What is Biodynamic farming?
Many people over the years have asked me to explain what biodynamic farming is and how it is different from organic farming. This is not an easy question to answer, especially if they want an answer in just a few sentences.
What is Biodynamics - explained in 30 seconds
Here is my very brief response if you only have thirty seconds:
Biodynamic agriculture is a type of organic farming that treats the farm as a self-contained, living organism that can provide everything it needs from within.
It is a closed-loop sustainable approach to agriculture that focuses on growing plants, feeding animals, making compost and replenishing the soil. This cycle is repeated on the farm, thus creating a regenerative process that improves the fertility of the farm over time rather than depleting it.
Biodynamic farmers also apply homeopathic medicine to the earth by making special preparations for further enhancing the quality of the soil, crops and animals they grow.
What is Biodynamics - if you have more time
Here is a more in-depth response for those with a little more time. This is best explained over a cup of tea and preferably with a note pad for some added sketches.
Biodynamic farmers are constantly harvesting the forces of nature to help them grow vibrant, healthy food. These forces that influence plants are coming down to the earth from the sun, moon and other planets.
All life basically depends on and grows towards the sun. Think about the way the planets are all spiraling in a giant vortex with the sun as the focal point, and each planet in a wider and wider orbit. The inner planets between the earth and the sun include the moon, Mercury and Venus, while the outer planets include Mars, Jupiter and Saturn.
All of these forces are influencing what happens on earth with the closest and most influential forces coming from the moon. We know the moon directly affects the tides, plant growth and even a woman’s menstrual cycle.
Here is one way to look at this that will help you understand the principles behind the biodynamic preparations.
There is a macro and micro force at work with the sun’s influence that begins to define the polarities at work on earth.
Energy follows the sun and therefore during the winter and the evening when the sun is on the other side of the earth from where we are, the energy is being drawn downward. Think of the dew settling in the evening or the leaves falling in the autumn as the earth takes a big breath inward. This downward working force is known in biodynamics as the earthly polarity and is directly related to the water and earth elements and to lime and calcium.
The opposing polarity known as the cosmic force is seen in the upward working force of silica as it relates to the fire and air elements and can be seen in the rising dew, sunrise and burst of outward growth in spring. It is the earth exhaling as energy streams upwards towards the sun.
These opposing forces of lime and silica can be seen in forms such as plants and landscapes. Land with limestone bedrock tends to be flat or gently rolling hills such as the Midwest prairie, whereas silica landscapes like the Rocky Mountains tend to be sharp and jagged. Plants rich in calcium are often broad leaved and stay close to the ground whereas silica-rich plants like bamboo and grasses are sharp and ray-like.
These formative forces are indicative of the earthly and cosmic forces at work in nature, which can be balanced and enhanced to aid farmers in their goal of growing crops of optimum quality whether silica rich fruiting crops or calcium rich root crops.
Horn manure, BD prep 500, is the biodynamic preparation used for enhancing the downward earthly working forces of lime, which stimulates digestion in the soil. It is made by stuffing cow (not bull) horns with fresh cow manure and are buried in the fall and dug up in the spring. It is applied in the evening with the settling dew, especially during the fall season when the soil is being tilled before planting a fall or winter crop. A small amount per acre is mixed with rainwater and stirred in a rotating vortex for one hour, which is a type of homeopathic potentization, and then sprayed out over the land.
Horn silica, BD prep 501, is the preparation used to enhance the upward, cosmic force of silica. It is made by stuffing cow horns with crushed and powdered quartz crystals and buried in the spring and dug up in the fall. A small amount per acre is stirred for one hour and applied in the morning with the rising dew, especially in the spring.
Interested in learning more about biodynamic farming? Good news, there are lots of ways to learn! Start by listening to the podcast, following us on Instagram, joining our mailing list and buying the book.
Biodynamically yours,
Farmer D