Biodynamic

Biodynamic Agriculture

by Wikipedia

Biodynamic agriculture is a form of alternative agriculture based on pseudoscientific and esoteric concepts initially developed in 1924 by Rudolf Steiner (1861–1925).It was the first of the organic farming movements. It treats soil fertility, plant growth, and livestock care as ecologically interrelated tasks, emphasizing spiritual and mystical perspectives.

Biodynamics has much in common with other organic approaches – it emphasizes the use of manures and composts and excludes the use of synthetic (artificial) fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides on soil and plants. Methods unique to the biodynamic approach include its treatment of animals, crops, and soil as a single system, an emphasis from its beginnings on local production and distribution systems, its use of traditional and development of new local breeds and varieties. Some methods use an astrological sowing and planting calendar. Biodynamic agriculture uses various herbal and mineral additives for compost additives and field sprays; these are prepared using methods that are more akin to sympathetic magic than agronomy, such as burying ground quartz stuffed into the horn of a cow, which are said to harvest "cosmic forces in the soil".

Biodynamic Farming: Poop in a Ram's Horn

by Renee Fisher 4/6/14 HUFFPOST

LBL, plunk in the middle of her annual warm weather tour of local ice cream emporiums, hadn't been keeping up with the world of anything sprouting from the ground. LBL's friend continued explaining that the bread LBL's Now Husband was eating, as well as all the root vegetables LBL and Now Husband had consumed, grew in soil prepared with a ram's horns filled with poop.

LBL decided to do some hard research. She started with the Internet.

Alan Chadwick in the Budding Grove: Story Summary for a Documentary Film

by Elizabeth Lennard 17/8/18 COUNTERPANCH

In 1971, when I was a student at the University of California, Santa Cruz, I would wander through the campus Redwoods to a dense flower-filled garden and an adjoining small log cabin. A suntanned man in his early sixties, dressed only in shorts and armed with a simple spade, would barely look up from his work. When he ceased digging, he spoke in a fine British accent about a variety of subjects ranging from plants to literature to Greek philosophy.

Food Informants: A Week In The Life Of Rudy Marchesi, Biodynamic Wine Maker

by HUFFPOST 6/12/17

Rudy Marchesi assumed ownership of Montinore Estates in 2006, but has had a hand in the estate since 1992 when he lead the fine wine department of the distribution house of Allied Beverage. In 1998, he began consulting on Montinore's vineyard management, winemaking and marketing. He became Vice President of Operations in 2001 and President in 2003. Marchesi obtained the Demeter Biodynamic certificate in 2008, which certifies wines based on the strict principles of biodynamic farming. This process involves an organic approach that treats the soil with fermented manure, minerals and herbs.

Filmmakers Share the Roots of their Seed Documentary

by Independent Lens in Interviews 12/4/17 PBS

With SEED: The Untold Story, filmmakers Taggart Siegel and Jon Betz complete a trilogy of sorts, after The Real Dirt on Farmer John and The New York Times Critic Pick Queen of the Sun: What Are the Bees Telling Us, of films that put a very human face on the intersection of agriculture and ecology.  The beautifully shot SEED is “the rare documentary from filmmakers who are not just capable but also in love with their craft,” wrote Daphne Howland in the Village Voice. “The frightening beauty of SEED is the clarity with which it defines the mission of seed-savers — maintaining agricultural diversity for future generations, whatever the world they inherit,” adds Maitland McDonagh of Film Journal International. “It’s bluntly persuasive.”

California's Hidden Organic Wine Region

by Teresa Rodriguez 17/2/11 HUFFPOST

Less than two hours north of San Francisco is a tiny town called Hopland. As its name suggests, decades ago it was a bustling community of beer makers, but those glory days have passed and Hopland disappeared into oblivion. But with the rise of organic wines and biodynamic farming, Hopland once again is on the radar for foodies and wine connoisseurs.

Farm to Fork Across America: Cow Horns & Moonbeams, A Taste of Place

by Julie Ann Fineman 6/9/12 HUFFPOST

Horns, moonlight ceremonies, revered cow manure, timing by the solstice... these were some of the mystical elements of biodynamic farming we were exploring and questioning at the Benziger family winery. Our experience couldn't be further from our expectations. We left with an appreciation for harnessing the tools of nature based on ancient practices.

Down on the Wine Farm=

by Anneli Rufus 23/5/13 HUFFPOST

We don't normally think of them as such. We think of wine as the ultimate in elegance and chemical complexity, not simply to be quaffed but also to be very carefully and consciously and expertly sniffed and analyzed, its flavors and aromas so refined and rarefied, each bottle so unique, that unlike any other beverage wine can be sipped, then spat out unswallowed into jugs -- often the same jugs that are being spat into by many strangers simultaneously. This practice is considered respectful, normal and polite. Imagine doing that with Fresca, say, or milk.

The Yield of Magical Thinking: Better Agriculture Through Cosmic Rituals

by MotherJones

The making of Preparation 503 began just after dawn on a cold October morning at Stephen Decater’s Live Power Community Farm. As the sun rose over Northern California’s bucolic Round Valley, Decater waited near the barn where an 18-month-old Angus cross named Red was chewing his last breakfast. Although he seemed relaxed, this was a solemn affair for the 59-year-old Decater, who’s spent the last 23 years running his family’s 40-acre farm under the principles of biodynamics, an alternative organic farming method that attaches near-religious significance to otherwise mundane activities such as planting, harvesting, and slaughter.

Shoot for the moon: Can planting by the lunar calendar help a garden grow? Emma Townshend sees moon-power in action in Sussex

by INDEPENDENT 17/12/06

Oh, how times change, honestly. The other day I was trying to do some Christmas shopping in Selfridges and I realised that even in that temple of consumerism you can now buy biodynamic. Dr Haushka products are available on the beauty floor, with all their extraordinary scents and strict biodynamic planting principles; and then I spotted, from my position in the nearby Muji concession, that London's most glamorous store is now stocking copies of Gardening and Planting by the Moon 2007, by Nick Kollerstrom.

Full Lesson: Gardening the biodynamic way

by Biodynamic Association UK YouTube

Welcome to the wonderful world of biodynamic gardening and agriculture! Lynette West, Principal at the Biodynamic Education Centre Australia, takes the gardeners at Garden Organic UK through a biodynamics crash course. See the results and great feedback in this feature length video, and learn how powerful biodynamic agriculture and gardening really is.

A Beginners Guide to Biodynamic Gardening in February

by Danni in the Wild YouTube

New to biodynamic gardening practices? Join me for an afternoon in the allotment as I prep the garden for winter and show you what I will be sowing and when, alongside some tips for those new to biodynamic gardening principles.

Backyard Biodynamics | Volunteer Gardener

by Volunteer Gardener YouTube

We learn about biodynamic farming and its emphasis on creating a balanced and self-sustaining ecosystem. Jeff Poppen, a long-time practitioner, shares key elements involved in achieving a rich humus soil that in turn produces a rich humus soil that in turn produces a vitamin-rich harvest of food crops.

Biodynamic Preparations As Forces, Not Substance with Hugh Courtney

by Living Web Farms YouTube

Join a renowned leader in biodynamic agriculture for an in-depth exploration of the power of the biodynamic agricultural preparations. In this workshop, Hugh Courtney will introduce the fundamentals and purposes of the nine basic biodynamic preparations, given to the world by Rudolf Steiner in 1924. He will share wisdom and insights he has gathered in practice since 1976. Over the last 40 plus years, Hugh has taught hundreds of people how to make biodynamic preparations that work amazing transformations in soil and plants. As a believer in hands on and direct experience of these preparations, he will lead participants in this class on a journey, both in stirring the preps and in treating beds for planting, allowing them to witness the effects of the preps and of proper practice in their use. Hugh will also teach the basics of using biodynamic planting calendars to accomplish better results in garden and farm. He will also share practical exercises he has originated over many years of direct experience, including the Sequential Spray Technique to either attract or deter moisture, and the Tree Energizer Method.

Biodynamic No Dig Market Gardening with Charles

by Gardens for Life YouTube

In this video Charles from the Bullaun Ark Market Garden talks about biodynamic gardening and shows the results of taking advantage of more of the natural cycles. He creates an amazing abundance of giant vegetables and flowers with reduced maintenance.

Biodynamics: Healing The Earth

by Spotlight Features YouTube

Biodynamic Farming is a holistic, ethical, and ecological approach to food production that is rooted in the philosophical and scientific work of Dr. Rudolf Steiner.  Everything used on a biodynamic farm is created on the farm, and even mundane farm chores are synchronized with planetary movement. To its proponents, it’s also a vitally important step in healing our planet.

Biodynamic Farming Basics and How You can use them in Your Garden

by Learn Organic Gardening at GrowingYourGreens YouTube

John from http://www.growingyourgreens.com/ attends the 2nd annual heirloom expo taking place in Santa Rosa, California to share with you the Demeter Biodynamic Garden and Lounge.  In this episode you will discover the basics of biodynamic farming and how can use some of the principles in your own home garden to grow in accordance with nature.  After watching this episode you will learn how you can start improving your home garden today.

Biodynamic Ag for Beginners | Stewart Lundy

by Heart and Soil TV 2024 YouTube

Perennial Roots Farm has a market garden, small orchard, cattle, sheep, hogs, and more. The farm sells beef, lamb, pork, attends farmers markets, and offers a small CSA. Stewart studied biodynamics with Hugh Courtney and is an independent researcher, amateur alchemist, and spiritual practitioner. A major focus for him is showing individuals and communities how to provide their own fertility needs from within their own resources for the sake of individual and collective health, freedom, and creative expression. He also travels and gives workshops and presentations as well as consults with growers across the world. At the Josephine Porter Institute for Applied Biodynamics (JPI), he seeks to provide practical biodynamic knowledge, grow the JPI farm organism, and aid the global legacy of quality biodynamic preparations.