Jo, thats amazing —about how to predict the path of the sun via the moon. Thank you! Best regards, -Elaine. > On Dec 5, 2019, at 12:01 PM, Jo&Greg <sun-coast-pearl@telus.net> wrote: > > Well, yes, it can make a huge difference, and sometimes you don't know in > advance because we don't always live in one house, and sometimes have to move > the residence when isn't conducive to knowing what will grow where on a > property. Horticulture's technical term is called the "sun window." Folks who > build solar homes use sun window calculations as a major builder's tool. > > > > It is the rectangle of light as well as the partial and full shadows in your > yard throughout the year. Here, further north (we're at 49th parallel) it is > quite important to know your sun and shade patterns. We don't get much -- > sometimes not any -- snow, and only a few days of freezing, but I once had a > side yard that got absolutely no sun from November through February, so > sometimes that garden froze hard for over 2-3 weeks because there was no sun to > thaw it out. No vegetable garden there! The few feet inside or outside the sun > window and the few temperature degrees difference makes all the difference to a > half hardy plant. It is the problem in reverse during the hot season . these are > called "sun/heat days" which is when the sun hits a plant and/or the temperature > is above 25 degrees before 1000 hrs. in the morning. Pollinators will stop > flying that day, and some pollen becomes non-viable. If your plant has a very > short fertile time, a sun day again makes all the difference as to whether or > not it will set fruit and seed. Some plants -- tomatillo is an example -- will > drop all its blossoms and not reset them that season. > > > > If you feel like a Luddite and/or want to have fun with your kids, you draw a > rough diagram of your property, then calculate your sun window by going out any > time on the 3 nights of the full moon and watch its path. Once at rising ( O > degrees azimuth) to zenith at midnight back to the AM setting. Why? The path of > the full moon is the path of the sun 6 months later. The more full moons you > watch rise and/or set, the more accurate measurement you'll have. This is very > handy if you plan to build a greenhouse or Lanai, put in a new garden the next > spring, or just bought some half hardy bulbs in late autumn and are not sure if > they need to go in one spot, or a spot "3 feet over to the left." You can find > good info on milkwood.net or findmyshadow.com. and both sites allow you to > calculate your sun window from the site. > > Jo Canning > > Vancouver Island > > _______________________________________________ > pbs mailing list > pbs@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net > http://lists.pacificbulbsociety.net/cgi-bin/… _______________________________________________ pbs mailing list pbs@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net http://lists.pacificbulbsociety.net/cgi-bin/…