February 25 marks the birthday of Rudolf Steiner, who was born in 1861. An Austrian philosopher, scholar, educator, playwright and social thinker, Steiner is credited as the founder of Anthroposophy, the Waldorf education system, the School of Spiritual Science and anthroposophical medicine; in short Rudolf Steiner is the spiritual father of the Biodynamic movement.
In the early 1920's, farmers in Germany began to notice a decrease of soil and produce qualities, allegedly brought about by artificial fertilisers and improper farming methods. At the request of these farmers, Steiner delivered a series of 8 lectures on agriculture in Silesia, Germany in 1924. The basis of the lectures spoke of composting, utilising 'on-farm' manures as fertilisers, extensive crop rotations and working the farm as a whole entity. In addition to these practices, Steiner prescribed nine different soil preparations to use as fertilisers and compost additives, that cause significant increases in bacteria and biological activity in the soil. These preparations, the practices listed above, and associating astrology and lunar cycles with specific applications and agricultural activities, became the cornerstone of biodynamic agriculture.
The following article appeared in The Gazette (Montreal, Canada) recently, and gives an excellent appraisal of biodynamic agriculture and the impact it has on grape growing in the wine industry.Written by Bill Zacharkiw, an excerpt follows.
Think organic, then take a big holistic leap to bio-dynamics.
Published: Saturday, February 23
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