Applied Biodynamics — Issue 015 (Spring 1996)
Share
Issue 015 opens with Sara Tufts’s “Pokeberry and Pine Seed Sprays,” a first-person account of informal garden trials against slugs. Tufts reports using pokeberry ferment on daylilies for two years, later combining it with BD 501 and leaving one flower area untreated for comparison. She says the treated flowers were slug-free while the untreated area still had slugs. She also describes a 1995 trial of fermented Norway spruce seed extract after substituting an available species for one named in an older source. These are promising personal observations, but the article gives no replication, random assignment, blinded scoring, or systematic counts.
Hugh Courtney’s “Slugs and Snails and Pokeberry Jails” supplies important mixed evidence. He says several 1993 participants reported no noticeable effect, while Tufts and two later West Coast growers reported reduced damage. One grower estimated reductions of 90 percent or more on some plants but less success on delphiniums; another observed fewer slugs without many dead specimens. Courtney interprets this as deterrence and possible reproductive suppression, but the reports do not measure either mechanism directly. His discussion of pine seed extract likewise rests on historical indications and limited field experience, making both approaches clear candidates for matched, recorded trials.
The source itself calls pokeberry poisonous and restricts its suggested use to ornamentals. The issue does not provide a modern toxicology assessment, residue guidance, or environmental safety review. Its recipes should therefore be read as historical documentation, not current pest-control advice.
“Seed Baths Update” proposes a gentler rocking or “lemniscate” method in place of forceful succussion. Courtney specifies proportions, a 2½-minute rocking period, and short use windows, but justifies the method through biodynamic and energetic concepts rather than a controlled comparison of germination or plant growth. The method is therefore documented as a historical protocol, not a demonstrated improvement.
The issue also records JPI’s internal circumstances. Notes from Hugh Courtney explain the late publication and prioritize preparation production and construction over the newsletter. Guest editor Kathryn Dagostino introduces her developing farm and her use of Barrel Compound, BD 500, and BD 501. A building update says the new utility building’s block shell was nearly 60 percent complete while donations were still needed for interior work.
“Mildred Cowger: A Life of Service” is a multi-author memorial to an Oregon gardener and early biodynamic organizer. It describes decades of seed sharing, compost and preparation work, mentoring, gardening, civic activism, and hospitality. The account is biographical testimony from friends and colleagues rather than an experimental article, and it presents Cowger’s importance through the community and material practices she sustained.
Articles and features
- Pokeberry and Pine Seed Sprays — Sara Tufts
- Notes on This Issue — Hugh J. Courtney
- A “Hello!” from the Guest Editor — Kathryn Dagostino
- Slugs and Snails and Pokeberry Jails — Hugh J. Courtney
- Seed Baths Update — Hugh J. Courtney
- Progress on the New JPI Utility Building — Hugh J. Courtney
- Mildred Cowger: A Life of Service — Beth Wieting, Heike Eubanks, and Wally Via
Key themes
- Anecdotal and mixed reports on pokeberry and pine seed sprays
- The difference between an informal comparison and a controlled experiment
- Historical toxicity cautions and current safety questions
- A prescriptive seed-bath method grounded in biodynamic theory
- JPI publication delays, staffing, and facility construction
- Mildred Cowger’s practical and community legacy
Citation
Source: Applied Biodynamics, Issue 015, Josephine Porter Institute, Spring 1996. Surviving archive scan: printed pages 1–4 and 7–9 plus the back cover.
