This document discusses biodynamic agriculture, a form of organic and sustainable farming. It emerged in the 1970s to address environmental and social issues with industrial agriculture. Biodynamic agriculture follows the moon and cosmic cycles and uses nine special preparations made from herbs, minerals, and manure to influence the farm. It aims to improve soil quality, farm profitability, and rural communities. The document provides examples of biodynamic farms in the US and reviews the environmental, social, and crop yield advantages of this agricultural practice.

1. Biodynamic Agriculture
Economic Botany
Dr. Uma Garimella
April 19, 2007

2. Principle Investigators:
Amanda MacMillan
Kendria Taylor

3. Sustainable Agriculture
• Movement that emerged in the 1970’s
• Serves to address the Environmental
and Social concerns brought on by
modern, industrial agriculture
• Three Main Goals:
– Environmental Stewardship
– Farm Profitability
– Prosperous Farming Communities

4. Concerns with Industrial Agriculture:
• Nutrient depletion and erosion of topsoil
• Soil compaction and decreased water holding capacity
• Overuse of chemicals such as pesticides, herbicides,
and fertilizers
• Pesticide resistant insects
• Loss of wetlands, wildlife habitat, tropical rainforests,
and native vegetation
• Reduced genetic diversity due to genetic uniformity of
crops
• Groundwater contamination due to sediments, salts,
fertilizers, pesticides, and manures
• Overuse of surface and groundwater for irrigation
• The decline of family farms
• Increasing costs of production
• Toxic residues found on foods

5. Figure 1: Crop Duster1
Figure 2: Eutrophication3
Figure 3: Field Sprayer2

6. Figure 4: Point and Non-point sources of Water Pollution3

7. Figure 5: The Nitrogen Cycle4

8. Sustainable Agriculture
Legislation
• Congress’s 1990 “Farm Bill” stated that:
– “the term sustainable agriculture means an
integrated system of plant and animal
production practices having a site-specific
application that will, over the long term:
• satisfy human food and fiber needs
• enhance environmental quality and the natural
resource base upon which the agricultural economy
depends
• make the most efficient use of nonrenewable resources
and on-farm resources and integrate, where
appropriate, natural biological cycles and controls
• sustain the economic viability of farm operations
• enhance the quality of life for farmers and society as a
whole.”5

9. Sustainable Agriculture
Legislation cont.
• USDA’s 1996 Sustainable Agriculture
Policy
– The "USDA is committed to working toward the
economic, environmental, and social
sustainability of diverse food, fiber, agriculture,
forest, and range systems. USDA will balance
goals of improved production and profitability,
stewardship of the natural resource base and
ecological systems, and enhancement of the
vitality of rural communities. USDA will
integrate these goals into its policies and
programs, particularly through interagency
collaboration, partnerships and outreach.”5

10. Sustainable Agriculture cont.
Divided into three branches:
1. Organic
2. Biodynamic
3. Indore Process

11. Organic
An ecological production management
system that promotes and enhances
biodiversity, biological cycles and soil
biological activity. It is based on
minimal use of off-farm inputs and on
management practices that restore,
maintain and enhance ecological
harmony.

12. Organic
• Agriculture production without the use
of synthetic
chemicals
such as
fertilizers,
pesticides,
and
antibiotics

13. Biodynamic
• Biodynamic agriculture incorporates the
beneficial use of the cosmic energies into
the cultivation of plants, together with
systematic inputs of mineral, plant and
animal nutrient to the field. Cultivation
practices are carried out according to the
biodynamic calendar.

14. Indore Process
It was observed in the course of these
studies that the maintenance of soil fertility is
the real basis of health and of resistance to
disease. The various parasites were found to
be only secondary matters: their activities
resulted from the breakdown of a complex
biological system -- the soil in its relation to
the plant and to the animal -- due to improper
methods of agriculture, an impoverished soil,
or to a combination of both.

15. Indore Process
• Two basic principles:
– 1. The admixture of vegetable and animal
wastes with a base for neutralizing acidity
– 2. The management of the mass so that the
micro-organisms which do the work can
function in the most effective manner

16. Anthroposophy
• “Wisdom of the human being”
• Path of self knowledge
• It is essentially a discipline by which to
see into the spiritual world.

17. Anthroposophy
• It is a path of knowledge, to guide the
Spiritual in the human being to the
Spiritual in the universe. It arises in
man as a need of the heart, of the life of
feeling; and it can be justified inasmuch
as it can satisfy this inner need.

18. Anthroposophy
• Teaches the methods/disciplines of
achieving spiritual, sense–free knowing
• Seeing of the inner core of every reality
• Knowledge of the higher or spiritual
world is made possible by the principle
of self that is referred to as the “Spirit,
Ego or I”

19. History
• Founded by Rudolph Steiner
• Began in 1913
• Steiner had a dispute with Annie
Besant over Jiddu
Krishnamurri being the
reincarnated Christ

20. Basic Principles6
• Broaden Our Perspective
• Reading the Book of Nature
• Cosmic Rhythms
• Plant Life is Intimately Bound Up with the
Life of the Soil
• A New View of Nutrition
• Medicine for the Earth: Biodynamic
Preparations
• The Farm as the Basic Unit of Agriculture
• Economic Based on Knowledge of the Job

21. Qualifications cont.
• To be a biodynamic agriculture farmer the
farmer must meet the qualifications of
Demeter
• Biological practices include a series of well
known farming techniques that increase the
quality of the soil
• Dynamic practices are intended to influence
biological as well as metaphysical aspects of
the farm and to adapt the farm to natural
rhythms

22. Qualifications cont.
• Demeter is the brand for products for
biodynamic agriculture
• Biodynamic preparations serve as the
core for the biodynamic method

23. Qualifications cont.
• Biodynamic Compost: a way to recycle animal
manures and organic waste, stabilize nitrogen,
and build soil humus and enhance soil health
• Cover Cropping: bare tillage year round is
prohibited. Soil must be adequately protected
from the degradation of soil erosion and soil
structure degradation during periods of the
year when it is vulnerable to such degradation

24. Qualifications cont.
• Crop Rotation- tillable acreage cannot be
planted only to monoculture. Botanical
species diversity must be maintained via
crop rotation strategies utilized.
• Biodynamic preparations are made from
medicinal herbs, minerals, and cow
dung.

25. Practices
• Nine basic preparations:
– #500 Horn Manure
– #501 Horn Silica
– #502 Yarrow
– #503 Chamomile
– #504 Stinging Nettles
– #505 Oak Bark
– #506 Dandelion Flowers
– #507 Valerian
– #508 Horsetail

26. Broad Function Organ in Animal Secondary Influence --
(Derived From Primary)
Chemical
Element
Works With Other
Factors
Herb Animal
Sheath
Capture life force from
outside, bring species
pattern to the seed
Reproduction Intensification (From
Germination), contract
rampant etheric growth,
resist disease
C Horn Manure, Water,
Moon, Ca
Oak bark Skull
Digestion -- break down
food, rebuild with own
life force
Intestine Supporting Organs (From
Sap Flow), stabilize N
O Horn Manure
Mercury, Humus, S
manages Ca/ K
Chamomile Intestine
Excretion -- remove life
by-products, open life
force to astral
Kidneys,
Bladder
Excretion (From
Nutrition), retains Si,
corrects weak astral
S Horn Manure,
Venus, S manages
Si/K
Yarrow Bladder
Energize and distribute
-- harmonize dynamic
animal functions
Heart, lungs,
circulation and
breath
Protein (From Expansion
In Space), heart-like
rhythm and sensitivity
N Horn Silica, Mars,
Fe, Sand
Nettle Itself
Regulation -- capture
self-consciousness
bring to physical body
Liver Fragrance, Essential Oils
(From Plastic Forces),
draw in Si, transmutation
H Horn Silica, Jupiter,
Clay enlivens soil
Dandelion Mesentery
Sensitivity -- develop
animal nature into self
consciousness
Skin, nervous
system
Seed (From Archetype),
brings warmth
P Horn Silica, Saturn,
K
Valerian Water
Practices

27. Practices cont.

28. Farms in the United States
that Practice Biodynamic
Agriculture6
Eastern
Central
Mountain
Pacific and Hawaii

29. Eastern
• Camphill Village Kimberton Hills CSA
• 15-acre garden farm with a diverse seasonal mix of
vegetables, flowers, herbs, and fruit
• Kimberton, PA
• Woodbridge Farm
• Seasonal mix of vegetable and fodder crops
• Salem, CT
• Sequatchie Cove Farm
• Market garden and shiitake mushroom cultivation
• Southeast Tennessee
• Hill and Hollow Farm
• 130-acre family farm that is committed to non-
mechanized "human-powered" gardening on their
three-acre mixed vegetable, herb, and cut flower
operation
• Edmonton, KY

30. Central
• Camphill Village
• 500-acre farm
• Sauk Centre, MN
• Eco Learning Center CSA
• Vegetable farm with intensive plantings, extended
seasons, and petroleum-free production
• Traverse City, Michigan
• Philadelphia Community Farm
• 400-acre farm
• Osceola, WI

31. Mountain
• Fat Duck Farm/Emma's Garden Farm
•Farms consists of pasture, vegetable gardens
and river bosque
•Northern New Mexico
• The Mountain School of Bellevue, Idaho
•1.4-acre model educational biodynamic garden
•Bellevue, Idaho

32. Pacific and Hawaii
• Raphael Garden
• 3-acre farm with vegetables for a forty-member CSA, fruit
trees with sheep, and pasture with a dairy cow
• Fair Oaks, California
• Spirit of the Earth Farm
• 1.75-acres of market gardens and 0.25-acres of tropical
flowers
• Anahola, HI
• Sunfield Farm
• 80-acre farm for vegetables, flowers, herbs, and livestock
• Located on the Olympic peninsula in Washington

33. Advantages of Biodynamic
Agriculture
• Good for the Environment
• Improvement in Soil Quality
• Societal Benefits
• Healthier for the Consumer
• Higher Annual Yields

34. Environmental Benefits
• Total Elimination of Toxic Chemicals
• Conservation of Water
• Improvement in Water Quality
• Conservation for Wildlife
• Reductions in Energy Use
• Improvement in Air Quality
• Plant Species Co-Mingling
• Insect Habitats

35. Soil Quality
• Decrease in Erosion
• Decrease in Toxicity
• Decrease in Soil Compaction
• Increase in Nutrients and Richness
• Increase in Water Holding Capacity
• Broad Crop Rotation

36. Table 1: Soil Characteristics of Different Agricultural
Systems of Manuring over 18 years7
Treatment Full B-D Crude
Manure
½ Manure: ½
NPK
Control Fertilizer NPK NPK
Fertilizer: kg
N/ha/year
82 93 61 0 56 111
Yields (t/ha cereals) 4.86 4.90 5.03 3.77 4.83 4.87
Bulk Density of Soil:
Top Layer 1.14 1.09 1.10 1.10 1.14 1.16
Subsoil 1.33 1.29 1.42 1.50 1.51 1.48
Organic Matter
(total N):
Topsoil (%N) 0.24 0.24 0.25 0.25 0.26 0.26
Subsoil (%N) 0.14 0.17 0.08 0.16 0.12 0.09
Earthworm burrows >
1.5mm/m2
100 111 53 22 11 16
mg CO2/100g of soil 125 108 91 83 75 81
Dehydrogenase,
TPF/10g soil
547 377 302 213 211 258

37. Study on the Quality of
Two Soil Samples8
Left: Original degraded soil
Right: Soil after two years of Biodynamic farming

38. Study of the Effect of Soil Quality on Plants
grown under different conditions8
• Left: control plant
• Center: with chemical fertilizers
• Right: in Biodynamic soil

39. Societal Benefits
• Towards Community Based
Farming/Small-scale Farming
• Alternative to large-scale, industrial
farming
• Better for the Local Economy
• Cuts out the Middle Man
• No Hierarchy

40. Health Benefits
• More Nutritious Foods
– Better Quality Soil leads to Better Quality Food
• Reduced or Non-existent Exposure to Toxic
Chemicals
– Pesticides, Herbicides, Fertilizers, etc.
• Since most of the food comes from CSA’s, less
exposure to the packaging materials used on
large-scale, corporation farms
• Therapeutic
– Biodynamic Farms are often used for mental
health care such as for mentally handicapped or
stressed-out people

41. Yields from Biodynamic Agriculture
Control B-D
Wheat:
Grains 4.17 4.55
Straw 4.49 5.51
Sugar Beets:
Roots 7.49 8.52
Leaves 4.39 4.93
Carrots:
Roots 9.36 10.06
Leaves 6.60 6.75
Table 2: Comparative Yields of Wheat, Sugar Beets, and
Carrots in Tons/Hectare of Dry Matter9

42. Disadvantages of
Biodynamic Agriculture
• Small scale
– Agriculture today is about “mass production”
– Limited Distribution
• Labor Intensive
• More Expensive for the Consumer
• Against the Mainstream
– Difficult to persuade people away from
corporation farming due to an overall lack of
environmental concern in our society
– The cosmic aspects of the practice could possibly
frighten or deter people from becoming involved

43. Peer-Reviewed Scientific Research
Soil Quality and Financial Performance of Biodynamic
and Conventional Farms in New Zealand10
• One of the first reputable studies conducted on biodynamic methods
• Over a 4 year period (1987-1991)
• On the North Island of New Zealand
• Compared 8 Biodynamic and 8 Conventional Farms on soil quality and
financial performance
– Biodynamic Farms had all been managed for at least 8 years
• Soil Quality Methods:
– 130 soil samples from 22 paddocks were analyzed
• Soil Quality Results:
– “The biodynamic farms proved in most enterprises to have soils of
higher biological and physical quality: significantly greater organic
matter content and microbial activity, more earthworms, better soil
structure, lower bulk density, easier penetrability, and thicker
topsoil.”10

44. Soil Property All B-D Farms All Conv. Farms
Bulk Density (Mg/m3) 1.07 1.15*
Penetration resistance (0-20 cm) (MPa) 2.84 3.18*
Penetration resistance (20-40 cm) (MPa) 3.55* 3.52
Topsoil thickness (cm) (includes surface and subsurface horizons) 22.8* 20.6
C (%) 4.84* 4.27
Respiration (microL O2 h-1 g-1) 73.7* 55.4
Mineralizable nitrogen (mg/kg) 140.0* 105.9
Ratio of mineralizable N to C (mg min N/g C) 2.99* 2.59
Cation exchange capacity (cmol/kg) 21.5* 19.6
Total N (mg/kg) 4840* 4260
Total P (mg/kg) 1560 1640
Extractable P (mg/kg) 45.7 66.2*
Extractable S (mg/kg) 10.5 21.5*
Extractable Ca (cmol/kg) 12.8 13.5
Extractable Mg (cmol/kg) 1.71 1.68
Extractable K (cmol/kg) 0.97 1.00
pH 6.10 6.29*
*indicates a significantly higher value
Table 3: Mean Values of Aggregated Soils Data10

45. Research cont.
Financial Performance
• Methods:
– Farmers were interviewed and their accounts
analyzed
• Results:
– The biodynamic citrus, livestock, and dairy farms
were able to secure reliable markets for their
products
– “Gross margins for the biodynamic market garden
were less than for the conventional counterpart in
1988 and 1989 but greater in 1990 and 1991.”10
– Developing markets, improved productivity, and
farm management have helped increase returns for
biodynamic market gardens

46. Research cont.
Biological Farming for Sustainable Agriculture
Production11
• “Study conducted to compare organic, biodynamic, integrated,
and conventional broadacre farming systems for attributes of
sustainability”11
• Conducted in 1989 and spanned a 6 year period
• Took place at Roseworthy campus in Australia
• Methods:
– Monitored indicators such as soil physical, chemical, and biological changes,
product quality, economics, crop water usage, and energy requirements
• Results for the biodynamic farming system:
– Biodynamic treatment had the highest gross margins
– Available P levels declined 12%
– Weed management the main problem for increasing production levels

47. Research cont.
Biodynamic vs. Conventional Farming Effects on Soil
Structure Expressed by Simulated Potential
Productivity12
• “Conducted to compare two farming systems by converting ‘static’
basic soil properties into a ‘dynamic’ assessment using simulation
modeling”12
• Soils on four fields on two farms were analyzed
– Southwestern part of the Netherlands
– Sampling took place in 1996
– Both farms had been practicing their management systems for about
70 years
• Methods:
– Four procedures were used to express differences in soil structure as
a function of different management
– WAVE simulation model used to predict potato yields

48. Research cont.
• Results:
– Basic static soil parameters were not significantly different
– Simulated yields were significantly different
• Biodynamic Fields: 10,200 and 10,300 kg dry matter tuber yield ha-1 yr-1
• Conventional Fields: 9,400 and 9,700 kg dry matter tuber yield ha-1 yr-1
• Conclusions:
– “The biodynamic management type has a significantly higher
water-limited yield than the conventional type. This indicates
that biodynamic management has favorable effects on soil
structure when potential productivity is taken as an indicator,
thus providing a positive contribution to the sustainability
analysis.”12

49. The Economics of Biodynamic
Agriculture
• There is no cost goes into expensive chemicals
• The practice is very labor intensive which
results in an increased price for the consumer
– “the consumer of biodynamic products pays twice
as much for the prevention or reversal of
environmental pollution”7
• Small-scale distribution
– CSA’s
– Farmer’s Markets
– On-site pickup

50. Economics cont.
Size of Farm 10-20 ha 20-30 ha 30-50 ha
B-D Conv. B-D Conv. B-D Conv.
Agricultural
Returns:
6368.5 6625.0 6873.5 5774.0 3507.0 4689.0
Farm Crops 2467.5 1084.0 3122.0 527.0 1352.0 527.5
Animal
Prod.
3085.5 4874.5 3472.5 4835.0 1855.5 3889.5
Other* 363.5 483.5 165.0 288.5 69.5 203.5
Expenses 3934.0 5093.0 3713.0 4505.0 2414.5 3754.5
Crop Prod. 471.5 600.0 351.5 534.5 216.0 517.5
Animal
Prod.
917.0 1903.5 914.5 1848.5 316.0 1436.5
Other* 1299.0 1105.0 1254.0 956.0 924.0 828.0
Gen.
Overhead
970.0 1363.5 845.0 1078.0 687.0 896.0
Profits 2480.0 1567.5 3208.0 1286.0 1133.0 960.5
*Contract Work, Forests, Rent, Interest, Etc.
Table 4. Returns, Expenses, and Profits in 1980/19819

51. Economics cont.
Costs and Yields Biodynamic Farm Conventional Farm
Expenses for fertilizers or
materials for
preparations and straw
(DM/ha/year)
7.70 147.00
Yields: Grains
(kg/ha/year)
3600 2900
Hectares per Worker 10.80 9.70
Income per Hectare (DM) 1800.00 1111.00
Income per worker per
year (DM)
18750.00 10760.00
Table 5: Farming costs and yields: Conventional
and biodynamic7

52. Community Supported
Agriculture (CSA)
• CSA’s are defined as the practice of
focusing on the production of high
quality foods using ecological, organic or
biodynamic farming methods.
• There is a higher degree of consumer
and stakeholder involvement in CSA’s

53. CSA’s cont.
CSA’s Main Concept:
• Producing a variety of products for a set
number of weeks a year
• A pricing system where the producers and
consumers agree on the acceptance of the
budget
• A ‘shared risk and reward’ agreement
where the consumers accept the
fluctuations in growing seasons
Additionally, most CSA’s produce vegetables
that are location and season specific
– i.e. lettuce in the spring and melons in late
summer

54. CSA’s Near You
• Heifer International in Perryville, AR
– Organic Garden is also a CSA
•Weekly deliveries to Little Rock in the Summer
•Or you can go and pick up your bushel on site
•Phone Number: 1-501-889-5124

55. Biodynamic Products Online
• Biodynamic Farms have websites that
sell their produce online to the
surrounding area such as:
– Marian Farms in San Joaquin Valley,
California
•http://marianfarmsbiodynamic.com/products.php
– American Health & Nutrition/The Organic
Harvest in Ann Arbor, MI
•www.theorganicharvest.com

56. Summary
• Biodynamic agriculture is a branch of sustainable agriculture
that is commonly practiced in Europe and the United States.
• It gained it’s popularity after WWII.
• It’s advantages include being good for the environment,
improvement in soil quality, societal benefits, healthier for the
consumer, and higher annual yields.
• It’s disadvantages include being small scale, labor intensive,
more expensive for the consumer, and against the mainstream.
• Research has shown that in several cases, biodynamic
agriculture has proven to be advantageous in terms of yields and
soil quality.
• The economics of the practice shows little to no output for
chemicals, but it is very labor intensive. The large labor force
required and small-scale operation leads to an increased cost for
the consumer.

57. References
1. http://images.usatoday.com/news/_photos/2006/06/29/crop-duster-mtopper.jpg
2. http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/feb2006/20060227_sprayer.jpg
3. http://www.nutrition4health.org/NOHAnews/NNS95ContaminatedDrinkingWater.
htm
4. http://www.physicalgeography.net/fundamentals/9s.html
5. http://www.nal.usda.gov/afsic/AFSIC_pubs/srb9902.htm
6. http://www.biodynamics.com/biodynamics.html
7. Schilthuis, W. Biodynamic Agriculture. Anthrophosophic Press, New York, 1994.
8. http://www.fesflowers.com/Demeter.htm
9. Koeph, H.H. Research in Biodynamic Agriculture: Methods and Results. Bio-
Dynamic Farming and Gardening Association, Inc. Kimberton, PA, 1993.
10. Reganold, J.P.; Palmer, A.S.; Lockhart, J.C.; & Macgregor, A.N. Soil Quality and
Financial Performance of Biodynamic and Conventional Farms in New Zealand.
Science 260; 344-349, 1993.
11. Penfold, C.M.; Miyan, M.S.; Reeves, T.G.; & Grierson, I.T. Biological Farming for
Sustainable Agricultural Production. Australian Journal of Experimental
Agriculture 35; 849-856, 1995.
12. Droogers, P. & Bouma, J. Biodynamic vs. Conventional Farming Effects on Soil
Structure Expressed by Simulated Potential Productivity. Soil Science Society of
America Journal 60; 1552-1558, 1996.
13. http://marianfarmsbiodynamic.com/csa.php
14. http://www.organicconsumers.org/biodynamics.cfm
15. http://www.sare.org/
16. http://www.sarep.ucdavis.edu/concept.htm#Top

58. References
17. http://www.demeter.org
18. http://www.sunbridge.edu/home/
anthroposophy.asp
19. http://www.themystica.org/mystica/articles/
a/anthroposophy.html
20. http://www.pantheon.org/articles/d/
demeter.html
21. http://oregonbd.org/Class/Mod4.htm
22. http://www.attra.org/attra-pub/
biodynamic.html

59. Questions???