Bio Dynamic Farming - An Appreciation of Rudolph Steiner

Image of Rudolf Steiner via Wikipedia

An Appreciation of Rudolph Steiner - Bio Dynamic Farming by Bill Tallmon

I first read the name Rudolph Steiner (1861-1925) in Acres Magazine, whose connection to Steiner is his creation of bio-dynamic farming used in sustainable (organic) agriculture. Since that initial connection and further investigation I found that Steiner was a lot more than a farmer.

Steiner was an Austrian philosopher, literary scholar, educator, architect, playwright, and cultural truth-seeker. His goal was to find a synthesis between science and mysticism. He sought to provide a practical connection between the two. He worked with educators, farmers, and doctors.

Steiner's development of bio-dynamic farming began when a group of farmers wanted to make their farms self-sustaining. He responded with a lecture series on agriculture that was the origin of bio-dynamic agriculture. The plan was to individualize the farm by adding no or few outside materials to the farm. To make that possible the farmer needed to produce the materials like manure and animal feed to create what he called the farm organism. The lectures included how to:
• time activities related to planting with the movement of moon and planets
• apply preparations of natural materials to the soil
• build compost piles
• utilize cover crops
• add spiritual and elemental forces

The early decades of 20th century agriculture began using inorganic chemical fertilizers. Steiner believed that these applications could have long-term detrimental effects. Steiner was convinced that the quality of food in his time had degraded and the source was chemical farming's use of artificial fertilizers and pesticides.

He considered that the world and everything in it is simultaneously spiritual and material in nature. He believed that living matter was different than dead matter and that synthetic nutrients were not the same as the living counterparts lacking the spiritual qualities of nature.

The word bio-dynamic was coined by Steiner's adherents. The central aspect of bio-dynamics is that the farm is seen as an organism. It should be a closed self-nourishing system. Disease in the organism is not tackled in isolation but as a symptom of problems in the whole organism. The system has now been proven and is used in India, Europe, North America and around the world. The system is now called organic farming and sustainable agriculture.

As the years pass we see the immense issues with the attempt to establish an artificial nature.
The tenets of organic farming closely follows Steiner's lead to come closer to nature. The solution to all of humanity's issues begin in reconnecting to nature. Moving away from that connection spawns the myriad of issues that face mankind.

My name is Bill Tallmon N.D. PhD. The credentials I earned are a footnote of a personal 25-year journey to experience life free from the trap of modern medicine. My most profound appreciation is for the pioneers who blazed the path to reconnect me to nature, and see the problems and possibilities of modern life in a positive way.

Human beings always try to make life a little easier, and through science and innovation have done it. Every essence of the planet, the sun, air, light, darkness, sound, rocks, plants, animals, and the invisible world all exist in the framework of nature. Humans are the only elements of nature who make a business of altering nature. We all must be wary of the motive of those who would help us. Look closely (beyourowndoc) http://embracingnature.net

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