Applied Biodynamics — Issue 068 (Spring 2010)

Applied Biodynamics Issue 068 (Spring 2010) presents Hugh J. Courtney’s affirmative spiritual-scientific and practical account of BD 508 Horsetail through fresh and fermented recipes, preventive crop care, preparation sequences, compost use, compost-tea observations, and field results.

Download the complete Issue 068 PDF

Courtney follows the progression of Rudolf Steiner’s Sixth Agriculture Lecture from fertility and lunar forces through pests, weeds, disease, and Equisetum arvense. He presents BD 508 as a silica-bearing preparation that helps balance moisture, supports the farm individuality, and strengthens the action of the other biodynamic preparations.

Fresh and Fermented BD 508

JPI’s current method uses one 1.5-ounce dry unit for either preparation. For fresh foliar tea, boil the unit in one quart of water and simmer for one hour, cool and strain, add two gallons of water, stir for 20 minutes, and mist up to one acre. For fermented soil tea, boil the unit in one gallon of water for one hour, ferment for 10–14 days, strain, dilute one part tea to nine parts water, and use the full batch on up to three acres. The current BD 508 instructions provide the complete directions.

Issue 068 also preserves an earlier Pfeiffer-derived foliar method using a 20-minute covered cook and 15-minute stir. Its Kolisko-derived fermented method describes maturity by the characteristic aroma, storage in a cool dark glass jug for six months or longer, and a working dilution of one-half gallon tea with four and one-half gallons water for up to one and one-half acres.

The issue recommends fresh tea as a fine foliar mist applied preventively when wet conditions or powdery-mildew pressure may develop. It presents fermented BD 508 as the soil form, especially after BD 500 Horn Manure in spring and as a late-fall soil application. Courtney reports that fermentation produces a stronger capillary-dynamolysis picture while extending storage life and acreage.

Sequential Spray Field Results

Courtney connects BD 508 with the Sequential Spray Technique: Barrel Compound—the U.S. product name for Barrel Compost—followed by BD 500, BD 501 Horn Silica, and BD 508 in a short sequence. To attract moisture during a Leaf/Water constellation, the current JPI schedule is Day 1 evening Barrel Compound; Day 2 morning BD 501 and evening BD 500; Day 3 morning BD 508.

Issue 068 records an initial 1988 application that brought temporary drought relief. In the early 1990s, six participants coordinated the sequence at seven farm and garden sites in Virginia and North Carolina during an extended drought. Courtney reports that rain arrived very shortly after the applications and that the threatened cancellation or suspension of deer season was no longer necessary. He further reports a high percentage of positive moisture results from later uses of the technique.

Compost, Compost Tea, and Peppering

For compost piles over ten cubic yards, Issue 068 adds fermented BD 508 as a seventh treatment. The tea is placed in holes at the ends and the middle of the sides, then sprinkled over the exterior. Courtney reports more even moisture distribution through the pile, without cold wet spots or overheated fire-fanged areas.

Courtney also reports increased beneficial-fungi counts after Equisetum became a standard compost-tea ingredient. For weed, insect, and animal peppering, he recommends first establishing the full preparation program—especially BD 508—then applying the specific pepper. JPI’s Biodynamic Pest Pepper Video is a companion for that work, while the BD 502–507 Compost Preparation Set supports the compost-placement pattern shown in the issue.

Practical Record for Repeating the Work

• Record the fresh or fermented recipe, herb weight, water volume, cook, dilution, stir, weather, timing, equipment, and acreage.
• For sequential spraying, record the full order, time of day, Moon constellation, starting moisture conditions, and the timing and amount of subsequent moisture.
• For compost work, record pile size, preparation placement, moisture and temperature through the pile, and beneficial-fungi observations.
• Photograph crops, soil, and compost at consistent intervals so positive changes remain easy to compare across seasons and sites.

Key Topics Covered

• BD 508 within Courtney’s reading of Steiner’s Sixth Agriculture Lecture
• Fresh horsetail tea for preventive foliar care
• Fermented horsetail tea for soil application
• Measured quantities, cooking, dilution, stirring, storage, and acreage
• Sequential spraying and reported drought-moisture results
• BD 508 as an additional compost treatment
• Reported even moisture distribution and beneficial-fungi counts
• Preparation programs preceding weed, insect, and animal peppering

Explore Related Resources

• BD 508 Horsetail, guide, and instructions
• Rudolf Steiner’s Agriculture Course
• BD 500 Horn Manure and instructions
• Sequential Spray Kit and instructions
• BD 501 Horn Silica and instructions
• Biodynamic Pest Pepper Video
• BD 502–507 Compost Preparation Set

Articles in This Issue

• Revealing the Hidden Forces of Equisetum arvense — Hugh J. Courtney
• Spray BD 508 — For Use on Foliage: Standard Instructions — originating with Ehrenfried E. Pfeiffer
• BD 508 Fermented Recipe — adapted from Lilly Kolisko

Citation

Source: Applied Biodynamics, Issue No. 68, Josephine Porter Institute for Applied Bio-Dynamics, Spring 2010.