# Applied Biodynamics — Issue 078 (Autumn 2012) **By JPI Admin** · 2025-12-31 **Applied Biodynamics 078** is the archive’s complete practical guide to [BD 503 Chamomile](https://go.jpibd.org/product-bd-503). Abigail Porter and Hugh Courtney carry the reader from species identification and blossom quantities through intestine handling, stuffing, burial, recovery, storage, and the preparation’s role in stabilizing nitrogen. A second major article records how Courtney built JPI into a lasting center for preparation production, teaching, and innovation. ## German Chamomile: the correct preparation plant BD 503 uses German Chamomile—_Matricaria chamomilla_, _Matricaria recutita_, or _Chamomilla officinalis_—rather than Roman Chamomile. The dependable identification test is a vertical cut through the yellow cone: **German Chamomile is hollow; Roman Chamomile is solid**. German Chamomile is an airy annual that may reach two feet, with white petals typically bending down from the cone. Only the flower head is harvested. Dry the heads on a nonmetallic screen in a warm, airy place out of direct sunlight. Protect the finished flowers in cool storage by vacuum sealing, freezing, or another insect-proof method. Wild blossoms should come from ground free of agricultural chemicals and traffic exhaust. The living plant is also valued as a “plant doctor”: it supports neighboring crops, and Chamomile tea has long been used with seedlings and garden plants. ## Planning quantities JPI’s annual need at the time of this issue was 30–50 pounds of dried blossoms. For smaller preparation making, one pound of dried Chamomile fills about six or more nine-inch sections of intestine and produces more than 100 field units; one unit treats at least 10 tons of manure. One cow supplies roughly 130–140 feet of small intestine. JPI used about 30 pounds of blossoms to make four to five gallons of finished BD 503. These figures let a group plan backward from the manure it intends to treat. ## Moistening the flowers Make a tea from a portion of the Chamomile blossoms and let it cool until hot but no longer scalding. Add it slowly to the dried flowers while mixing. One to two cups of tea per pound of blossoms is a useful starting range. The finished material should resemble thick oatmeal: soft enough to pack without puncturing the sheath, yet dry enough that no water can be squeezed out. Remove long stem pieces before moistening. ## Harvesting and preserving the intestine At slaughter, tie the rectum and esophagus before removing the intact abdominal sack, and remove the gall bladder first so bile does not contaminate the materials. Separate the intestines from the stomachs and mesentery. The pinkish small intestine—the type used for food-quality sausage casing—is preferred for a small batch, although JPI used both small and large intestine to meet production needs. Keep well clear of the intestinal wall while cutting the mesentery away. Tie both sides of every intended cut before severing a section so the contents remain controlled. Gently squeeze out only the coarse material, then run one or two quarts of clean water through the length as a quick flush. Leave the residual chyme held among the villi; its digested food, enzymes, hormones, bacteria, bile, and other juices participate in the Chamomile transformation. Stuff the intestines as soon as possible. Use them within three days of slaughter or freeze them completely submerged in water inside a sealed food-safe bag or container. Water protects the tissue from freezer burn and maintains its strength for later filling. ## Stuffing nine-inch “sausages” Cut the intestine into nine-inch sections and remove the attached fat carefully with a razor blade, preserving the strength of the wall. Keep unused pieces in water so they remain supple. Tie one end, open the other over a wide funnel, and push the moistened Chamomile through with a dowel. Work the flowers to the bottom and pack firmly with the thumbs. Stop about an inch below the top; fold one side of the opening over the flowers, fold the second side over the first, and press the edges tightly to seal. Courtney chose nine inches because short sections are easier to fill uniformly and tightly than long casings. The final density is a preparation-quality decision: firm, even packing supports a complete winter transformation. ## Winter burial Bury the sausages 12–18 inches deep, with JPI typically using 14–15 inches so they remain in the fertile soil layer. Line the pit with half-inch hardware cloth, add about one-half inch of peat to separate the metal from fiberglass screen, and lay the sausages on the screen in concentric circles or a spiral. Fold the screen into a secure package, add about two inches of peat above it, then close the hardware cloth. The screen preserves every piece at recovery; the wire protects against animals and shovel damage. Mark the site unmistakably. Choose a place where winter moisture reaches the pit; Steiner particularly indicated a site where snow remains and receives sunlight. [Bury before Advent](https://go.jpibd.org/guide-calendar) when local soil conditions permit and leave the preparation through the winter, usually about six months. Courtney preferred lifting after Ascension Day—39 days after Easter—although one JPI pit might remain until the fall workshop for side-by-side teaching. ## Recovery, quality, and storage Lift the screen package gently into a tray. Crumble the material and rub it through a one-quarter-inch mesh, removing strings and untransformed sheath fragments. Finished BD 503 is **dark, humus-like, and fully integrated, with no recognizable Chamomile blossoms**. If blossoms remain visible, place several screened intestinal fragments in the crock so their activity can continue the transformation. Store the preparation in a glazed ceramic crock with a loose ceramic, slate, or glass lid. Place the crock in its own lidded wooden box with at least three inches of granular peat moss on every side, including above and below. Chamomile and [BD 506 Dandelion](https://go.jpibd.org/product-bd-506) each receive a separate box. Check at least monthly for stable moisture, insect activity, and mice in the peat. ## Chamomile’s role in the compost organism BD 503 works through the Mercury–calcium–potassium polarity and strengthens the earthly nutrition stream. In the compost pile it stabilizes nitrogen, supports healthy decomposition, and helps the enlivened earth stimulate plant growth. Courtney places it opposite BD 506’s Jupiter–silica activity: Chamomile builds mobile earthly life, while Dandelion brings [cosmic organization and form](https://go.jpibd.org/guide-cosmos). Used together in the [BD 502–507 set](https://go.jpibd.org/product-bd-502-507-set), they help the pile become a balanced organism. Where leafy crops bolt too early, Courtney recommends strengthening the earthly side with [BD 500](https://go.jpibd.org/product-bd-500), [BD 502 Yarrow](https://go.jpibd.org/product-bd-502), and BD 503. This preparation-based reading links plant form to an actionable response rather than treating early ripening as an isolated symptom. ## Hugh Courtney and JPI’s preparation work The issue marks Courtney’s 80th birthday and 28 years of carrying Josephine Porter’s preparation work. He accepted responsibility for national preparation supply in 1984 and founded JPI in 1985. By 2012, the article estimates that preparation use in North America had increased at least twentyfold, supported by JPI production, consultation, newsletters, conferences, hands-on workshops, and the growth of regional preparation groups. Courtney extended the work with [Barrel Compound](https://go.jpibd.org/product-bc), [Three Kings Preparation](https://go.jpibd.org/product-erbe-8), [pest peppers](https://go.jpibd.org/hAUzNS), seed baths, concentrated 20-minute forms of BD 500 and [BD 501](https://go.jpibd.org/product-bd-501), and the [Sequential Spray Kit](https://go.jpibd.org/kit-sequential) for weather balancing. In 1995 he secured JPI’s continuation of [Pfeiffer Compost Starter](https://go.jpibd.org/product-pfeiffer-compost) and [Pfeiffer Field & Garden Spray](https://go.jpibd.org/product-pfeiffer-spray), preserving these large-scale tools after the Pfeiffer Foundation’s Spring Valley operation closed. The tribute makes a practical point: preparation quality is sustained by people who repeatedly make, compare, teach, and distribute the work. JPI’s [Making and Using the Biodynamic Preparations](https://go.jpibd.org/instructions-preparations) and Rudolf Steiner’s [_Agriculture Course_](https://go.jpibd.org/book-agriculture-course) carry that continuity forward. ## Other articles The issue welcomes vintner and fermentation specialist Mark Ellenbogen to JPI’s board and reviews _Queen of the Sun: What Are the Bees Telling Us?_ The film presents honeybee health through the close observation of sustainable beekeepers and encourages practical support through diverse flowering plants, respectful hive care, and renewed attention to bees as a whole-farm indicator. ## Articles - Chamomile: The Healer for People and Plants (Abigail Porter with Hugh Courtney) - Happy Birthday to Hugh! A Milestone for Hugh Courtney and JPI (Abigail Porter) - JPI Welcomes Mark Ellenbogen to the Board of Directors - Queen of the Sun: What Are the Bees Telling Us? (Abigail Porter) ## Key Topics Covered - Hollow-cone identification of German Chamomile - Nonmetal drying and protected blossom storage - Production estimates from flowers, intestines, and manure tonnage - Tea moistening to a thick-oatmeal consistency - Same-day intestine harvesting and water-buffered freezing - Quick flushing that preserves transformative chyme - Nine-inch stuffing and tight fold closure - Fourteen- to fifteen-inch winter burial at JPI - Hardware cloth, fiberglass screen, and peat protection - Ascension recovery and one-quarter-inch screening - Separate peat-buffered storage with monthly inspection - Mercury–calcium–potassium activity and nitrogen stability - Twentyfold growth of preparation use under JPI stewardship ## Related JPI resources - [Biodynamic calendar guide](https://go.jpibd.org/guide-calendar) and [cosmic rhythms guide](https://go.jpibd.org/guide-cosmos) - [BD 503 Chamomile](https://go.jpibd.org/product-bd-503) and [guide](https://go.jpibd.org/guide-bd-503) - [BD 506 Dandelion](https://go.jpibd.org/product-bd-506) and [guide](https://go.jpibd.org/guide-bd-506) - [BD 502–507 Compost Preparation Set](https://go.jpibd.org/product-bd-502-507-set) and [instructions](https://go.jpibd.org/instructions-bd-502-507) - [BD 500 Horn Manure](https://go.jpibd.org/product-bd-500), [guide](https://go.jpibd.org/guide-bd-500), and [instructions](https://go.jpibd.org/instructions-bd-500) - [BD 502 Yarrow](https://go.jpibd.org/product-bd-502) and [guide](https://go.jpibd.org/guide-bd-502) - [Barrel Compound](https://go.jpibd.org/product-bc), [guide](https://go.jpibd.org/guide-bc), and [instructions](https://go.jpibd.org/instructions-bc) - [Three Kings Preparation](https://go.jpibd.org/product-erbe-8), [guide](https://go.jpibd.org/guide-erbe-8), and [instructions](https://go.jpibd.org/instructions-erbe-8) - [BD 501 Horn Silica](https://go.jpibd.org/product-bd-501), [guide](https://go.jpibd.org/guide-bd-501), and [instructions](https://go.jpibd.org/instructions-bd-501) - [Sequential Spray Kit](https://go.jpibd.org/kit-sequential) and [instructions](https://go.jpibd.org/instructions-sequential) - [Pfeiffer Compost Starter](https://go.jpibd.org/product-pfeiffer-compost), [guide](https://go.jpibd.org/guide-pfeiffer-compost), and [instructions](https://go.jpibd.org/instructions-pfeiffer-compost) - [Pfeiffer Field & Garden Spray](https://go.jpibd.org/product-pfeiffer-spray), [guide](https://go.jpibd.org/guide-pfeiffer-spray), and [instructions](https://go.jpibd.org/instructions-pfeiffer-spray) - [Biodynamic Pest Pepper Video](https://go.jpibd.org/hAUzNS) - [Making and Using the Biodynamic Preparations](https://go.jpibd.org/instructions-preparations) - [Rudolf Steiner’s Agriculture Course](https://go.jpibd.org/book-agriculture-course) ## Citation _Applied Biodynamics_, Issue 078, Josephine Porter Institute for Applied Biodynamics, Autumn 2012. 16 pages. [**Download Issue 078 PDF**](https://go.jpibd.org/ab-078) **Tags:** Applied Biodynamics Archive, BD 502-507 --- > Source: [The Josephine Porter Institute](https://www.jpibiodynamics.org/blogs/applied-biodynamics/applied-biodynamics-issue-078-autumn-2012)