June 2008
Sacred Earth Network (SEN) and University of the Wild are collaborating to run a transformational 10-day intensive. This highly experiential program will introduce participants to the core of what it means to live a sustainable, balanced and joyful life. The Wild Earth Intensive was created in response to the question: Now that we understand the severe limitations of the dominant paradigm, how do we reconstruct a world-view that works for all beings? Dates: June 4 - 13, 2008. Facilitators: Bill Pfeiffer, Mark Morey, Miriam Dror, Jim Beard & Cathy Pedevillano. Cost: Sliding scale, $500-$750. The cost includes lodging and delicious food. Location: Earthlands - A beautiful, secluded site in Petersham, MA with hundreds of acres of forests, meadows and streams. Registration Deadline: May 15, 2008. Contact: Patrick Draper at patrick@universityofthewild.org or (978) 724-3448, or visit www.universityofthewild.org.
9:00 am - 5:00 pm, $95. Among all the farm animals, the horse is as important as ever for generating fertilizer, while its usefulness as an energy-independent, nonpolluting source of work energy is greater than ever. After reviewing the basic nature and care of the draft horse and its harness and equipment, attendees will get hands-on instruction and practice in several tasks. The Pfeiffer Center, (845) 352-5020 x20, info@pfeiffercenter.org.
The 19th annual Energy Fair will be held at MREA's headquarters, the ReNew the Earth Institute, located at 7558 Deer Road in Custer, WI. Since 1990, the Energy Fair has shown fairgoers how to change the world while having fun. Each summer the Fair transforms rural central Wisconsin into the global hot spot for renewable energy education. The Energy Fair is the world's largest renewable energy, energy efficiency, and sustainable living educational event of its kind. For more information, visit the-mrea.org/energy_fair.php.
How to make the horn silica (BD #501) preparation, and the making of the yarrow (BD #502) preparation. Lunch is included in the price. Cost: $50. For further information, contact Josephine Porter Institute for Applied Biodynamics, P.O. Box 133, Woolwine, VA 24185, (276) 930-24185, info@jpibiodynamics.org.
Heike-Marie and Wally Eubanks, 95084 Cherry Ridge Lane, Myrtle Point, OR 97548. 541-572-3317.
Schedule:
9:00am - Learning how to make preparation 502 (yarrow)
12:00pm - Potluck lunch (please bring something)
afternoon - Farm tour, especially Heike-Marie and Wally's garden
Practical information about the use of preparation 501 (quartz)
Evaluating the stored biodynamic preparations
Camping Overnight: For those who want to come Friday night and stay over: plenty of room for camping. Bring food to contribute to any meals you will need. RSVP one week ahead of time if possible.
Ordering Preparations: Please call Heike-Marie at least 3 days ahead. For Sale: Walk-behind combination tractor, mower, tiller.
Heike-Marie Eubanks has been responsible for storing the biodynamic preparations for many years. She is a former nurse and a superb gardener. She was originally trained in Germany in a college program to become a farmer's wife!
Directions: Take highway 42 (Exit 119 from I-5) from Roseburg towards Coos Bay. 1 hour to Myrtle Point. Go 2 stop lights and turn right at the next street. Go 1 mile; then turn left onto Cherry Ridge Ln. Last house up the hill.
One week summer course at The Nature Institute, 20 May Hill Road, Ghent, NY 12075, 518-672-0116, info@natureinstitute.org, www.natureinstitute.org
Convenes every three years in conjunction with IFOAM Organic World Congress. It is the democratic decision-making forum for the international organic movement. For more information, visit www.ifoam.org
On-Farm Workshop
June 27-29, 2008. S&S Homestead Farm, Lopez Island, Washington. The program will include on-farm slaughter using the USDA mobile unit, harvesting of animal sheaths, demonstration of biodynamic prep making and usage, presentations on various topics including how to form a healthy farm organism, practical and artistic applications of Goethan color theory, sensitive imagining and food quality, making and understanding compost teas, on-farm food processing and fermentation, and most of all, celebrating farm-produced food and drink. Presenters include farmers, WSU researchers, and biodynamic practictioners. For details and workshop information, contact sshomestead@rockisland.com, or (360) 468-3335.
Hosts: Patricia Kaminski and Richard Katz. Richard and Patricia are married and professional partners. They founded their herbal company, Flower Essence Services three decades ago. Terra Flora is a 27-acre garden and woodland sanctuary in the Sierra foothills, where their herbal cottage industry flourishes. The FES flower essence products are known and used by professional practitioners throughout the world and have been Demeter certified since 1998. For more information see www.fesflowers.com or www.flowersociety.org.
Contacts: Patricia Kaminski (reservations) at pkaminski@flowersociety.org, 530-265-0247. Shan Kendall (meals) at daveshanken@juno.com or 530-478-5628. Steve Reynolds (other lodging, not at Terra Flora) slreynolds@sbcglobal.net.
If you wish to attend: You MUST contact our hosts and let them know! Leave:
1> your name, and how many people are coming with you
2> when you will arrive,
3> whether you need directions, (directions and a map are available via email) Leave your email address or phone number if so.
July 2008
Explore our connections with nature, our gardens, and farms through many different meditations and teachings. Also some brief writing and photography exercises, exercises wtih darkness (night), and with our senses. Visit www.centerforanthroposophy.org for more info and to register.
a new continuing education program for high school science teachers at The Nature Institute, 20 May Hill Road, Ghent, NY 12075, 518-672-0116, info@natureinstitute.org, www.natureinstitute.org
Hosted by the University of Minnesota’s Southwest Research and Outreach Center in Lamberton, MN, the Organic Field Day will be held from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm. Dr. Walter Goldstein of Michael Fields Agricultural Institute will be the keynote speaker. Admission is free; lunch is $5. Register by contacting the Southwest Research and Outreach Center at (507) 752-7372 or bemail werne022@umn.edu. For more information, visit www.organicecology.umn.edu.
This field day is a collaboration between PASA, Penn State and Pennsylvania Certified Organic. Several Penn State scientists and researchers will meet us at the Southeast Research and Extension Center at Landisville to discuss disease and insect management in bramble crops, including blackberries, as well as general information on growing bramble crops. Topics will include blackberry cultivars and their characteristics, common bramble diseases, tips for diagnosing bramble problems, and growing brambles in high tunnels. You'll have the opportunity to visit various identified cultivars in the field, look at disease symptoms with hand lenses, and learn about the requirements for transitioning to organic bramble production.
In addition, presenters will demonstrate two other projects on weed and disease management. We'll hear about the use of cover crops between rows of plastic to manage weeds in vegetable crops, and the use of softer chemistries for tomato disease management. This field day has something to offer producers and educators, students and ag professionals alike.
Visit pasafarming.org for more information.
The Johnson Farm is a 2,400-acre certified organic operation near Madison, SD operated by Charlie and Bette, Allan and Marcia Johnson families. The Wilcox Farm, also rural Madison, includes a small cow-calf operation and a 350-head finishing lot.
Panel Discussions: Managing Obstacles in Organic Production, and Marketing and Equipment Sharing.
Contact: Northern Plains Sustainable Agriculture Society, 100 1st Ave SW, PO Box 194, LaMoure ND 58458. (701) 883-4304 phone. (701) 883-4204 fax. Email slnpsas@drtel.net or visit www.npsas.org.
For further information, contact Josephine Porter Institute for Applied Biodynamics, P.O. Box 133, Woolwine, VA 24185, (276) 930-24185, info@jpibiodynamics.org.
Meditation retreat, 'The Great Passage,' dedicated to the passage between the worlds. It will be held in a beautiful forested area at the Whidbey Island Institute at Chinook on Whidbey Island, WA. For more information, visit the Coros Institute website.
Join us to develop a more satisfying relationship with the natural world through gaining skills that lead to a heightened awareness of plants and animals. In the spirit of integrative thinker and scientist Goethe, participants will experience Angelic Organics Farm through systematic observations and reflections. Please pre-register (815) 389-8455 or www.learngrowconnect.org. Program Fee: $50. 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM. Angelic Organics Learning Center, 1547 Rockton Road, Caledonia, IL 61011.
10:00am to late afternoon. A farm visit and informational meeting on the use of the quartz spray preparation 501. Hosted by: Ruby and Amber's Organic Oasis, the home of Kris Woolhouse and Walt Bernard, 75976 Booth Kelly Camp Rd., Dorena, OR (541-946-1504). (Ruby and Amber are the original farm draft horses! Draft horse demonstration at the end of the meeting, weather permitting.) Please bring a brown bag lunch.
Purpose of the Meeting: The quartz spray preparation 501 (Silica) is the most complicated to understand of the biodynamic spray preparations. At the meeting we will go over the basics and then take a farm tour to share experiences about how to use this preparation with various crops.
Directions: Take I-5 exit 174 (Cottage Grove/Dorena). At the first light (Row River Rd.), go left. At Wick's Rd, turn right. (Kirk and Family Mercantile store on the corner). Turn right on Booth Kelly Camp Rd. Go 1/2 mile to 75976 Booth Kelly Camp Rd.
August 2008
MARK YOUR CALENDARS ! The Biodynamic Farming and Gardening Association’s 2008 National Biodynamic Conference: AGRICULTURE and SPIRITUALITY. August 1-3, 2008. Rudolf Steiner College, 9200 Fair Oaks Blvd, Fair Oaks, CA. Keynote speakers Dennis Klocek, Hugh Williams, and Wali Via will lead us in exploring this year’s theme, Agriculture and Spirituality. There will also be a variety of workshops covering biodynamics in all its applications, from backyard to farmyard to vineyard, in addition to farm tours, discussion groups, a wine and food tasting, wonderful meals, and contra dancing. Detailed information is available on our conference page.
For further information, contact Josephine Porter Institute for Applied Biodynamics, P.O. Box 133, Woolwine, VA 24185, (276) 930-24185, info@jpibiodynamics.org.
Refreshments served. For further information, contact Josephine Porter Institute for Applied Biodynamics, P.O. Box 133, Woolwine, VA 24185, (276) 930-24185, info@jpibiodynamics.org.
September 2008
Sign up now for this popular introductory course in biodynamics, a scientific and spiritual approach to farming and gardening. Sessions include Evolution, Environment, and Ecology; Biodynamic Preprations; Soil Building and Composting; Animal Husbandry; Pruning Fruit Trees; and more! Monthly weekend sessions from September to June. The Pfeiffer Center
Chestnut Ridge, New York. (845) 352-5020 x20. Email info@pfeiffercenter.org or visit www.pfeiffercenter.org/workshops.
Ana Pogacnik, international Geomancy instructor, founder of Schule “Wieder Sehen” (School “To See Again”), accomplished musician and composer, and co-author of the book How Wide the Heart: The Roots of Peace in Palestine and Israel , will return to Northern California this fall, to offer a series of opportunities to learn more about the partnership that can exist between humanity and the Earth at this auspicious time in history.
Rudolf Steiner College, Fair Oaks, CA. AN EVENING TALK AND CONCERT: WAKE UP! THE EARTH IS CHANGING. Ana will open our eyes to the earth changes under way. She will show how our conscious awareness of this helps us in seeing the parallel process to these outer shifts in our own being. Our physical body is connected to the body of the earth herself and this change is a gift in which we are invited to partake. This lecture will conclude with musical improvisation by Ana.
For more information, contact karendavisbrown@yahoo.com.
Ana Pogacnik, international Geomancy instructor, founder of Schule “Wieder Sehen” (School “To See Again”), accomplished musician and composer, and co-author of the book How Wide the Heart: The Roots of Peace in Palestine and Israel , will return again to Northern California this fall, to offer a series of opportunities to learn more about the partnership that can exist between humanity and the Earth at this auspicious time in history.
FRIDAY EVENING SEPTEMBER 5 - SUNDAY AFTERNOON SEPTEMBER 7. Headlands Institute/Golden Gate Recreation Area, Marin County, CA. Ana will offer a more in-depth version of the one-day Nevada City workshop, and the group will work with the landscape of the Redwood Creek Watershed in partnership with ranger Carolyn Shoulders.
For more information, contact karendavisbrown@yahoo.com.
Ana Pogacnik, international Geomancy instructor, founder of Schule “Wieder Sehen” (School “To See Again”), accomplished musician and composer, and co-author of the book How Wide the Heart: The Roots of Peace in Palestine and Israel , will return again to Northern California this fall, to offer a series of opportunities to learn more about the partnership that can exist between humanity and the Earth at this auspicious time in history.
Soultree Farm, Nevada City, CA. A ONE-DAY WORKSHOP: OUTER LANDSCAPE AS A MIRROR OF THE INNER LANDSCAPE. We are a microcosm of the Earth, and in that way the Earth itself. We are one cell of the Earth and through that we carry information about the Earth as macrocosm. With our presence, with our being, and with our activities we mirror the landscape and at the same time the landscape is a mirror of our selves.
During the seminar we will visit and come in contact with places that are important for Soultree Farm and the surrounding landscape. Through individual exercises and different techniques of group singing, rhythmical movements, special dances, and guided meditation, we will search for hidden and often already forgotten qualities of this place/landscape. Through these activities, we will uncover deeply imprinted memories and solve many riddles that the landscape is carrying and is offering to us as the mirror through which we can recognise, understand and heal many unsolved questions about ourselves and our lives.
For more information, contact karendavisbrown@yahoo.com.
Eurythmy is a movement art with practical applications in education (especially in Waldorf Schools), as a performance stage art and in therapeutic settings. Translated from the Greek, eurythmy means beautiful or harmonious rhythm. Day and night, seed time and harvest, summer and winter are all rhythms of nature which are internalized and expressed in rhythmical movement. The gestures that build the basic movement repertoire are connected to the sounds and rhythms of language, to the tonal quality of music, and ot the fundamental experiences of the soul such as joy and sorrow. Join Chicago Waldorf School instructor, Irene Arrendondo, for amorning of movement and conversation. Program fee: $15. Please pre-register (815) 389-8455 or www.learngrowconnect.org. 10:00 am - 11:30 pm. Angelic Organics Learning Center, 1547 Rockton Road, Caledonia, IL 61011.
The Northeast Animal Power Field Days is a celebration of sustainable farming and renewable resources promoting conservation, stewardship, small farms, healthy forests, and the roles that they play in vital communities. This 3-day conference will feature working animal and equipment demonstrations in field and forest settings, workshops, exhibits, networking sessions, and an auction and swap meet on Sunday. Workshop topics will include grazing management, working with draft animals, livestock health, getting started with animal power and more.
For more information, visit www.animalpowerfielddays.org or contact Carl Russell and Lisa McCrory, info@animalpowerfielddays.org, 802-234-5524.
How to make horn manure (BD #500) and stinging nettle (BD #504) preparation. Lunch is included in the price. Cost: $60.00. Date is subject to change. For further information, contact Josephine Porter Institute for Applied Biodynamics, P.O. Box 133, Woolwine, VA 24185, (276) 930-24185, info@jpibiodynamics.org.
October 2008
Jim Baruasky shall offer workshops at Frog Belly Farm. Starting in October 2008 - every Friday from 5:00-6:30 and every Saturday morning from 9:00-1:00. The Friday fee is $20 and the Saturday fee is $50. Please contact Jim directly at (303) 516-0606. Email goodfarmers@hotmail.com. His website for his farming and gardening consulting services is www.goodfarmers.org.
12th annual conference on "Restoring Our Urban and Rural Communities with Healthy Foods" in Philadelphia, PA and Cherry Hill, NJ at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Cherry Hill, NJ. Co-sponsored by the Food Trust and many other Philadelphia area organizations. Registration info available in June. Scholarships will be available. For more info, visit healthyfoodconference.com.
Will include prep-making, as well as a fermentation workshop led by Sandor Katz (author of Wild Fermentation).
Harvesting of sheaths, and the making of the Biodynamic preparations. Five days of hands-on workshops and lectures. Guest speaker to be announced. All meals included in the price. Some housing available; tenting permitted. Cost: $500.00. For further information, contact Josephine Porter Institute for Applied Biodynamics, P.O. Box 133, Woolwine, VA 24185, (276) 930-24185, info@jpibiodynamics.org.
November 2008
All-day event, with lecture by Hugh Courtney. Lunch will be served. No fee for this day of good conversation and good energy. For further information, contact Josephine Porter Institute for Applied Biodynamics, P.O. Box 133, Woolwine, VA 24185, (276) 930-24185, info@jpibiodynamics.org.
Michael Howard and Siegwart Elsas will be with us and the theme will be: "The Art of Research: Cultivating Feeling as an Organ of Perception for Scientists." Details of the conference will be forthcoming. Contributions and reports describing your own research are encouraged.
The Community Shared Agriculture Conference endeavors to generate support for small community–based farm operations. Workshops and presentations will focus on practical techniques, tools and resources specific to organics and CSA farming. Topics include production, marketing and financial aspects of running a CSA operation. For more information, visit www.csaconference2008.ca/home.html. Unique to the 2008 conference, a CSA mini–school will be offered to novice farmers or existing farm operators interested in switching to a CSA program.
December 2008
January 2009
In January 2009, some of the leading practitioners and exponents of biodynamic agriculture will gather at the historic Threefold Center - site of Ehrenfried Pfeiffer's pioneering work - to study and share their knowledge about the origins and future of Biodynamics. Those with an active interest and working knowledge of Rudolf Steiner's Agriculture lectures are invited to join in this enlightening seminar. Contact (845) 352-5020 x20, info@pfeiffercenter.org, www.pfeiffercenter.org.
29th annual Eco-Farm conference. Details to be announced.