Fifty Years of Biodynamic Farming

Fifty Years of Biodynamic Farming: Essays From the Field
Henning K. Sehmsdorf
S&S Homestead Press

Henning Sehmsdorf’s Fifty Years of Biodynamic Farming: Essays From the Field is a delightful collection of essays written by Henning, his wife Elizabeth and various other authors who have worked or interned at their farm on Lopez Island in Washington state.

A native of Germany, Sehmsdorf grew up in post-WWI and lived through WWII. Despite this background, Sehmsdorf was, as he describes “seeded with experiences and impressions from which grew a deep sense of the irreducible goodness of life, and of the earth from which grow plants, animals, and nourishment, as sacred.”

On moving to the United States at the age of nineteen, Sehmsdorf was appalled at the food system he found here. Working in a meat plant while attending community college, he was deeply affected by the conditions and the treatment of animals as well as the working conditions for the employees. Sehmsdorf resolved to eat only meat he grew ecologically himself. Ten years later, his dream became a reality. He and his wife now run S&S Homestead on Lopez Island, a self-sufficient and sustainable farm, managed using biodynamic practices, which not only feeds their family but their community as well.

Fifty Years of Biodynamic Farming is, you might say, a magnum opus of the experiences, knowledge and expertise they have gained along the way. The book is broken up into seven parts: Biodynamics, Living the Holistic High Life, Growing Plants, Growing Animals, Building Things, Economics and World View & Holistic Science.

In Part I, Sehmsdorf explains biodynamics and its origins from the work of Rudolf Steiner. In 1924, Steiner gave eight lectures on agriculture, which would become the foundation for biodynamics, as well as organic agriculture, regenerative agriculture and permaculture. In short, biodynamic farming is organic farming, but above and beyond organic as we know it. It encompasses: 1) the integration of animals to create a closed nutrient cycle; 2) the use of the astronomical calendar for planting, cultivating and harvesting; and 3) awareness of spiritual forces in nature. Sehmsdorf sums it up nicely by writing that biodynamics is “a practice of living and relating to nature in a way that focuses on the health of the bioregion, landscape, soil, plant, and human life and it promotes the inner development of each practitioner.”

Throughout the succeeding sections, the author and other contributors expand upon the theory of biodynamics by showing the reader how it is put into practice through various areas of farming. In the essay, “Living the Holistic High Life,” we are encouraged to eat whole foods as eaten by our ancestors, with principles that will be familiar to any WAPF member, including chemical-free whole foods, raw dairy, saturated fat from animal products, lactofermentation of dairy products and vegetables, and small amounts of raw meat.

In the essay, “Teach Your Children Well,” Elizabeth Simpson (Sehmsdorf’s wife) describes a delightful program they have undertaken at their homestead to introduce adolescents to agriculture and real food. Through this program they have been able to work with area public schools to get not only local produce in the school cafeteria, but even local grass-fed beef.

Part II of the book, “Growing Plants,” covers such topics as pastoral versus industrial food production and advocates pasture-raised meats and animals raised well versus those raised in confinement. Simpson discusses the hazards industrial meat cause, not only for our own health but also the health of the animals and workers, as well as environmental, social and ethical concerns.

In another essay, “Medicinal Plants,” Sehmsdorf discusses various plants and herbs, along with their health benefits and preparation methods. There is an essay detailing starting up and managing a CSA, one on compost management, one on nutrient balancing in soil, another on seeds and one on starting up a garden-to-cafeteria program at the local elementary school. Another essay discusses the sacredness of sourdough bread.

In the section titled “Growing Animals,” various essays cover such topics as ecological livestock raising, biodynamic dairy and bee health. In “Ecological Livestock Raising,” Sehmsdorf presents the different breeds of animals they raise on their farm, and why. The essay explains why they choose heritage breeds versus more conventional breeds, such as passing on the ever popular Cornish Cross chicken and instead using a heritage breed chicken that perhaps produces less tender meat but that can free range and live life as a chicken should. He also compares and contrasts a conventional industrial farm in Iowa with the well-known Polyface Farm in Virginia, where Joel Salatin and his family raise livestock using ecologically sound practices.

The section “Building Things” covers solo-powered irrigation, a strawbale house, and building a barn. In the essay titled “A Straw Bale House for a Sustainable Farm,” the author details building a house for the farm interns to live in that also encompasses the ideals of the S&S Homestead.

“Part VI; Economics” covers the ins and outs of maintaining a sustainable and viable family farm, with essays on home food security, marketing and stewardship.

And finally in the last section, “World View and Holistic Science,” Sehmsdorf discusses various theories of Steiner and Goethe, including plant morphology, color theory and teleology. Various essays evaluate the energy use of the S&S Homestead, its impact on the earth, as well as the spiritual aspects of farming, an often overlooked concept in agricultural circles.

If I must come up with any negative aspect to this collection of essays, it is one essay on food by Jenell Kvistad, where she seems to suggest that a vegetarian diet can provide all the necessary amino acids. WAPF members will likely be familiar with the fallacies of this idea.

By and large, this book is insightful and educational, a must-read for anyone wanting to farm or homestead, or looking to understand how farming, when done right, benefits us, the earth and the animals. I give it a very hearty thumbs up.

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