Biodynamic agriculture

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Biodynamic agriculture, or biodynamics comprises an ecological and sustainable system of agricultural production, particularly of food for humans that claims to respect all creation. It is based on the teachings of Rudolf Steiner, particularly eight lectures given by him in Schloss Koberwitz in Silesia, Germany in 1924 (nowadays close to Wrocław, Poland), shortly before his death. At the time Steiner believed that the introduction of chemical farming was a major problem. He found that seeds had dramatically less vitality and that land that previously grew the same crops year after year now had to rotate crops in order to avoid problems. Plants which formerly gathered their own nutrients and minerals from the earth now had become dependent on the dead chemical fertilizers for their minerals and as humans ate these weak plants they also lost their will. The term "biologically dynamic" or "biodynamic" was however not invented by Steiner, but by his adherents. It includes many of the ideas of organic farming (but predates the term) and has as a core focus mystical anthroposophical ideas of the soil and the life on and in it as a living, sentient system.

Steiner was convinced that the food in his society was degrading, and he believed the source of the problem was artificial fertilizers and pesticides, however he did not believe this was because of chemical or biological properties relating to the substances involved, but for spiritual shortcomings in these substances. Steiner considered the world and everything living in it as primarily spiritual in nature, the physical and thus chemical or biological processes involved were secondary. He also believed that living matter was different from dead matter, a viewpoint commonly referred to as vitalism. Many of Steiner's writings describe energy flows radiated from the earth akin to the so-called Odic force.

Another aspect of the idea is that the farm as a whole is a living system, and therefore should be closed self-nourishing system, which the preparations nourish. Disease of organisms is not to be tackled in isolation but is a symptom of problems in the whole organism.

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Fertilizers

Steiner prescribed eight different preparations for fertilizers which were allowed for use in biodynamic agriculture, and gave great details of how these were to be prepared. The substances are numbered 500 through 507, whereof the first two are used for preparing fields whereas the latter six are used for making compost:

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Field preparations

Field preparations, for stimulating humus formation:

  • 500: (horn-manure) a humus mixture prepared by stuffing cow manure into the horn of a cow, bury this into the ground (40-60 cm below the surface) in the autumn and let it decompose during a winter.
  • 501: Crushed powdered quartz that can be mixed with 500 but usually prepared on it own (mixture of 1 tablespoon of quartz powder to 250 litres of water) The mixture is sprayed under very low pressure over the crop during the wet season to prevent fungal diseases. It should be sprayed on an overcast day to prevent burning of the leaves.

Both 500 and 501 is used on fields by stirring the contents of a horn in 40-60 litres of water for an hour and whirl it in different directions every second minute. About 4 horns are used for each hectare of soil.

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Compost preparations

Compost preparations, used for preparing compost:

  • 502: Yarrow blossoms (Achillea millefolium) are stuffed into urinary bladders from Cervus elaphus, Red Deers, placed in the sun during summer, buried in earth during winter and retrieved in the spring.
  • 503: Chamomile blossoms (Chamomilla officinalis) are stuffed into small intestines from cattle buried in humus-rich earth in the autumn and retrieved in the spring.
  • 504: Stinging nettle (Urtica dioca, and the whole plant in full bloom) is stuffed together under ground surrounded on all sides by peat for a year.
  • 505: Oak bark (Quercus robur) is chopped in small pieces, placed inside the skull of some domesticated animal, surrounded by peat and buried in earth in a place where lots of rain water runs by.
  • 506: Dandelion flowers (Taraxacum officinale) is stuffed into peritoneum from some cattle is buried in earth during winter and retrieved in the spring.
  • 507: Valerian flowers (Valeriana officinalis) is extracted into water.

One to three grams (a teaspoon) of each preparation is added to a dung heap by digging 50 cm deep holes with a distance of 2 meters from each other, except for the 507 preparation, which is stirred into 5 litres of water and sprayed over the entire compost surface. All preparations are thus used in homeopathic quantities, and the only intent is to strengthen the life forces of the farm, i.e. the preparations fulfill spiritual goals and nothing else.

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Homeopathic preparations

The standard preparations 500-507 are added at a rate of 1 part preparation to 9 parts distilled water for an X (or D) potency or 1 part preparation to 99 parts distilled water for a C potency. They are successed according to standard homeopathic practices. According to practitioners, this has the effect of transferring the energetic patterns from the preparations into the distilled water. The first step is called the mother tincture and 1 part of the mother tincture is added to 9 or 99 parts distilled water and successed to create a 1X or 1C dilution. Repeat again and it becomes a 2X or 2C dilution. The process is repeated as many times as necessary in order to create an appropriate dilution (ie. 30C). The correct dilution is up to the experience and intuition of the farmer just as it is up to the homeopathic doctor to give his patients the right dilution of medicine to treat them.

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Dealing with pests and weeds

Biodynamic agriculture use techniques reminiscent of the fertilization for pest control and weed control, most of these techniques include using the ashes of a pest or weed that has been trapped or picked from the fields and ceremonially burnt. Steiner sees pests and weeds as a result of imbalance between life forces emanated from the earth.

Since Steiner viewed the full moon, Venus and Mercury as cosmic powers influencing the fertility of plants, the biodynamic techniques for pest control involves blocking the fertility influence from said planets on different pests. Steiner dictates that this is achieved in different ways for pests and weeds:

  • Weeds are combated by collecting seeds from the weeds and burning them above a wooden flame. The ashes from the seeds is then spread on the fields, which will according to biodynamic philosophy block the influence from the full moon on the particular weed and make it infertile.
  • Pests such as insects or Apodemus (field mice) have more complex processes associated with them depending on what pest is to be targeted. For example field mice are to be countered by deploying ashes prepared from field mice skin when Venus is in the scorpius.
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Skeptical view

Opponents of biodynamic agriculture argue that there is nothing to be gained by following Steiner's teachings, and that similar or equal results can be obtained using standard organic farming principles. In particular, the use of religious and philosophical concepts, for example those of balance and harmony, beyond the conventional critical thinking of the Western world stand out as points of contention - as well as of interest.

Many organic farmers believe that the practices of biodynamic agriculture more resemble alchemy or magic akin to geomancy. Even though organic agriculture emerged at least in part from biodynamic agriculture, it is more of a burden to current practitioners of organic agriculture because many of the criticisms surrounding the supernatural characteristics of biodynamic agriculture are often conflated with the practices of organic agriculture.

There have been some attempts to scientifically compare organic and biodynamic farming, and others comparing biodynamic and conventional farming. The differences with organic farming are generally small, those with conventional farming more significant.

Detractors have also pointed out the movement's early association with Nazi mysticism. The Nazi state provided subsidies for biodynamic farming until 1941.

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Certification and guarding organizations

The largest certification organisation for biodynamic farms is Demeter International and its country organisations. Other organisations exist; in the USA this has led to the BDA (Biodynamic Farming and Gardening Association, Inc.) who are responsible for the Demeter system in the U.S. into trademarking the term biodynamic in the USA to stop other organisations using it.

The BDA and Demeter believe that the original guidelines set by Steiner are to be followed by the book and no further work or alterations should be made to his basic ideas.

In France Biodivin certifies Biodynamic wine.

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Rival organizations

In the U.S., an opposing movement lead by Hugh Lovel, Glen Atkinson and Greg Willis have opted out of the Demeter system as they found Demeter does not allow for certain things like Homeopathic preparations. These new pioneers claim to have discovered independently that Homeopathic medicines created from the raw preparations are more effective and practical than the original preparations. They have even advocated dropping the term 'biodynamic' and instead using terms such as 'Steiner's Agriculture' and 'Quantum Agriculture' since 'biodynamics' is only one version of Rudolf Steiner's agricultural ideas and propositions. In these new systems the farmer essentially becomes a Homeopathic Doctor and uses appropriate homeopathic dilutions to treat and heal the farm organism.

Greg Willis has developed new Steiner based preparations including four versions of Horn Clay, Horn Basalt, Horn Sulfur, Horn Copper and the Comfrey Preparation. They are prepared in the same manner as Horn Manure (now Horn Humus) and Horn Silica (now called Horn Quartz). The Comfrey Preparation is made in the same manner as the Stinging Nettle Preparation. Greg Willis and Hugh Lovel have advocated including Horn Clay as one of the essential preparations. The other new preps are used to treat various imbalances and guide the growth of plants and crops. Greg Willis has now created 44 variations of Dr. Steiner's remedies giving the grower nearly complete control over diseases, insects, yield, quality, cost and profit.

The remedies created by Glen Atkinson contain the original Steiner preparations, then diluted in alcohol. The Atkinson remedies are not available in the U.S. at this time. Those advocated by Hugh Lovel are prepared radionically on paper or sugar tablets. Greg Willis is the only one of the three to use the Steiner Preparations and his own in purified spring water solutions which he believes are more compatible with plants than alcohol, sugar or paper.

This movement believe the future of the agriculture system formerly known as biodynamics lay in the use of homeopathic preparations as they are more efficient, more economical, more consistent, can be shipped across international borders, are compatible with all other forms of agriculture and are easier to mix and apply.

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Sources

  • Steiner, Rudolf: Spiritual Foundations for the Renewal of Agriculture: A Course of Lectures. , Bio-Dynamic Farming and Gardening Association, 1993, Kimberton, PA. 310 p, ISBN 093825037X
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See also

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External links

fr:Agriculture biodynamique it:Agricoltura biodinamica he:חקלאות ביו-דינמית nl:Biologisch dynamische landbouw pl:Biodynamiczne rolnictwo fi:Biodynaaminen viljely sv:Biodynamiskt jordbruk

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