The Celestial Garden

Growing Herbs, Vegetables, and Flowers in Sync with the Moon and Zodiac

Jane Hawley Stevens, Chelsea Green Publishing (DEC 7) Softcover $29.95 (240pp), 978-1-64502-213-8 GARDENING

In The Celestial Garden, Jane Hawley Stevens reveals how gardening timed to the rhythms of the celestial bodies helps plants, and gardeners, to thrive.

Stevens’s inspiring, practical book uses a potent mix of ancient wisdom, modern science, and reverence for nature to draw clear connections between what’s happening in the sky, in the soil, in plants, and in humans. Bringing more than thirty-five years as a gardener, herbalist, and student of astrology to the task, she makes a compelling case that the moon’s movement through the constellations provides a calendar of the best times for each stage of the gardening process and explains the how and why of each step.

Stevens’s astrological information is clear, precise, and accessible, with revelations of how one’s horoscope impacts their gardening style or indicates which plants are likely to thrive in their care. Enhanced with engaging personal stories, as of Stevens finding her farm in a moving example of synchronicity and human kindness, and colorful photographs and charts, this is a guide to self-knowledge.

While conversational in style and touched with humor, the book also warns of a dangerous “new normal” that accepts the presence of microplastics and chemicals in water, beaches too polluted for swimming, degraded soils, and air that comes with health warnings. It encourages a mind-shift from an egocentric, dominator relationship with nature toward relationships that are humble and in alignment with cosmic energies. Organic and biodynamic gardening practices are touted for contributing to a healthier planet, bountiful harvests, and increased awareness of the cosmic energies that bind all together in the web of life.

The Celestial Garden is a manual for gardeners that demonstrates the benefits of tapping into the transformative power of being attuned to the rhythms of the moon and the planets.