Southern hemisphere

May 2027

Moon planting calendar — 7 root days, 8 leaf days, 8 flower days and 8 fruit days.

🌏 Southern hemisphereSwitch to northern
🌕

Full moon

20 May

🌑

New moon

6 May

🌱

Good sowing days

11 days

The moon passes through all twelve signs of the zodiac each month, and biodynamic growers match what they sow to the element the moon is travelling through. In May 2027 the moon is ascending in southern skies — the traditional time for sowing and grafting — on 13 days. The strongest sowing dates fall on the 10, 11, 13 and 8 other days. Days marked in the table below sit near a lunar node or perigee, when traditional practice is to leave the soil alone.

Southern hemisphere. Moon phases and day types are the same the world over — a root day in Sussex is a root day in Canterbury. What changes is that ascending and descending are reversed, because the moon climbs southern skies as its declination moves south, and the sowing lists follow southern seasons.

Day-by-day moon planting calendar for May 2027 — southern hemisphere
DateMoon phaseSignDay typeSow or rest
1Sat Waning crescent26% Aquarius🌸 Flower DayDescending — transplant and prune
2Sun Waning crescent17% Aquarius🌸 Flower DayDescending — transplant and prune
3Mon Waning crescent10% Pisces🥬 Leaf DayDescending — transplant and prune
4Tue Waning crescent5% Pisces🥬 Leaf DayDescending — transplant and prune
5Wed Waning crescent1% Aries🍅 Fruit DayDescending — transplant and prune
6Thu New moon0% Aries🍅 Fruit DayDescending — transplant and prune
7Fri Waxing crescent1% Taurus🌱 Root DayDescending — transplant and prune
8Sat Waxing crescent6% Taurus🌱 Root DayDescending — transplant and prune
9Sun Waxing crescent12% Gemini🌸 Flower DayPerigee — avoid sowing
10Mon Waxing crescent21% Gemini🌸 Flower DayAscending — sow and graft
11Tue Waxing crescent31% Cancer🥬 Leaf DayAscending — sow and graft
12Wed Waxing crescent42% Cancer🥬 Leaf DayLunar node — avoid sowing
13Thu First quarter53% Leo🍅 Fruit DayAscending — sow and graft
14Fri Waxing gibbous64% Leo🍅 Fruit DayAscending — sow and graft
15Sat Waxing gibbous75% Leo🍅 Fruit DayAscending — sow and graft
16Sun Waxing gibbous84% Virgo🌱 Root DayAscending — sow and graft
17Mon Waxing gibbous91% Virgo🌱 Root DayAscending — sow and graft
18Tue Waxing gibbous96% Libra🌸 Flower DayAscending — sow and graft
19Wed Waxing gibbous99% Libra🌸 Flower DayAscending — sow and graft
20Thu Full moon100% Scorpio🥬 Leaf DayAscending — sow and graft
21Fri Waning gibbous99% Scorpio🥬 Leaf DayAscending — sow and graft
22Sat Waning gibbous96% Sagittarius🍅 Fruit DayDescending — transplant and prune
23Sun Waning gibbous91% Sagittarius🍅 Fruit DayDescending — transplant and prune
24Mon Waning gibbous85% Sagittarius🍅 Fruit DayDescending — transplant and prune
25Tue Waning gibbous78% Capricorn🌱 Root DayDescending — transplant and prune
26Wed Waning gibbous69% Capricorn🌱 Root DayLunar node — avoid sowing
27Thu Waning gibbous60% Capricorn🌱 Root DayDescending — transplant and prune
28Fri Last quarter51% Aquarius🌸 Flower DayDescending — transplant and prune
29Sat Waning crescent41% Aquarius🌸 Flower DayDescending — transplant and prune
30Sun Waning crescent31% Pisces🥬 Leaf DayDescending — transplant and prune
31Mon Waning crescent22% Pisces🥬 Leaf DayDescending — transplant and prune

What to sow in May

🌱 Root Days7 in May

Best for root vegetables — carrots, beetroot, potatoes, onions

🌸 Flower Days8 in May

Best for flowering plants, brassicas and herbs

🍅 Fruit Days8 in May

Best for fruiting plants — tomatoes, courgettes, beans, apples

Ready to harvest in May

Want the reasoning behind all this? The biodynamic growing guide covers the day types, the eight preparations and where the practice came from.