Pink Moon – April’s Full Moon

Originally written by Leo on April 27, 2021. Updated 2025

Once someone said…a full Moon in April brings frost. If the full Moon rises pale, expect rain.
Well. It’s April, and about halfway through the month, the thunderstorms of March are beginning to subside, and the wind picks up.
Seeds are being blown about on the breezes, spreading life all around from one place to another and, not by chance, this lunar cycle is often known as the Seed Moon. Trees have buds, spring daffodils and tulips abound, and the birds are nesting once more.
Just like March, this is a time of conception and fertility and new growth.
If you believe in magic, April is a good time to work on new beginnings, whether you’re hoping to develop new relationships, grow professionally, or create new projects for yourself. It’s the time to stop planning, and start doing.

As this month’s full moon is called the Seed Moon, do some planting magic, plan out your garden, and get your seedlings started and, because April’s moon is also associated with the wind, now is a good time to explore the symbolism of the winds that blow in from each of the four directions.
For instance, the North Wind is associated with cold, destruction, and change (and not always the good kind of change). If you’ve got some bad stuff looming on the horizon, now’s the time to work through it.
The South Wind, in contrast, is connected to warmth and the element of fire, which in turn is associated with passion and power. Fire is a destroyer, but it also creates.
The winds of the East are often associated with new beginnings; in particular, focus on new careers, education, or other aspects of your life that are related to communication and your intellect. Finally, the West Wind is tied to the cleansing and healing powers of water, so if you need to get rid of things that are causing you heartache or pain, let the West Wind blow them right out of your life!

Trees, including hazel, forsythia, lilac, and willow, are beginning to bud in April, and represent the beginnings of new life for the coming summer.
Gods and goddesses like Ishtar, Tawaret, Venus, Herne, and Cernunnos all represent the greening of the earth, and the coming of the fertility season, which is right around the corner.
Herbs like dandelion, milkweed, dogwood, fennel, and dill are associated with air, in part because their seed pods will blow away and spread on a breezy day.
In fact, the element of air is strongly tied to this month, because of the winds that may pop up out of nowhere.
April does tend to be a wet month in many areas, so now is a good time to gather up rainwater.
According to popular beliefs, rain that accumulates during a soft, light drizzle can be used in rituals for calming and meditation, while the water that fills your jar in the middle of a late-night, thunder-and-lightning deluge is going to have a lot of energy in it.

This moon is also known as the Pink Moon and, although we wish this name had to do with the color of the Moon, the reality is not quite as mystical or mysterious.
In truth, April’s full Moon often corresponded with the early springtime blooms of a certain wildflower native to eastern North America, Wild Ground Phlox, also known as Moss Phlox (Phlox subulata) as they cover the ground like a pink blanket, that often bloom around the time of April’s Full Moon.
But in April Moon names, references to spring abound. From Breaking Ice Moon (Algonquin) and Moon When the Streams Are Again Navigable (Dakota) that reference the melting ice and increased mobility of the early spring season, to Budding Moon of Plants and Shrubs (Tlingit) and Moon of the Red Grass Appearing (Oglala), that speak to the plant growth that will soon kick into high gear.
Other names refer to the reappearance of certain animals, including Moon When the Ducks Come Back (Lakota), Moon When the Geese Lay Eggs (Dakota), and Frog Moon (Cree).
It is called also the Full Sprouting Grass Moon, the Egg Moon and, among US coastal Native American tribes, the Full Fish Moon or Sucker Moon (Anishinaabe) because it was the time to harvest sucker fish, which return to streams or lake shallows to spawn. According to legend, now is the time when this fish comes back from the spirit world to purify bodies of water and the creatures living in them, and this name may also be applied to the February Moon, to honor the sacrifice of the sucker fish in order to feed the Anishinaabe peoples, traditionally helping them to survive the winter.
In the Celtic Tree tradition this one is called Saille or Willow. And in Nordic traditions, (which is governed by half months rather than full months), they divide this moon by Man (Human) and Lagu (Flowing Water).

→ Step outside on Saturday, April 12, 2025 to witness April’s full Pink Moon!
This Paschal Moon marks the first full Moon of spring and is used to determine the date of Easter. This month also brings a micromoon.
More precisely, it occurs on April 12 at 8:22 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT), which corresponds to April 13, 2025, at 00:22 Greenwich Mean Time (GMT), just before reaching apogee.
Apogee refers to the point when the Moon is farthest from Earth and, when the full Moon occurs near this point, it’s classified as a “micromoon”, the opposite of a supermoon.
Since this full Moon happens about 22 hours before apogee, it will appear slightly smaller and dimmer than usual.
Why does the Moon’s distance vary?
Well, the Moon orbits Earth in an elliptical path, with one side closer and the other farther. While this affects its size and brightness, the difference is too subtle to notice with the naked eye. What often makes the Moon appear larger is the “Moon Illusion”, an optical effect that occurs when it’s near the horizon.
Since this micromoon will be high in the sky, it likely won’t appear as large or imposing as a full Moon closer to the horizon.

In addition, did you know that the full Moon sets the date for Easter?
April’s full Moon has religious significance as well. In Christianity, it’s known as the Lenten Moon if it’s the last full Moon of winter, before the spring equinox, or the Paschal Full Moon if it’s the first ecclesiastical full Moon of spring, after the equinox.
This year, April’s ecclesiastical full Moon (the 14th day in the lunar cycle, which falls on April 12, 2025) occurs after the ecclesiastical spring equinox (always set on March 21, whereas the astronomical spring equinox is on March 20, 2025), making it the Paschal Moon.
And, as the first full Moon of the season, it will determine the date of Easter this year!