms │ │ │ - First compost turn of the year │ ├───────────┼──────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤ │ Summer │ - Succession sow every 2-3 weeks │ │ (Jun-Aug) │ - Water deeply, less frequently (morning preferred) │ │ │ - Harvest regularly to encourage production │ │ │ - Start autumn crop seeds indoors (July) │ │ │ - Apply prep 501 on fruit days (biodynamic) │ ├───────────┼──────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤ │ Autumn │ - Main harvest and preservation │ │ (Sep-Nov) │ - Plant garlic (4-6 weeks before FAF) │ │ │ - Sow cover crops on empty beds │ │ │ - Apply prep 500 (late October) │ │ │ - Compost final additions, insulate pile for winter │ │ │ - End-of-season reflection (meditate checkpoint) │ └───────────┴──────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ ``` 得：季框補週植計。 敗：常誤任→計過雄。減畦或作物至節奏可續。 ### 六：察點——季末省 長季閉時（首霜後）、坐園誌。 ```text End-of-Season Reflection (20-30 minutes): 1. Find a quiet spot in or overlooking the garden 2. Bring your garden journal and this year's calendar 3. Review without judgment: - What grew well? (Note varieties and planting dates) - What struggled? (Was it timing, soil, weather, or neglect?) - Which calendar alignments felt meaningful? - What surprised you? 4. Note three things to carry forward: - One success to repeat - One failure to investigate - One new thing to try 5. Close the journal. Sit quietly for 5 minutes. The garden is resting now. You should rest too. Planning begins after solstice — not before. This reflection becomes the first page of next year's plan. ``` 得：省撮以實接今年於明年計。 敗：省似自評→重框：園為師。諸「敗」為據。唯不察為真敗。 ## 驗 - [ ] USDA 區與霜期已識 - [ ] 日曆樁標（分至、霜期） - [ ] 月輪解（至少：盈虧=地上下） - [ ] 植計含連植間 - [ ] 計納內始時（LSF 前數週） - [ ] 季任合地況 - [ ] 園誌起或更於今年曆 - [ ] 長季末察點畢 ## 忌 1. **植過早**：急春植入冷土失種。土溫重於氣溫——用土溫計 2. **忽微氣**：南牆暖、低處集霜。園內有區 3. **曆僵**：曆為引非令。氣不對則待。植不讀曆 4. **無連植**：一大播生一溢收後盡無。錯時以續 5. **略省**：不察則自望非據而計。誌為最要具 6. **計過密**：滿曆生倦。留隙——園將填之 ## 參 - `read-garden` — 季中察以調曆 - `prepare-soil` — 土修時依季曆 - `cultivate-bonsai` — 盆栽季養同日/月框 - `meditate` — 季末省點（全程） - `maintain-hand-tools` — 冬養具為計季任