Email   Print

Tasting is believing

Esoteric practises, like burying manure inside cows’ horns, has put many people off biodynamic agriculture. Now the sensational flavour—and ­ecological benefits—of biodynamic produce is winning them over.

The world’s first biodynamic farm was established in Loverendale, the Netherlands, in 1926, but the idea draws upon centuries of tradition about how best to take care of the soil and grow wholesome food. The principles of biodynamics were originally articulated in a series of lectures to farmers near Breslau, Germany, (now Wroclaw, Poland) in 1924 by Rudolf Steiner, a controversial figure then and now.

An Austrian scientific researcher and mystic with a devoted following throughout Europe, Steiner introduced a number of practical social innovations that are still flourishing: Waldorf education, in which children learn at their own pace; Camphill communities, where developmentally disabled adults are cared for as part of a wider community; anthroposophic medicine, which helped set the tone for today’s holistic-health movement; and experiments in alternative economics, which led to the creation of the GLS bank in Germany, the Rudolf Steiner Foundation in the U.S. and the Triodos Bank in the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain and the UK.

Many people find the spiritual theories behind Steiner’s work challenging, and can’t accept the full scope of his anthroposophic philosophy, including his emphasis on the powerful properties of certain water-washed colours and his belief in the ancient civilization of Atlantis.

Even many loyal to biodynamic farming dismiss some of Steiner’s teachings. Hartmut Spiess, one of the world’s leading biodynamics researchers, notes, “Steiner himself said that what he was saying had to be tested under real conditions and if it doesn’t work, then it’s rubbish. He said we must keep developing spiritual science and that his work was just a beginning.”

Spiess’ own research at Germany’s IBDF found no scientific basis for claims by Steiner and early followers that the astrological alignment of the planets affects crop growth. But over lunch in the dining room of Dottenfelderhof—an old monastery outside Frankfurt that houses the institute, along with a working farm, cattle herd, natural-foods grocery, bakery, cheese plant and 100 residents—Spiess says firm evidence supports the influence of lunar cycles on plants. Pointing to a pot of stew on the table, he explains that carrots planted several days before the full moon get higher yields. With potatoes, he says, it’s just the opposite; they grow best when planted at the new moon.

Spiess insists it’s no surprise that the moon’s gravitational pull would affect plant life; tides in the ocean, after all, are governed by lunar cycles. He references a 1998 article in Nature showing that tree trunks expand and contract according to effects of the moon. Published studies from Austria and Cuba, he says, demonstrate that wood from pine and fir trees cut before the full moon is more susceptible to damage from bark beetles. His own research with carrots found they spoil less when planted before the full moon—which fits with reports from many biodynamic gardeners that their produce keeps longer than that grown by conventional or organic methods.

Spiess’ data sound convincing, but I know one thing for sure: The unexpectedly rich flavour of the stew instills in me a new appreciation for the sensuous, delicious potential of root vegetables. Carrots, potatoes and squash never tasted this good.

While some tenets of biodynamic farming can be explained by ancient peasant knowledge or modern ecological understanding—for instance, the idea of setting aside 10 percent of all acreage to be kept wild, or of rotating crops in cycles of five to seven years—others strain the patience of many who are steeped in Western thinking.

Especially challenging are preparations applied to the land and to crops, which is the essence of biodynamic agriculture. Steiner mandated that fields be sprayed once each year with minute amounts of cattle manure that’s been stored inside a cow horn buried underground all winter, and once with ground quartz stored in a cow horn buried over the summer.

Manure buried in a cow horn acquires special properties, according to biodynamics researchers, affecting biochemical processes in the soil that allow plants to take root more firmly and “interact” more fully with nutrients. The quartz preparation—which dilutes 5 grams (less than a quarter of an ounce) of the crushed rock in 60 litres (16 gallons) of water for each hectare—is believed to strengthen the structure of plants, enhancing flavour, fragrance and shelf life.

<< PREVIOUS   1 2 3 4 5 NEXT >>
view as a single page