#04 Time Line
Photo Credits: John Vermeulen
It is that time of the year where we see less light, the temperatures are dropping and the sun is moving closer to its lowest glimpse of the horizon. On December 21, as with every year, the shortest day- the winter solstice- will pass by once more and then three days later, the sun will start crawling up the skies towards that long awaited spring time which will start three months later.
Even in the tropics it can get rather cool, and when the humidity is high, it can fool you in believing that it might be ten degrees Celsius whilst it is twenty-one degrees. And for us being at the foot of a mountain does amplify things even more due to the winds and cloud development. At the same time, this is where the magic begins if you want to grow unique food or in a different way, create amazing garden flavours.
Currently the coffee berries are ripening, their green color fading into a dark deep red that can even turn dark purple, this is when the sugars are the ultimate height for full aroma blends. So picking the bean at the right time can make that much of a change in the outcome of that soothing cup in the morning. But the roast is of equal importance – getting the coffee beans to heat up and transform those sugar cells into a delicious caramelized aroma and are released as the pot brews.
We recently got a scare when a tropical storm was developing on the east coast of the island line and I was holding my breath as the satellite images drew the images of the cyclone as it approached towards us, its international name was Hagupit for everybody out there, but it was called ‘Ruby’ in the Philippines. That does sometimes throw me off, people might be talking of a phenomena and I can not relate due to renaming of things, does that make life easier?
What was so very unique about this event of a potential mega-typhoon growing was that it was rising in conjunction with the moon, the three quarter was going to make full face in the landfall of the event. What this spells out, if you pay close attention to the weather, is that the coinciding motions start to create a pattern, the rains of that period will keep on flowing through for the next ten days to two weeks.
And as the tides flow in and out on a daily pace, there is a subtle change in the rise of the currents; that is due to moon drawing water.
How does this translate to the plants that grow all around us?
If we could choose the best time to sprout beans, the start of the new moon would draw the best results. This is due to the gravitational force of the Earth, the roots of the sprout are drawn down, and as the moon increases it’s force upward, so will the stem develop stronger. After the full moon, there is a balance of the upper and lower part of the plant, a strong energy flow is present and in the last quarter, the plant is in a state of rest.
We can see that everything is related to energy and water, and if we were to relate it to harvesting fruits, our best choice in time to get the ripest and fullest nectar out of nature would be on or around three days after full moon, all the moisture is drawn up and stored in the crown.
If you were to prune a tree, the best time would be at new moon, since the life force is stored in the lower root system and so the forces would not be lost too much in the removed branches.
When harvesting a seed like rice or lentils, the new moon would benefit us as the roots have all the water stored and hence, we do not have to dry the seeds too long as they are drier than during the full moon.
Do not mistake moisture with life essence, as the plant produces fruit for future reproduction and nature never holds back to giving itself the best it can to accomplish this goal.
The amazing lesson we can observe from nature is that it does not judge, it only wants to give it’s best.
