Moon Phases October 2020 in Essen, Germany

This month's full moon: the Harvest Moon

The full moon closest to the September equinox, which can fall in September or early October.

Its name comes from the extra evening light it gave farmers finishing the harvest. Around the equinox the angle of the ecliptic to the horizon is shallow, so the moon rises soon after sunset for several nights in a row. It is the only full moon name defined by the equinox rather than the month.

Lore

For centuries farmers relied on the Harvest Moon's extra evening light to bring in the crops after sunset. The effect is real: near the equinox the Moon's path meets the horizon at a shallow angle, so it rises soon after sunset for several nights in a row. Harvest festivals across the northern hemisphere, from Canadian Thanksgiving to the Mid-Autumn Festival, sit close to this moon.

Trivia

• The Harvest Moon can fall in September or early October; it is the only full moon defined by the equinox rather than the month.
• 'Shine On, Harvest Moon' was a 1908 vaudeville hit that is still recorded today.
• The Mid-Autumn Festival is held on the day of this full moon in the Chinese lunar calendar.

All Harvest Moon dates ›

This month's full moon: the Blue Moon

A second full moon in one calendar month. It happens about every two and a half years and has nothing to do with color.

The monthly definition became popular after a 1946 Sky and Telescope article misread the Maine Farmers' Almanac, which used an older seasonal rule: the third full moon in a season that has four. Both definitions are in use today. The phrase "once in a blue moon" predates both and simply means rarely.

Lore

The phrase once in a blue moon is older than any astronomical definition and originally meant something absurd or never. The modern rule, a second full moon in one calendar month, spread from a 1946 magazine article and a 1980s radio programme. Genuinely blue-looking moons have been seen after huge volcanic eruptions and forest fires, when smoke particles scatter red light.

Trivia

• Monthly Blue Moons happen about every 2.7 years.
• The older seasonal rule calls the third full moon of a season with four the Blue Moon.
• After Krakatoa erupted in 1883 the Moon appeared blue or green for nearly two years.

All Blue Moon dates ›

Gardening by the Moon in October 2020

• Oct 1 · Fruiting crops: Sow above-ground crops whose seeds form inside the fruit: beans, peas, tomatoes, peppers, squash, cucumbers, melons. Graft, repot and sow lawns.
• Oct 2 to Oct 9 · Root crops: Plant root crops and anything that overwinters: carrots, beets, potatoes, onions, garlic, bulbs, perennials, trees and shrubs. Prune to slow growth.
• Oct 10 to Oct 16 · Rest and tend: Rest days for the soil: weed, cultivate, turn compost, harvest crops for storage, prune to discourage regrowth, prepare beds. Avoid sowing.
• Oct 17 to Oct 23 · Leafy crops: Sow leafy crops and above-ground annuals whose seeds form outside the fruit: lettuce, spinach, cabbage, broccoli, celery, herbs. Transplant seedlings. Mow to encourage growth.
• Oct 24 to Oct 31 · Fruiting crops: Sow above-ground crops whose seeds form inside the fruit: beans, peas, tomatoes, peppers, squash, cucumbers, melons. Graft, repot and sow lawns.

Full planting calendar for October › · How gardening by the moon works

How to read this moon calendar

Each day shows the Moon as it looks from Essen at midday local time, with the illuminated percentage, moonrise and moonset. Days with a principal phase show the exact local time the phase occurs. Because the Moon moves about 50 minutes later each day, roughly once a month there is a date with no moonrise or no moonset at all.

The eight phases of the Moon