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48 HOOK MAGAZINE | 2024 The Celes0al Garden by Jane Hawley Stevens sync with the moon's phases since the inven3on of agriculture. It is infor- ma3on, however, that has been for- go4en in humanity's drive to control nature. Modern growers don't want to be told when they need to plant or weed, they want to do it on their own schedule. Stevens reminds us that Mother Nature is, in fact, the most ac- complished gardener, and we would do well to listen to her advice and to play by her rules. A#er an introduc3on to the Moon's cycle and influences, Stevens dives into the signs of the Zodiac. Specifically, she looks at the Moon's journey through the twelve constella- 3ons over the course of a month. Each lunar passage through one of the twelve Zodiac signs lasts between two and a half and three days, and provides gardeners with a helpful rhythm to follow in formula3ng their overall gardening schedule. Once the reader is made familiar with this con- cept, the author spends chapters ex- ploring the best ac3vi3es to do with your garden during each of the four main phases of the moon. In the end, Stevens reminds us that nothing happens in a vacuum. Celes- 3al Gardening prac3ces reconnect us with nature and the natural rhythm of life, and we ignore these prac3ces at our own risk. Celestial Gardening practices reconnect us with nature and the natural rhythm of life, and we ignore these practices at our own risk. Look for the beautiful Monarch butterflies too that arrive mid to late June as the summer solstice begins, meanwhile protecting their habitat of milkweeds in fields and roadsides. OUR MAGNIFICENT BUTTERFLIES As a natural skep3c, I ap- proach anything having to do with astrology warily. So it was with much trepida3on that I began Jane Hawley Stevens' new book, The Celes- 3al Garden. Seriously? A book about aligning your gardening with the moon and the Zodiac constella3ons? However, once I began to read, an inter- es3ng thing happened. I be- came engrossed. My mind was opened. I became some- thing of a believer. Not par3cularly a believer in the Zodiac mind you, but a believer in Stevens' methods and work and the reasoning behind them. Celes3al Gar- den is a tome filled with wis- dom which has been collected over decades of work in the field. She is not espousing some interes3ng new theory, she is passing along her accumulated knowl- edge on a subject in which she is an expert. Her gardens are her proof of concept, and any gardener would be wise to read this book and learn from her experience. The main concept of plant- ing by the Moon's rhythm is one of gravity. We all know the moon dictates the 3des in the oceans, but Stevens ex- plains that 3dal forces are also at work in the groundwa- ter that feeds the root sys- tems of all plants. Certain plants do be4er when planted at certain 3mes of the month due to the natural ris- ing and falling of the water table. Ironically, this is old news. Mankind has been plan3ng and harves3ng in

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