Applied Biodynamics — Issue No. 108 (Summer 2023)
Issue 108 follows JPI’s move toward farm self-sufficiency, Old King Farm’s 102-acre stewardship, and a species-specific, multi-season method for testing biodynamic peppers.
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Issue 108 brings together farm self-sufficiency, long-term stewardship, species-specific peppering, and freedom as conscious ethical action. Its practical center is clear: work with the farm as a whole, select each method for a defined need, and build understanding through repeated observation over seasons.
Ben Nommay’s “News From the Farm” documents JPI’s movement toward a self-sufficient farm organism. Cattle manure and garden residues become compost and nourishment for Pfeiffer Field & Garden Spray. A neighboring pasture supplies clean hay, shared equipment expands on-farm harvesting capacity, and rotational grazing at Riverstone Organic Farm and Spikenard Farm Honeybee Sanctuary gives the herd diverse forage while circulating manure and fertility among adjoining landscapes.
Mary Maruca’s “Old King Farm: Exploring the Magic with Dr. Orest Pelechaty” profiles a 102-acre Vermont farm established in 2009. Biodynamic practice entered through direct mentorship from Hugh Courtney, Basil Williams, and other experienced practitioners, then grew through soil testing, coordinated preparation spraying, cattle, compost, and seasonal repetition. Wildlife sanctuary designation, a planted riparian corridor, monarch habitat, workshops, retreats, and long-horizon stewardship extend the farm organism beyond crop production. Old King Farm combines biodynamics with other regenerative disciplines by assigning each practice a clear purpose and observing how it serves the whole.
Stewart Lundy’s “Peppers Revisited as Microcosmic Images of Eclipses” presents peppering as a precise, species-specific way to moderate excessive reproductive vitality. The reproductive part—seed or, for a spreading perennial, a rhizome—carries the plant’s proliferative potential. Burning exposes a species-specific mineral ash; toasting or charring works between raw seed and complete ash; putrefaction intensifies the wet, decaying process found when seed rots in saturated soil. The appropriate material is chosen for the weed, site moisture, and desired gesture, then evaluated through changes in vigor, flowering, seed formation, regeneration, and stand density over multiple seasons.
Max Leyf Treinen’s “Freedom, Love, and Goodness: A Further Look at Steiner’s Philosophy of Freedom (Part 2)” concludes that freedom arises when the good is consciously perceived and loved, then carried into action. For the biodynamic practitioner, this supports a disciplined cycle: see the actual farm, understand the intervention, act deliberately, and let the results educate the next decision.
Articles
- News From the Farm — Ben Nommay
- Old King Farm: Exploring the Magic with Dr. Orest Pelechaty — Mary Maruca
- Peppers Revisited as Microcosmic Images of Eclipses — Stewart Lundy
- Freedom, Love, and Goodness: A Further Look at Steiner’s Philosophy of Freedom (Part 2) — Max Leyf Treinen
Key Topics Covered
- Compost made from JPI cattle manure and garden residues
- Cooperative hay harvest and movement toward feed self-sufficiency
- Rotational grazing as a circulation of forage and fertility
- Old King Farm’s stewardship of 102 Vermont acres since 2009
- Preparation spraying grounded in soil testing and experienced mentorship
- Wildlife sanctuary, riparian corridor, monarch habitat, and farm education
- Purposeful integration of biodynamic and complementary land practices
- Species-specific peppering directed at reproductive plant material
- Ash, charred, toasted, and putrefied pepper materials
- Rhizomes as the reproductive target for spreading perennial weeds
- Multi-season measurement of vigor, flowering, seed set, and stand density
- Freedom, love, and goodness as foundations for responsible practice
Repeatable Practice
- Identify the target plant accurately and collect only its reproductive material, keeping each species separate and labeled.
- Choose one preparation method—ash, char, toast, or putrefaction—and record material weight, process, date, weather, and storage.
- Mark matched treated and untreated plots with comparable soil, moisture, light, and starting plant density.
- Apply the pepper to the treatment plot on recorded dates without changing the comparison plot’s other management.
- At fixed intervals count shoots, cover, flowering stems, viable seed, rhizome regeneration, and neighboring species; repeat across seasons.
Explore Related Resources
- Pfeiffer Field & Garden Spray, overview, and application instructions
- BD 508 Horsetail, guide, and application instructions
- BD 500 Horn Manure, guide, and application instructions
- BD 502–507 Compost Preparation Set and compost-preparation instructions
- Making and Using Biodynamic Preparations
- How Biodynamic Planting Calendars Work and the Stella Natura Planting Calendar
- Rudolf Steiner’s Agriculture Course
Citation
Applied Biodynamics, Issue No. 108, Josephine Porter Institute for Applied Biodynamics, Summer 2023.
