Its summer and there is nothing better than the smell of fresh flowers, cut grass, clean ocean water, hopefully a less hectic schedule and more time for sharing healthy delicious summer BBQ’s and leisurely lunch and dinners with friends and family. And wouldn’t it be special if some portion of your feasts came from your very own garden.
HUmineral Healthy Share highlights BIO DYNAMIC FARMING/GARDENING, and One Gun Ranch located in Malibu, California (OGR). HUmineral visited OGR last month and they are doing absolutely stellar farming and gardening work with 100% self-made organic compost, by Farmer Jack and his staff. OGR’s adage is better nutrition through better soil and at HUmineral this is one of our core messages. All produce is grown above ground in planter boxes using their “Super(ior)” compost soil, which is grown on OGR using bio dynamic standards, and is pest and contamination controlled. Reuse and recycle is 100% in practice at OGR, with all benefit going back to the land. OGR uses dairy cows from India, as they have an unparalleled digestive systems that create nutrient dense manure along with alfalfa, which provides vital minerals for composting. OGR is chemical, additive, hormone and pesticide free.
OGR works with ELSA (Experience Learning Support with Animals), which serves children, teens, young adults, families and groups with special needs through the benefits of human/animal interaction in a ranch setting. Education is a passion of the founders of OGR, which is why they offer free school tours for pre-k thru collegiate level.
When we tap into our deepest soul, we find our passion, we grow to our greater selves and lead more productive joy filled purposeful lives. In our next newsletter we will highlight Marguerite Nesteruk who went from fashion to farming. We will take you through her journey, how she left the fashion world in New York City and found herself farming in Malibu with the mission to change health through proper farming care, food and nutrition and her infectious passion for plants (=food).
What is BIO DYNAMIC FARMING/AGRICULTURE?
Biodynamic agriculture is a method of organic farming, considered by many to be the most advanced and holistic form of organic farming and gardening on the planet. Developed in the early 1920’s by Rudolf Steiner, trained scientist, respected philosopher and creator of anthroposophy (a formal educational, therapeutic, and creative system seeking to use mainly natural means to optimize physical and mental health and well-being).
Origin of Biodynamics
As farmers were concerned with the decline in healthy soils, plants and animals, In the early 1920s, they sought the advice of Rudolf Steiner, who spent most his life researching and investigating the subtle forces within nature. From a series of lectures and conversations held at Koberwitz, Germany (now in Poland) in June 1924, there emerged the fundamental principles of biodynamic farming and gardening, a unified approach to agriculture that relates the ecology of the farm-organism to that of the entire cosmos.
Steiner was the first to bring awareness of the danger of synthetic fertilizers, the perspective of the farm as a single, self-sustaining organism that thrives through biodiversity; integration of crops and livestock and creation of a closed-loop system of fertility. In addition to a comprehensive approach to soil, plant, animal and human health that recognizes the importance of the healthy interplay of cosmic and earthly influences. He developed a set of homeopathic preparations used by biodynamic farmers on soil, compost and plants that help build up the farm’s innate immune system and vital forces. In the 1980s, biodynamic farmers in the northeast U.S. used Steiner’s economic ideas to pioneer the concept of COMMUNITY SUPPORTED AGRICULTURE (CSA), which has since been adopted by thousands of farms across North America.
Biodynamics is a spiritual, ethical, and ecological approach to agriculture, gardens, food production and nutrition.
The Purpose of Bio Dynamic Farming
Biodynamic farmers purposeful goal is to create a diverse, balanced eco-system farm that generates healthy and fertile soils as much as possible from within the farm itself. This ensures healthier foods that taste good. Compost preparations are made from fermented manure, minerals and herbs which aid, restore and harmonize the vital life forces of the farm and enhance the nutrition, quality and flavor of the food being raised. Six compost herb preparations are made from specific herbs: yarrow flowers, chamomile blossoms, the whole areal portion of the stinging nettle while in flower, oak bark, dandelion blossoms and valerian flowers.