Good Day to All,
Ireneu,

on this side in the West Indies,moon phases tend
to deal with planting days - so many before/after
the full moon and tender seeds in the dark night [
nights of no moon.]

Bamboo cut in the dark night stays firm and bamboo
cut near the full of the moon will wrinkle badly or
dust and is easily eaten by worms.This I know from
maintaining a bamboo hedge for the last 30 years.

Wood cut in the dark of night and at the height of the
dry season,within a low tide,warps little and lasts the
longest.
Wood cut around the full moon and at high tide tends
to rot badly.
This is a fact.
[Industrial countries use artificial means to preserve
wood and soon forget the above.]

There is also some information on new moon phases
but I don't plant for a living.

Tender seeds tend to produce tasty shoots in the full
of the moon and thus are better in the dark night,unless
you have gone modern and love to abuse -insecticide or
pesticide.

As this relates to Bonsai,well I tend to cut black pines
in dark night and strike cuttings in man made or man
composed soils.Cuttings done in real soil tend to get
chewed clean on moon nights.

I offer no explanations,only what I have seen.

Of course we have our jokes as well.

Like bending down to plant pigeon peas or they will just
become tall and produce little to eat.
[if you plant pigeon peas a nitrogen producer next to
cassava,the cassava becomes bitter.
Also you triple your crop with corn,pigeon peas,and some
vines all in the same hole.Vines as in pumpkin or squash.]

Or my favourites[which I may have shared with the list before]
if your pregnant and attacked by a horsewhip[a thin insect
eating snake about 3 or 4' in length]cut a banana leaf and
use as a shield.
When the snake whips out at you,the little resistance of the fig
leaf will cause him/her to break his back.

or,beware of the logs in the forests that move and then open
their mouths sucking in everything in the vicinity.

or,legendary agoutis that outrun dogs for days.Often with your
hunting hounds returning home on stumps having worn away
their feet down to the ankles.

or,the vine that you step over and forget where you have been.
Lost in the forest forever.

Obviously there is some sense to it all and some nonsense as
well.

But the best is those poor folk who don't understand that wood
needs 25 to 50 years to mature and jin young wood with hopes
of lasting results.Having to resort to artificial aids to get the wood
to last.
Of course some woods,like buttonwood never have any natural
resistance to termites or wood borers.

It seems to be the clever/rude answers come from those who
live on artificial means.They must love playing in insecticide or
pesticides instead of simply spacing their bonsai for light and air
movement,and working with nature.Which is what the cold rooms
and mulching are supposed to be.
Stay well all.
Khaimraj
[West Indies/Caribbean]




-----Original Message-----
From: Ireneu Castillo
To:
Date: 22 January 2004 7:14
Subject: [IBC] Moon phases


Don't care, NIcolas, i'm not a newbie. I'm working bonsais since 1984, but
I never heard nothing
about moon phases and pruning until yesterday. That's the reason of my
question, to know more about
this.

I don't trouble with these jokes, but it's not a good signal, actually.


-Ireneu-


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