Grundtvig
Learning Partnership Project
»Adult
education strategies in making best compost and treating of manure
practices in order to highlight better food quality and reduction of
the nutrition losses with regards of social, initiative and
entrepreneurship key competencies«
Croatian
Project No.:
2013-1-SI1-GRU06-05514 4
Duration:
1. August 2013 to 31. July 2015
Minutes
of the 4th Meeting in Donji Kraljevec/Croatia, 6. - 8. June 2014
Partners
of the project
- Germany: Forschungsring für Biologisch-Dynamische Wirtschaftsweise e.V.
- Denmark: Foreningen for Biodynamisk Jordbrug
- Croatia: Centar Dr. Rudolfa Steinera
- Slovenia: Društvo za biološko-dinamično gospodarjenje Podravje.
Day
1
Date: 6. 6. 2014
Present: Uli
Johannes König, Erik Frydenlund, Sandra Percač, Jasminka Iličić,
Ivan Kosak, Drago Purgaj, Sonja Mauko Purgaj, Danijela Kocuvan,
Radovan Šuman, Karl Vogrinčič.
Topic: Biodynamic
agriculture today
Location: Donji
Kraljevec, Sport Hall
Duration: 18:00 –
21:00
Summary:
Alex
Podolinsky has given a basic lecture on building humus „in situ“
with preparation 500 prepared with compost preparations. He has
emphasised the importance of differentiation between organic matter
and properly made compost that has colloid structure and provides
essential nutrients to plants under the management of Sun. He has
also clearly shown the possibility to measure quality of humus in
soil with use of chromas. Alex has drawn attention that conventional
management of the soil hardens the surface of the soil and makes it
lifeless, with no air nor possibility to take in rain. He has
suggested that the influence of conventional soil management might be
the reason for repetitiveness of flooding in developed countries. The
only long term solution for healthy soil is BD management of the
soil, with which Alex made fertile thousands of hectares of soil in
Australia.
Day 2
Date: 7. 6.
2014
Present:
Uli Johannes König, Erik Frydenlund, Sandra Percač, Jasminka
Iličić, Ivan Kosak, Drago Purgaj, Sonja Mauko Purgaj, Danijela
Kocuvan, Radovan Šuman, Karl Vogrinčič.
Topic:
Future
of BD agriculture in Croatia, Workshop: Compost preparations
Location:
Donji Kraljevec, Sport hall, Rudolf
Steiner Center garden
Duration:
10:00 – 20:00
Summary:
Jasminka
Iličić from BD Association „Yarrow“ has given a short
overview of the state of BD growing in Croatia. She has emphasised
the problem of low level of knowledge of BD practice in Croatia and
challenges that small number of growers determined to practice BD are
encountering. She has also emphasised the differences between
biodynamic and ecological practise, which is currently disregarded in
Croatia. She stated that only through BD practice we can build the
compost and manage living, healthy soil.
Making
compost preparations
Drago
and Uli during both days explained the meaning of the preparations to
many participants of this workshops, their influence on the soil and
the plants (food). They have presented how the preparations are made.
The participants asked a lot of questions about this preparations,
Drago and Uli answered them all. The participants also helped with
the procedures both days so they were learning by doing it
themselves.
Rudolf
Steiner's Recommendations in the Agriculture Course
• The
preparations should be stirred by hand. A machine should not be used.
This is because the stirring of preparations is a process as
intimately connected with the life of nature as that of seed
formation.
•
Enthusiasm
brought to the work strengthens the effectiveness of the
preparations, less substance is then needed!
• Machinery
can be used for spraying; indeed special implements and technology
need to be developed for this purpose.
Horn
Manure (500)
Horn
manure is used to stimulate soil vitality and encourage plants to
connect with the specific conditions of their growing site. It also
encourages deeper rooting systems, increased earthworm activity and a
better retention of soil moisture. It is an ingredient in root dips
(used in transplanting), in tree paste (to feed fruit trees) and can
be used as a seed bath treatment.
When
to use
Horn
manure is always applied in the late afternoon or early evening to
coincide with the in-breathing cycle of the day. Mild overcast days
should be chosen where possible. Heavy rain, high winds and frosty
weather should be avoided and during dry sunny spells spraying should
be delayed until close to sunset.
It
can be used several times during the year. It can be applied to all
areas in February and March and also in October or November. It is
recommended wherever crops have been sown or transplanted and can be
used on grassland after cutting or grazing. Spraying an area three
times in succession, with the same stirring, has proved beneficial as
have repeated applications during times of drought.
Water
Only
the best available water should be used. Tap and well water need to
stand for a few days before being used. Occasional vigorous stirrings
during this time will rid mains water of its chlorine content. Rain
water can also be used but if collected from roofs care should be
taken to avoid the first (usually polluted) storm waters. Water from
tiled roofs is preferable. The water should be heated until it is
hand warm (35-38 degrees centigrade) over a wood fire or using a
boiler. Where this is impractical, boiling water may be added. Warmed
water is important since warmth brings more activity to living
processes.
Stirring
When
the vessel is ready, the preparation can be taken and gently rubbed
between thumb and finger in the water to help it dissolve. If a
bucket is chosen, stirring may be done with the bare hand or with a
stout stick. The method of stirring is important. Stir the water
vigorously until a deep crater is formed in the rotating liquid. Then
reverse the direction of stirring to create a seething chaotic
turbulence before gradually forming a crater in the other direction.
Once this is achieved the direction of stirring should again be
reversed. This rhythmic process should be continued for an hour.
After one full hour the liquid is allowed to settle before being
poured through a sieve into a backpack or machine sprayer.
Spraying out
On a garden scale the
stirred preparation can be applied with a simple bucket and brush. A
hand brush made from natural fibres is best. This allows droplets of
water to be sprayed out over the ground. The technique is to walk
briskly over the garden or field while rhythmically spraying once to
the right and once to the left so as to lightly cover the ground with
water droplets.
The
application of biodynamic preparations often presents farms with a
major challenge - they may have too few staff or inadequate
technology. A common response is to consider mechanising the
stirring process which apart from adversely affecting the quality of
the preparations, does not generally solve the problem. A
qualitatively better approach is to optimise the stirring and
spraying operations and so enhance the efficiency in applying the
preparations. A significant amount of time can be saved by reducing
the amount of liquid to be sprayed out. Thus instead of the usual
40-60 litres per hectare it is possible to spray as little as 5-10
litres per hectare. This means that 200 litres of hand stirred
preparation could be sprayed on up to 40 hectares.
Date: 8. 6.
2014
Present:
Uli Johannes König, Erik Frydenlund, Sandra Percač, Jasminka
Iličić, Ivan Kosak, Drago Purgaj, Sonja Mauko Purgaj, Danijela
Kocuvan, Radovan Šuman, Karl Vogrinčič.
Topic:
Workshop:
Compost preparations
Location:
Donji Kraljevec, Rudolf
Steiner Center garden
Duration:
10:00 – 20:00
Summary:
Plants used for
making biodynamic preparations
The plants used for
making biodynamic preparations can be easily grown in the garden or
are else readily available as common wild plants many of them
occurring in profusion on areas of waste land. Some care is of course
needed in these situations to ensure that chemical sprays are not
being used and that the ground is not contaminated with industrial
waste. It is likewise best to avoid areas close to busy main roads.
Dandelion –
Taraxicum officianale
The dandelion is a very
common plant that grows in meadows, along wayside verges and in the
garden. The flowers are usually collected from the wild although the
plants can be specially cultivated. The ideal is to collect the
flowers on the biodynamic holding itself. They usually flower between
the first week of April and first week of May. The plant may flower
at other times but in insufficient quantity for a worthwhile harvest.
A grassy area filled with the golden dandelion heads make for an easy
and enjoyable harvest.
The flowers should be
picked in the morning when the sun is shining as soon as the flowers
are open usually after about 10.00. Flower days should be chosen.
Cloudy days are no use since the flower heads stay firmly closed. The
golden flower heads are picked without the flower stem as soon as
they are fully extended but before the central florets have opened.
This means that there should be a compact disc of unopened florets in
the centre of the flowers. Once fully opened the flowers rapidly form
seed and cannot be used.
The flowers can be
collected in a bucket but should not be left in it for long since
they soon start heating up and spoil. They should be laid out thinly
in a warm dry place. A sheet of newspaper laid out on the floor in
the house is ideal so long as it is out of direct sunlight. They dry
very quickly and can be stored in a paper bag until ready to use.
Quick drying (helped by a warm room) means that the flowers retain
their colour and do not go to seed.
Stinging nettle is
present around most human habitations and is a plant with a diversity
of uses. For the biodynamic nettle preparation, the plants should be
allowed to grow until they come into full flower. The plants are the
cut to ground level (no roots) and allowed to wilt in the sun for an
hour or two. A hole is then prepared n which to bury the nettles in
the garden choosing an open site and good soil.
Because the material
will reduce considerably during fermentation, care must be taken to
ensure that it can be found again. There are many ways to do this.
One effective way is to dig a hole, place a bottomless cardboard box
in it and then fill in the gap between box and soil (2
inches) with leaf
mould. The nettles are then put inside the box and pressed well down.
They are then covered with a layer of leaf mould before covering
everything with soil. The preparation is usually made in June. It
should stay in the ground for a whole year and is then carefully
removed (perhaps half an inch is all that remains) and stored in the
preparation store.
Chamomile
– Matricaria recutita
Chamomile
is a quick growing annual herb that is easily grown in the garden.
Plants sown in August and allowed to overwinter produce flowers in
early summer. A spring sowing will flower a bit later. The best crop
tends to be before midsummer.
Afterwards they can be
spoilt by the presence of flower weevils. The plants thrive on poor
and fairly compacted soil.
When the plants are in
full flower, flower heads can be picked singly and laid out to dry.
For picking choose a flower day and a time when the plants are dry.
They can also be be picked in the afternoon. It is best to pick the
flowers every day as soon as they are fully open. Picking is very
time consuming but it is surprising how many can be picked if half an
hour is allocated each day. As with dandelion, the flowers should be
immediately laid out to dry in a warm place out of direct sunlight.
The dried flowers can then be stored in a paper bag until needed.
Horsetail –
Equisetum arvense
The biggest challenge
with horsetail is finding the right variety. The correct species is
the one most frequently found in old gardens or on waste land. It has
a creeping underground root system and stems which are more or less
hard. This contrasts with the giant horsetail whose stem is hollow.
Another unsuitable species is the woodland horsetail which has finely
divided fronds.
The whole of the upper
part of the plant is harvested (no roots) preferably around midsummer
when it is in full growth (a second cut is possible later too). The
plants should be laid out in thin layers to dry as soon as possible
and should be turned daily. They rapidly start sweating and will turn
yellow if not dried quickly enough. Once dried the can be kept in a
Hessian or paper sack until needed.
Valerian –
Valeriana officianalis
Valerian can be found
growing wild in moist areas often along river banks. It is also very
easily grown in the garden where it produces a majestic plant up to
six foot high. Again it is the flowers which are harvested. Flowering
takes place around midsummer. Choose a flower day and harvest in the
morning. The majority of the florets should be fully open. Pick the
whole head together with all the flower stalks. The harvested flowers
should then be processed immediately.
The flowers should be
put through a mincer to break up all the cells. They are then tied up
inside a piece of old sheet and the juice is squeezed out. A
practical way of doing this is to squeeze the pack in a vice and
collect up the resulting juice. The juice should then be stored in a bottle with a
screw-top lid and kept in a dark and frost free place until needed
(for over a year if necessary).
An alternative method
is to pack the freshly picked flower heads into a jar, fill it with
rain or spring water, screw the lid on and leave it outside in the
sun for three weeks. In this time the juice will be extracted into
the water. It can then be strained and stored as before. This juice
needs to be used fairly quickly (within a few months)
Yarrow – Achillea
millefolium
Yarrow can be easily
grown in the garden as an attractive perennial plant. It also grows
freely throughout the country on dryer banks and wayside verges.
Unpolluted areas away from main roads should be chosen. Flowering
takes place from mid-summer onwards.
The flower heads are
picked as soon as all the florets are open. It doesn't matter if some
of the outer ones are already forming seed. Fruit days are
recommended for this harvest. The heads can be cut with scissors or
plucked off by hand. It is good to take as little of the stalky
material as possible. They can also be picked with stalks but these
must be removed later once the plants are dry. The flowers are then
laid out to dry in a warm place out of direct sunlight and like the
other herbs stored in a paper bag.
Oak bark – Quercus
robur
Oak bark can be
collected from a living oak tree in different ways. One of the
simplest methods is to take a surf form and scrape off bark shavings
from the surface of the trunk or branch of a tree. It is also
possible to break of lumps of bark from a newly felled branch and
grind them up into a kind of rough flour. The oak bark can then be
stored in a tin until required.
Storage of Compost
Preparations
Each of the
preparations (apart from valerian) should be placed individually in a
container with a loose fitting lid. Unglazed earthenware pots are
best but glass jars or ceramic containers will also do. These pots
should then be placed in an untreated wooden box and surrounded on
all sides with peat. Valerian should be stored in its bottle or
another dark glass bottle. It can be kept in the peat box with the
other preparations or stored separately in a cool dark place.
The box should be
stored under cover in a cool, dark and frost-free place away from the
injurious influences of electro-magnetic and microwave radiation
(phone masts etc.) as well as other potentially toxic influences.
Peat is used because it has the property of being a radiation
barrier. Since these preparations work through their radiating power,
peat is an ideal material for preventing the dissipation of their
properties during storage. When stored in this way the preparations
will maintain their vitality for more than a year.
The six compost
preparations are used to treat garden compost, manure piles, deep
litter beds, liquid manure and slurry. Their purpose is to regulate
the many organic processes taking place inside an active compost
heap. Each preparation has its own unique function in relation to the
various soil nutrient processes. Working together they help to bring
harmony, balance and stability to the soil.
Croatian
Project No.:
2013-1-SI1-GRU06-05514 4
This
project has been funded with support from the European
Commission.
This publication reflects the views only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.
This publication reflects the views only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.
Rudolf
Steiner Center garden, Donji Kraljevec
Alex Padolinsky
Rudolf
Steiner Center garden, Donji Kraljevec
Partners of the project
at Donji Kraljevec
