Thanks for this good note.
It is appropriate that I mention to all BD Now! readers - - especially the many newbies - - that the biodynamic approach emphasizes the realm of the LIVING. It is not considered to be appropriate for a biodynamic farmer to apply minerals directly on the land but, instead, these non-living substances should first be 'enlivened' by passing through the compost pile.
The above is what Steiner said. Pfeiffer, in practice, however, was open to the use of chemical fertilizers to get the soil productive enough to produce cover crops that could have benefit if once turned into the soil. (A person starting a bd project on an abused piece of ground - - as almost every square foot of american ground is EVEN much of what is covered by forest today - - may need to go to extremes to create those first few crops that the well established german farmers steiner was speaking to during the lectures did not have to)
Any way, caveat emptor, right now I am working with broadening my farming practice. I am very interested in promoting the MEASUREABLE QUALITY of the food I produce. I am currently investigating the work of Carey Reams and those consultants who draw their insights from his work (Skow, Anderson, Wheeler). For this reason, I expect that the next few seasons will not see me as holistic as I've been prior years.
I just want to make that clear. Applying liquid calcium is NOT a bd practice BUT my produce last season may well have been more nutritious, more free of diseases and more pest free if I had.
Having said that, I should also say that I am a perfectionist. I received manly compliments on the flavor and texture of our produce this past season. At ACRES several farmers came to me to say that they had attended the BIODYNAMIC CONFERENCE in Lovettsville and that the quality of my produce transcended the quality of my soils (which had been worked for about 6 months after 20 years of no-til full chemical abuse) Still, I feel that without adequate accessible calcium, even BC could not bring forth its full response with the plants. CT applications were not nearly as effective 'as advertised,' and foliar sprays did not appear to boost the brix.
I hope you find this helpful
-Allan
Soya beans, dandelion, horsetail (equisetum arvense), horseradish, kelp, valerian root are all high in calcium and other growth essentials. A suggestion is that you make up a BD compost incorporating two or more of these plants, take it right through the worm stage, separate the worms out leaving the castings in, liquefy the compost with fresh water (rainwater or water which has been exposed to the elements is preferable but not mandatory) so there are no large solid particles, dilute by 50 to 1 and spray a test area at a rate of 103 litres per hectare in early spring or after frosts have well and truly gone off. Repeat spray halfway through the growth stage and after harvest.
roger
