Biodynamic preparations restore balance and support Nature in its evolution. They have the greatest effect on soil that is alive and humus enriched. Applied in minute quantities, they ‘transmit’ information to plant and soil, enhance their vegetative, productive phases, increase crop quantity and heighten quality, taste, nutritional value and animal health. Some farmers, growers and consumers experience these changes immediately; the enduring effect builds over several years through consistent rhythmic use of all the preparations. Soils respond in their own ways because they are alive; different soils have different characteristic needs. Preparations are either sprayed on (Spray preparations) or used in compost heaps (Compost preparations).
Supported by and learning from Nature, some would say we have achieved great progress, others, that we have taken Nature for granted and trashed the planet. Either way, we live in a time of extraordinary significance, and we need to understand why.
From around the Fifteenth Century, our relationship with Nature underwent a change – whether we knew it or not – from then on, Nature could no longer fully carry us.
It is our turn now. For Nature to survive and evolve, we need to develop as human beings and support the natural world. By developing our humanity, we gain the capacity to carry Nature with us on an evolutionary journey.
This is where the cultural and artistic potential of biodynamics becomes so exhilarating. Imagine Nature as a Being that needs us to realise, we can work with it and by developing our selves, help it, sensitively and in accord with its own being, to develop further. We change our dynamic from being consumers of Nature to co-creators.
The biodynamic preparations Rudolf Steiner referred to in his 1924 lectures on The Spiritual Foundations for the Development of Agriculture lead us into this relationship with Nature, with the Sun, Moon and planets closer to the Earth. Steiner provides the following insight,” So long as Substances are in a solid state, they are subject to the forces of the Earth, but as soon as they enter the liquid state, the planetary forces come into play.”
Compost Heap Ruminations
I’m off to see Compostella. Not “Santiago de”, but my lady friend in the garden. Because, as undergardener, one of my winter jobs is the spreading of compost around the apple trees and roses on our windswept Northumbrian holding. It’s a good opportunity to have a chat with our compost heap.
Author: Nick Jones
Attending a workshop, you will see how we stir the horn manure preparation, or how other preparations are made or applied in a moistened state, or dissolved. The reason is all that is solid, is subject only to earthly forces, once it is dissolved in a liquid solution, it is subject also to the forces of the planets. We are made of over 80% liquid solution.
I experience these preparations as organs that draw on planetary forces and organ-ise the breakdown of old and the creation of new substances in our compost processes.
The biodynamic preparations reflect the influences the planets have on our internal organs; influences that form the basis of metabolism and good health. In biodynamics, developing our relationships with the planetary dynamics is vital.
Some helpful information about the biodynamic preparations can be found by downloading the Biodynamic Preparations Good Practice Manual (PDF):
