September 2027 has traditional planting windows for all three crop types under the almanac quarter-and-sign rule. Leafy and fruiting crops each get two windows, and root crops get one. Everything below is almanac tradition, not proven agronomy, and every time is Eastern (ET). The sections that follow give the dates, the Moon signs behind them and a full day-by-day table.
September 2027 at a glance
September 2027 opens in the first quarter, with the Moon 1% lit in Virgo on September 1. The Harvest Moon arrives on September 15 at 7:03 p.m. ET, in Pisces, and the month closes with the New Moon on September 29 at 10:36 p.m. ET.
According to almanac tradition, these are the planting windows of the month:
- Leafy crops (first quarter): September 2-5 (Moon in Libra/Scorpio), September 30 (Moon in Libra)
- Fruiting crops (second quarter): September 9-10 (Moon in Capricorn), September 14-15 (Moon in Pisces)
- Root crops, bulbs, perennials (third quarter): September 19-20 (Moon in Taurus)
Gardeners who plant by the Moon work from two rules at once. One is the quarter of the Moon, which the almanac ties to a type of crop. The other is the zodiac sign the Moon is passing through, which the convention labels fruitful, semi-fruitful or barren. A day only counts as a traditional planting day when both rules agree.
Treat all of this as custom. No effect of the Moon’s phase or sign on germination or yield has been established. The frost calendar and soil conditions where you live decide whether a crop can go into the ground at all. The Moon, if you follow it, only picks among days that are already open.
The Moon waxes from the start of the month until September 15, then wanes from September 16 until the New Moon on September 29. It starts waxing again on September 30. The fourth quarter, which runs from the Last Quarter on September 23 at 6:20 a.m. ET to that New Moon, is the stretch the tradition keeps for rest tasks. For the method behind these windows, see planting by the moon. Times here are Eastern, so convert them to your own time zone before you plan around an early-morning or late-evening change.
What to plant in September
The almanac convention does not ask which month it is. It sorts crops into three groups, one for each quarter of the Moon. Whether any of those crops can be planted in your yard in September depends on your state and on your local frost dates. The state planting guides on this site give the planting calendar for each state, so start there to choose a crop, then use the Moon windows below to choose among the days that fit.
Leafy crops
Tradition assigns leafy crops that bear above ground to the first quarter, from the New Moon to the First Quarter. The almanac lists lettuce, spinach, cabbage, broccoli and celery in this group.
Fruiting crops
The second quarter, from the First Quarter to the Full Moon, belongs to above-ground crops that carry their seed inside the fruit. The almanac names tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash and corn here.
Root crops, bulbs and perennials
The third quarter, from the Full Moon to the Last Quarter, is the one almanacs give to crops that grow below the surface. The standard list includes potatoes, carrots, onions, when to plant garlic by the moon and when to plant beets by the moon. The same quarter rule covers turnips, which have their own page: when to plant turnips by the moon. Each of those pages applies the convention to one crop and points back to the state guides for the planting season itself.
If you are planning past September, the month-by-month calendar for planting by the moon 2027 lays out every window for the year in the same format.
Moon phases in September 2027
| Phase | Date and time (ET) |
|---|---|
| First Quarter | September 7, 2:31 p.m. ET |
| Full Moon | September 15, 7:03 p.m. ET |
| Last Quarter | September 23, 6:20 a.m. ET |
| New Moon | September 29, 10:36 p.m. ET |
The Full Moon of the month is the Harvest Moon, the name used by the Old Farmer’s Almanac for this Full Moon. It falls on September 15 at 7:03 p.m. ET, with the Moon in Pisces. At noon ET that day the Moon is 100% lit and still counted as waxing, and the first waning day in the table is September 16.
The phases also mark the edges of the quarters used for planting. The second quarter runs from the First Quarter on September 7 to the Harvest Moon on September 15. The third quarter runs from that Full Moon to the Last Quarter on September 23. The first quarter that opens the month began with the previous New Moon, and the next one begins with the New Moon of September 29.
Traditional planting days in September 2027
The rule
According to almanac tradition, each type of crop goes in during its own quarter of the Moon. Within that quarter, the rule keeps the days when the Moon is in a sign the convention labels fruitful or semi-fruitful. This convention labels Cancer, Scorpio and Pisces fruitful, and Taurus, Libra and Capricorn semi-fruitful.
| Crop type | Quarter assigned by tradition | Days | Moon sign on those days |
|---|---|---|---|
| Leafy crops | First quarter | September 2-5 | Libra, then Scorpio |
| Leafy crops | First quarter | September 30 | Libra |
| Fruiting crops | Second quarter | September 9-10 | Capricorn |
| Fruiting crops | Second quarter | September 14-15 | Pisces |
| Root crops, bulbs, perennials | Third quarter | September 19-20 | Taurus |
Reading the windows
Days in the table are read at noon ET. The Moon changes sign during the day, so the first or last day of a window may be partial. The Libra window that opens the month, for example, begins when the Moon enters Libra on September 2 at 1:07 a.m. ET. The exact change times are in the next section.
The Harvest Moon also cuts the fruiting window short at its far end. The second quarter closes at 7:03 p.m. ET on September 15, so that day is only a window until the evening.
Several days are left out because the two rules disagree. The Moon is in Virgo on September 1 and in Sagittarius on September 6 and 7, which are first-quarter days in signs this convention labels barren. September 8 is a second-quarter day, but the Moon is still in Sagittarius, and September 11 to 13 fall in Aquarius, another barren sign in the convention. In the third quarter, September 16 to 18 are in Aries and September 21 and 22 are in Gemini, both labeled barren. The convention is not unanimous, and sources differ on Virgo, Sagittarius and Aquarius.
The fourth quarter has no planting window this month. According to the almanac, that stretch is for weeding, pruning, turning the soil and composting.
Moon sign changes in September 2027
The Moon is in Virgo when the month begins and in Libra on September 30 at noon. In between, it changes sign thirteen times (tropical zodiac). The last column gives the biodynamic day type used in Maria Thun’s calendar, which is a separate system from the almanac quarter rule. Both labels are shown so you can match whichever calendar you follow.
| Date and time (ET) | Moon enters | Almanac label | Biodynamic day type |
|---|---|---|---|
| September 2, 1:07 a.m. ET | Libra | Semi-fruitful | Flower |
| September 4, 3:44 a.m. ET | Scorpio | Fruitful | Leaf |
| September 6, 10:01 a.m. ET | Sagittarius | Barren | Fruit |
| September 8, 8:11 p.m. ET | Capricorn | Semi-fruitful | Root |
| September 11, 8:49 a.m. ET | Aquarius | Barren | Flower |
| September 13, 9:38 p.m. ET | Pisces | Fruitful | Leaf |
| September 16, 8:56 a.m. ET | Aries | Barren | Fruit |
| September 18, 6:05 p.m. ET | Taurus | Semi-fruitful | Root |
| September 21, 1:05 a.m. ET | Gemini | Barren | Flower |
| September 23, 6:02 a.m. ET | Cancer | Fruitful | Leaf |
| September 25, 9:00 a.m. ET | Leo | Barren | Fruit |
| September 27, 10:28 a.m. ET | Virgo | Barren | Root |
| September 29, 11:30 a.m. ET | Libra | Semi-fruitful | Flower |
The almanac labels in the third column are the common convention of moon-sign gardening almanacs, and sources differ on Virgo, Sagittarius and Aquarius. In the biodynamic system, root days are Taurus, Virgo and Capricorn, flower days are Gemini, Libra and Aquarius, leaf days are Cancer, Scorpio and Pisces, and fruit days are Aries, Leo and Sagittarius.
Two changes land inside the Harvest Moon stretch. The Moon enters Pisces on September 13 at 9:38 p.m. ET, two days before the Full Moon, and moves into Aries on September 16 at 8:56 a.m. ET, the morning after.
Day by day: phase and Moon sign
The table gives one row per day. Moon sign, quarter and percent lit are all read at noon ET. Quarter 1 runs from New Moon to First Quarter, quarter 2 from First Quarter to Full Moon, quarter 3 from Full Moon to Last Quarter, and quarter 4 from Last Quarter to New Moon.
| Date | Moon sign | Quarter | Percent lit | Waxing or waning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 1 | Virgo | 1 | 1% | Waxing |
| September 2 | Libra | 1 | 5% | Waxing |
| September 3 | Libra | 1 | 12% | Waxing |
| September 4 | Scorpio | 1 | 20% | Waxing |
| September 5 | Scorpio | 1 | 29% | Waxing |
| September 6 | Sagittarius | 1 | 39% | Waxing |
| September 7 | Sagittarius | 1 | 49% | Waxing |
| September 8 | Sagittarius | 2 | 59% | Waxing |
| September 9 | Capricorn | 2 | 68% | Waxing |
| September 10 | Capricorn | 2 | 77% | Waxing |
| September 11 | Aquarius | 2 | 84% | Waxing |
| September 12 | Aquarius | 2 | 90% | Waxing |
| September 13 | Aquarius | 2 | 95% | Waxing |
| September 14 | Pisces | 2 | 98% | Waxing |
| September 15 | Pisces | 2 | 100% | Waxing |
| September 16 | Aries | 3 | 99% | Waning |
| September 17 | Aries | 3 | 97% | Waning |
| September 18 | Aries | 3 | 93% | Waning |
| September 19 | Taurus | 3 | 86% | Waning |
| September 20 | Taurus | 3 | 78% | Waning |
| September 21 | Gemini | 3 | 69% | Waning |
| September 22 | Gemini | 3 | 59% | Waning |
| September 23 | Cancer | 4 | 47% | Waning |
| September 24 | Cancer | 4 | 36% | Waning |
| September 25 | Leo | 4 | 26% | Waning |
| September 26 | Leo | 4 | 16% | Waning |
| September 27 | Virgo | 4 | 8% | Waning |
| September 28 | Virgo | 4 | 3% | Waning |
| September 29 | Libra | 4 | 0% | Waning |
| September 30 | Libra | 1 | 1% | Waxing |
Noon readings can look odd next to the phase times. The Moon shows 100% lit and waxing on September 15, although the Full Moon does not arrive until 7:03 p.m. ET that evening. It shows 0% lit and waning on September 29, because the New Moon falls at 10:36 p.m. ET, and the first waxing row is September 30.
Questions about September 2027
When is the full moon in September 2027?
The Full Moon, the Harvest Moon, is on September 15 at 7:03 p.m. ET, with the Moon in Pisces.
When is the new moon in September 2027?
The New Moon falls on September 29 at 10:36 p.m. ET. The Moon is in Libra on that date, having entered the sign at 11:30 a.m. ET.
Which days are the traditional days for root crops?
According to almanac tradition, the root-crop window for bulbs, perennials and root crops is September 19-20, with the Moon in Taurus. Root crops such as garlic, beets and turnips follow that window in the almanac, but your state’s planting calendar decides whether the ground is ready.
Related guides
- when to plant spinach by the moon
- when to plant spring bulbs by the moon
- when to plant cover crops by the moon
- when to plant grass seed by the moon
- planting on a full moon
- planting during the new moon
- when to plant kale by the moon
- when to plant lettuce by the moon
- when to plant peas by the moon
- when to plant radishes by the moon
- when to plant strawberries by the moon
- when to plant herbs by the moon
- when to plant hydrangeas by the moon
- moon sign gardening